LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD Austin, Texas FISCAL NOTE, 77th Regular Session March 12, 2001 TO: Honorable Senfronia Thompson, Chair, House Committee on Judicial Affairs FROM: John Keel, Director, Legislative Budget Board IN RE: HB950 by Garcia (Relating to juror reimbursement.), As Introduced ************************************************************************** * No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated. * ************************************************************************** The bill would require the Office of Court Administration to submit a juror reimbursement report to the legislature every four years. The bill would take effect September 1, 2001. Local Government Impact The bill would have a significant negative impact on local government. The provisions of the bill would increase the minimum juror reimbursement in district, county, and justice courts from $6 to $40 for each day served as juror. The bill would also add a new $10 civil fee for cases filed in district courts, county courts, county courts at law, and justice courts, and add a $10 court cost on criminal cases resulting in convictions or deferred adjudication filed in the same courts. The additional civil fee and the court cost would be deposited into the general revenue fund of each county for the juror reimbursement expenses. The Office of Court Administration (OCA) reports that statewide in fiscal year 2000, there were 993,253 criminal convictions and 729,835 civil cases filed to which the $10 fee would apply had it been a requirement. The revenue that would have been generated would have totaled almost $13.8 million, allowing for a 65 percent fee collection rate in court fees assessed to applicable misdemeanor or felony offenders. OCA determined that the average amount paid to jurors statewide under current law was $12 per day of jury service during fiscal year 2000. Estimating the number of persons responding to a jury summons and paying them for one day of service; estimating the number of petit jurors selected and paying them for a sample number of an additional two days for a trial; and, estimating an average number of days for a grand jury to convene and paying grand jurors selected for each day of service, the OCA multiplied the difference between the current average of $12 per day and the proposed minimum $40 per day ($28) times the number of jurors and days, totaling what would have been an additional cost of $68.8 million in fiscal year 2000. The net additional cost to the local courts would have been $55 million. Based on the same figures remaining steady for the next five years, the first year of implementation of the provisions of the bill would result in a statewide additional cost of $56.2 million above what it would be under current law. The first year of implementation would see a higher additional cost because there would be a 30-day delay in collecting fees. Each of the next four years would result in a net additional cost of $55 million. As an example of the impact on an individual county, the Comptroller of Public Accounts contacted officials in Dallas County and in Brazos County. Dallas County estimated a net additional cost of $2.5 million each year and Brazos County estimated a net additional cost of just under $3,000 per year. Brazos County did not factor in the collection rate for fees assessed to applicable misdemeanor or felony offenders and would, therefore, experience a higher additional cost than estimated. Source Agencies: 212 Office of Court Administration, 304 Comptroller of Public Accounts LBB Staff: JK, TB, JN, DB