LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
Austin, Texas
FISCAL NOTE
75th Regular Session
April 9, 1997
TO: Honorable Rodney Ellis, Chair IN RE: Senate Bill No. 1417, Committee Report 1st House, Substituted
Committee on Jurisprudence By: Ellis
Senate
Austin, Texas
FROM: John Keel, Director
In response to your request for a Fiscal Note on SB1417 ( relating
to judicial efficiency.) this office has detemined the following:
Biennial Net Impact to General Revenue Funds by SB1417-Committee Report 1st House, Substituted
Implementing the provisions of the bill would result in a
net positive impact of $7,570,678 to General Revenue Related
Funds through the biennium ending August 31, 1999.
The bill would make no appropriation but could provide the legal
basis for an appropriation of funds to implement the provisions
of the bill.
The bill would establish a Time Payment Fee
of $25 which would be assessed by clerks of district, county
and justice courts on persons who sought to pay a court fine
or court costs or restitution over a period of time. The county
would send 50% of the fees collected to the comptroller to deposit
in the Judicial Technology Infrastructure Account of the General
Revenue Fund. The custodian of the county treasury could retain
40% of the fees collected as reimbursement for collecting the
fee. The remaining 10% of the fees collected shall be sent
to the comptroller to be deposited into the Office of Court
Administration Grant Account. The Office of Court Administration
Grant Account shall provide grants to enhance the collections
of court costs, fines or restitution ordered. The account may
be supplemented by local or federal money and public or private
grants.
The bill would also create a recruitment program
at the Office of Court Administration to recruit individuals
for judicial law clerks and staff attorneys.
The bill would
create the Judicial Law Clerk Student Loan Fund as an account
in the General Revenue Fund to assist judicial law clerks to
repay law school debts. The fund would be administered by the
Texas Judicial Council.
The bill would direct the Office
of Court Administration (OCA) to establish a program to assist
courts in employing judicial law clerks, requires the agency
to publish a report regarding the demographic profile of the
judicial law clerks and attorneys employed by the courts of
the state, directs the agency to adopt rules and forms for collecting
performance information, and gives the agency additional responsibilities.
The
Judicial Committee on Information Technology would be established,
and the bill provides that members may receive reimbursement
for travel expenses. The bill also would create the Judicial
Technology Account in the Judicial Fund and would authorize
the Supreme Court to impose a charge for access to information
that exists on the computerized electronic judicial information
system. The bill provides that money in the judicial technology
account may be supplemented by local or federal money and public
or private grants.
Fiscal Analysis
The bill creates 3 funds: Judicial Law Clerk Student Fund and
Office of Court Administration Grant Account within the General
Revenue Fund, and the Judicial Technology Account within the
Judicial Fund. It provides a funding source for the OCA Grant
Account, but no funding source for the other two accounts.
Methodolgy
It is estimated that there will be 816,190 eligible cases at
$25 a case or $20,404,738 in time payment fees annually. Fifty
percent of the fees, $10,202,369, would go to the general revenue
fund. Forty percent, or $8.2 million, remains at the county
level for collecting the fee. The remaining 10 percent or $2,040.474,
would be deposited into the Office of Court Administration
Grant Account in the General Revenue Fund. Costs to OCA would
be: $71,860 in FY 98, and $61,160 in FY 99 for Judicial law
clerk and staff attorney recruitment; $614,139 in FY 98 and
$614,139 in FY 99 for the Judicial Law Clerk Student Loan Fund,
$5,000 in each year for the demographic census, $70,200 in FY
98 and $60,500 in FY 99 for court performance standards, $5,451,306
in FY 98 and $5,436,756 in FY 99 for the Judicial Committee
on Information Technology and $232,000 in FY 98 and $212,000
in FY 99 for court efficiency requirements.
The probable fiscal implications of implementing the provisions
of the bill during each of the first five years following passage
is estimated as follows:
Five Year Impact:
Fiscal Year Probable Revenue Probable Revenue Probable Change in Number
Gain/(Loss) from Gain/(Loss) from Savings/(Cost) of State
General Revenue New GR-Dedicated from General Employees from
Fund Account - Office Revenue Fund FY 1997
of Court
Administration
Grant Account
0001 8021 0001
1998 $10,202,369 $2,040,474 ($6,444,505) 40.0
1998 10,202,369 2,040,474 (6,389,555) 40.0
2000 10,202,369 2,040,474 (6,389,555) 40.0
2001 10,202,369 2,040,474 (6,389,555) 40.0
2002 10,202,369 2,040,474 (6,389,555) 40.0
Net Impact on General Revenue Related Funds:
The probable fiscal implication to General Revenue related funds
during each of the first five years is estimated as follows:
Fiscal Year Probable Net Postive/(Negative)
General Revenue Related Funds
Funds
1998 $3,757,864
1999 3,812,814
2000 3,812,814
2001 3,812,814
2002 3,812,814
Similar annual fiscal implications would continue as long as
the provisions of the bill are in effect.
It is expected that counties will receive approximately $8.2
million annually in additional revenue from the new Time Payment
Fee collections.
Source: Agencies: 212 Office of Court Administration
LBB Staff: JK ,BB ,DC