1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to certain filing fees and salaries of judges in the
1-3 statutory county courts of certain counties.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Sections 25.0005(a) and (e), Government Code, are
1-6 amended to read as follows:
1-7 (a) A statutory county court judge, other than a statutory
1-8 county court judge who engages in the private practice of law or a
1-9 judge in whose court fees and costs under Section 51.702 are not
1-10 collected, shall be paid a total annual salary set by the
1-11 commissioners court at an amount that is at least equal to the
1-12 amount that is $4,000 [$1,000] less than the total annual salary
1-13 received by a district judge in the county. A district judge's or
1-14 statutory county court judge's total annual salary includes
1-15 contributions and supplements, paid by the state or a county, other
1-16 than contributions received as compensation under Section 74.051.
1-17 (e) A county is not required to meet the salary requirements
1-18 of Subsection (a) for a particular court if:
1-19 (1) not later than September 1 of the year in which
1-20 the county initially begins collecting fees and costs under Section
1-21 51.702, the county increases the salary of each statutory county
1-22 court judge in the county to an amount that is at least:
1-23 (A) $20,000 more than the salary the judge was
1-24 entitled to on May 1 of that year, if the county initially begins
2-1 collecting fees and costs under Section 51.702 before January 1,
2-2 1998, and is also at least $24,000 more than the salary the judge
2-3 was entitled to on May 1, 1997; and
2-4 (B) $24,000 more than the salary the judge was
2-5 entitled to on May 1 of that year if the county initially begins
2-6 collecting fees and costs under Section 51.702 on or after January
2-7 1, 1998;
2-8 (2) the county maintains the salary at the minimum
2-9 required by Subdivision (1);
2-10 (3) the county collects the fees and costs as provided
2-11 by Section 51.702;
2-12 (4) the court has at least the jurisdiction provided
2-13 by Section 25.0003; and
2-14 (5) except as provided by Subsection (f), the county
2-15 uses at least 50 percent of the amount the county receives each
2-16 state fiscal year under Section 25.0016 for salaries for the
2-17 statutory county court judges.
2-18 SECTION 2. Section 25.0015(a), Government Code, is amended
2-19 to read as follows:
2-20 (a) Beginning on the first day of the state fiscal year, the
2-21 state shall annually compensate each county that collects the
2-22 additional fees and costs under Section 51.702 in an amount equal
2-23 to $30,000 [$25,000] for each statutory county court judge in the
2-24 county who:
2-25 (1) does not engage in the private practice of law;
2-26 (2) presides over a court with at least the
2-27 jurisdiction provided by Section 25.0003; and
3-1 (3) except as provided by Section 25.0005(d), is not
3-2 excluded from the application of Section 25.0003 or Section
3-3 25.0005.
3-4 SECTION 3. Section 25.0016(c), Government Code, is amended
3-5 to read as follows:
3-6 (c) In determining the amount deposited in the judicial fund
3-7 under Section 51.702 for a county that collects fees and costs as
3-8 provided by that section, the comptroller shall credit $40 [$30] of
3-9 each fee deposited in the judicial fund under Section 51.701 by
3-10 that county for cases assigned to a statutory county court as fees
3-11 deposited under Section 51.702.
3-12 SECTION 4. Section 51.702(a), Government Code, is amended to
3-13 read as follows:
3-14 (a) Except as provided by Subsection (g), in addition to all
3-15 other fees authorized or required by other law, the clerk of a
3-16 statutory county court shall collect a $40 [$30] filing fee in each
3-17 civil case filed in the court to be used for court-related purposes
3-18 for the support of the judiciary.
3-19 SECTION 5. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b) of this
3-20 section, this Act takes effect September 1, 1997, and applies only
3-21 to a fee for a case filed on or after the effective date of this
3-22 Act or to a salary payment made on or after the effective date of
3-23 this Act. A case filed or a salary payment made before the
3-24 effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect at the
3-25 time the case was filed or the salary payment was made, and that
3-26 law is continued in effect for that purpose.
3-27 (b) Section 1 of this Act takes effect January 1, 1998.
4-1 SECTION 6. This Act takes effect only if Senate Bill No.
4-2 310, Acts of the 75th Legislature, Regular Session, 1997, is
4-3 enacted and becomes law. If Senate Bill No. 310 does not become
4-4 law, this Act does not take effect.
4-5 SECTION 7. The importance of this legislation and the
4-6 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
4-7 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
4-8 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
4-9 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
4-10 and that this Act take effect and be in force according to its
4-11 terms, and it is so enacted.
_______________________________ _______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 2837 was passed by the House on May
16, 1997, by a non-record vote; that the House refused to concur in
Senate amendments to H.B. No. 2837 on May 29, 1997, and requested
the appointment of a conference committee to consider the
differences between the two houses; and that the House adopted the
conference committee report on H.B. No. 2837 on May 31, 1997, by a
non-record vote.
_______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 2837 was passed by the Senate, with
amendments, on May 27, 1997, by the following vote: Yeas 30, Nays
1; at the request of the House, the Senate appointed a conference
committee to consider the differences between the two houses; and
that the Senate adopted the conference committee report on H.B. No.
2837 on June 1, 1997, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0.
_______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
APPROVED: _____________________
Date
_____________________
Governor