By Goodman                                       H.B. No. 398

      75R2003 MLS-F                           

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to the salaries of certain statutory county court judges.

 1-3           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-4           SECTION 1.  Sections 25.0005(a), (b), and (e), Government

 1-5     Code, are amended to read as follows:

 1-6           (a)  A statutory county court judge, other than a statutory

 1-7     county court judge who engages in the private practice of law [or a

 1-8     judge in whose court fees and costs under Section 51.702 are not

 1-9     collected], shall be paid a total annual salary set by the

1-10     commissioners court at an amount that is at least equal to the

1-11     amount that is $1,000 less than the total annual salary received by

1-12     a district judge in the county.  A district judge's or statutory

1-13     county court judge's total annual salary includes contributions and

1-14     supplements, paid by the state or a county, other than

1-15     contributions received as compensation under Section 74.051.

1-16           (b)  Subject to any salary requirements otherwise imposed by

1-17     this chapter for a particular court or county, the commissioners

1-18     court sets the salary of each statutory county court judge who

1-19     engages in the private practice of law [or in whose court fees and

1-20     costs under Section 51.702 are not collected].

1-21           (e)  A county is not required to meet the salary requirements

1-22     of Subsection (a) for a particular court if:

1-23                 (1)  not later than September 1 of the year in which

1-24     the county initially begins collecting fees and costs under Section

 2-1     51.702, the county increases the salary of each statutory county

 2-2     court judge in the county to an amount that is at least $20,000

 2-3     more than the salary the judge was entitled to on May 1 of that

 2-4     year;

 2-5                 (2)  the county pays at least [maintains] the salary

 2-6     [at the minimum] required by Subdivision (1);

 2-7                 (3)  the county collects the fees and costs as provided

 2-8     by Section 51.702;

 2-9                 (4)  the court has at least the jurisdiction provided

2-10     by Section 25.0003;  and

2-11                 (5)  except as provided by Subsection (f), the county

2-12     increases the salary of each statutory county court judge by an

2-13     amount equal to one-half of the difference between the judge's

2-14     salary on January 1, 1997, and the minimum salary provided by

2-15     Subsection (a) in each budget of the next two county fiscal years

2-16     that begin after September 1, 1997 [uses at least 50 percent of the

2-17     amount the county receives each state fiscal year under Section

2-18     25.0016 for salaries for the statutory county court judges].

2-19           SECTION 2.  Section 25.0015(b), Government Code, is amended

2-20     to read as follows:

2-21           (b)  The amount shall be paid to the county's salary fund in

2-22     equal monthly installments from funds appropriated from the

2-23     judicial fund and any other available funds.

2-24           SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the

2-25     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

2-26     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

2-27     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

 3-1     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,

 3-2     and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its

 3-3     passage, and it is so enacted.