By: West S.B. No. 791
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to a program to monitor the collection and remittance of
certain court costs and fees.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. (a) The comptroller of public accounts shall
develop and submit a proposal for a monitoring program under which
the comptroller will periodically monitor the collection,
remittance, and reporting of court costs and fees required to be
collected from a party to a civil case or a defendant in a criminal
case and remitted to the comptroller by the clerks of the district,
county, statutory county, municipal, and justice courts. The
monitoring program must be designed to assess whether:
(1) the comptroller is receiving complete information
on the sources of the costs and fees collected;
(2) each court clerk is reporting the costs and fees
collected as required by law; and
(3) the comptroller is crediting the costs and fees
remitted to the appropriate fund or account.
(b) The comptroller of public accounts shall submit a cost
estimate for implementing and operating the monitoring program
proposed under Subsection (a) of this section.
(c) The comptroller of public accounts shall submit the
proposal and cost estimate required by this section to the
governor, the lieutenant governor, and the speaker of the house of
representatives not later than September 1, 2004.
SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2003.