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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to the ownership and disposition of official court |
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reporter notes and transcripts. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Section 52.046(a), Government Code, is amended |
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by amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (e) to read as |
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follows: |
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(a) On request, an official court reporter shall: |
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(1) attend all sessions of the court; |
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(2) take full shorthand notes of oral testimony |
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offered before the court, including objections made to the |
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admissibility of evidence, court rulings and remarks on the |
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objections, and exceptions to the rulings; |
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(3) take full shorthand notes of closing arguments if |
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requested to do so by the attorney of a party to the case, including |
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objections to the arguments, court rulings and remarks on the |
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objections, and exceptions to the rulings; |
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(4) deliver the shorthand notes to the clerk of the |
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court [preserve the notes for future reference for three years from
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the date on which they were taken]; and |
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(5) furnish a transcript of the reported evidence or |
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other proceedings, in whole or in part, as provided by this chapter. |
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(e) Shorthand notes of oral testimony and closing arguments |
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are property of the court. The clerk of the court shall preserve |
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the notes, and transcripts based on the notes, for three years from |
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the date on which the documented proceeding took place. |
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SECTION 2. Section 52.047, Government Code, is amended to |
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read as follows: |
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Sec. 52.047. TRANSCRIPTS. (a) A person may apply for a |
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transcript of the evidence in a case reported by an official court |
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reporter. The person must apply for the transcript in writing to |
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the clerk of the [official] court [reporter], and the reporter |
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shall furnish the transcript: |
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(1) on payment of the transcript fee to the court; or |
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(2) as provided by Rule 20 [40(a)(3) or 53(j)], Texas |
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Rules of Appellate Procedure. |
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(b) The clerk of the court shall establish the transcription |
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fee [If an objection is made to the amount of the transcript fee,
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the judge shall determine a reasonable fee, taking into
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consideration the difficulty and technicality of the material to be
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transcribed and any time constraints imposed by the person
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requesting the transcript]. |
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(c) On payment of the fee, or as provided by Rule 20 |
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[40(a)(3) or 53(j)], Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure, the person |
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requesting the transcript is entitled to the original and one copy |
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of the transcript. The person may purchase additional copies for a |
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fee per page that does not exceed one-third of the original cost per |
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page. The court may require that the official court reporter |
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deliver a copy of the transcript to the clerk at no cost to the |
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court. |
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(d) A [An official] court [reporter] may charge an |
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additional fee for: |
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(1) postage or express charges; |
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(2) photostating, blueprinting, or other reproduction |
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of exhibits; |
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(3) indexing; and |
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(4) preparation for filing and special binding of |
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original exhibits. |
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(e) [If an objection is made to the amount of these
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additional fees, the judge shall set a reasonable fee.] If the |
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person applying for the transcript is entitled to a transcript |
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without charge under Rule 20 [40(a)(3) or 53(j)], Texas Rules of |
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Appellate Procedure, the court [reporter] may not charge any |
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additional fees under Subsection (d). |
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(f) The court shall compensate the court reporter a |
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reasonable amount for transcribing shorthand notes, taking into |
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consideration the difficulty and technicality of the material to be |
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transcribed and any time constraints imposed by the person |
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requesting the transcript [If the official court reporter charges
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an amount that exceeds a fee set by the judge, the reporter shall
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refund the excess to the person to whom it is due on demand filed
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with the court]. |
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(g) Notwithstanding Rule 20.2 [53(j)], Texas Rules of |
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Appellate Procedure, an official court reporter who is required to |
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prepare a transcript in a criminal case in which a transcription fee |
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is prohibited [without charging a fee] is not entitled to payment |
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for the transcript [from the state or county] if the county paid a |
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substitute court reporter to perform the official court reporter's |
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regular duties while the transcript was being prepared, and a court |
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may not charge a fee for the preparation of the transcript. |
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(h) To the extent that this section [subsection] conflicts |
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with the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure, this section |
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[subsection] controls. Notwithstanding Sections 22.004 and |
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22.108(b), the supreme court or the court of criminal appeals may |
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not amend or adopt rules in conflict with this section |
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[subsection]. |
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SECTION 3. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to |
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shorthand notes or transcripts that document a proceeding that |
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begins on or after the effective date of this Act. The disposition |
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of shorthand notes or transcripts that document a proceeding that |
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begins before the effective date of this Act is governed by the law |
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in effect on the date the proceeding begins, and the former law is |
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continued in effect for that purpose. |
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SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2007. |