82R12201 YDB-D
 
  By: Hartnett H.B. No. 2174
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to the establishment of the judicial access and
  improvement account to provide funding for basic civil legal
  services, indigent defense, and judicial technical support through
  certain county service fees and court costs imposed to fund the
  account.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Subchapter A, Chapter 22, Government Code, is
  amended by adding Section 22.016 to read as follows:
         Sec. 22.016.  JUDICIAL ACCESS AND IMPROVEMENT ACCOUNT. (a)  
  The judicial access and improvement account is an account in the
  general revenue fund.
         (b)  Subject to Subsection (d), money in the judicial access
  and improvement account may be appropriated only as provided by
  this section. An amount determined by the supreme court, which may
  not exceed $13 million, shall annually be appropriated to the
  supreme court to phase in electronic filing and retrieval in courts
  in this state. The supreme court may use up to $1 million of the
  appropriated money to provide state law library services.  The
  remainder of the money in the account shall be divided in equal
  amounts and deposited to the credit of:
               (1)  the basic civil legal services account of the
  judicial fund established under Section 51.943 for use in programs
  approved by the supreme court that provide basic civil legal
  services to indigents; and
               (2)  the fair defense account established under Section
  71.058.
         (c)  The supreme court in consultation with the judicial
  committee on information technology may enter into an agreement
  with the Office of Court Administration of the Texas Judicial
  System to implement the electronic filing and retrieval in courts
  of this state authorized under Subsection (b), including acquiring
  the necessary technology, software, and data storage.
         (d)  The comptroller may retain two percent of the money
  remitted to the comptroller for deposit in the judicial access and
  improvement account. The comptroller shall use the money to audit
  fund balances and to ensure the timely deposit of money in accounts
  as required by this section.
         (e)  Section 403.095 does not apply to money dedicated under
  this section.
         SECTION 2.  Subchapter F, Chapter 102, Government Code, is
  amended by adding Section 102.1035 to read as follows:
         Sec. 102.1035.  ADDITIONAL COURT COSTS ON CONVICTION IN
  JUSTICE COURT: LOCAL GOVERNMENT CODE.  A clerk of a justice court
  shall collect from a defendant a court cost of $5 under Section
  133.108, Local Government Code, on conviction of an offense, other
  than an offense relating to a pedestrian or the parking of a motor
  vehicle.
         SECTION 3.  Subchapter G, Chapter 102, Government Code, is
  amended by adding Section 102.1215 to read as follows:
         Sec. 102.1215.  ADDITIONAL COURT COSTS ON CONVICTION IN
  MUNICIPAL COURT: LOCAL GOVERNMENT CODE.  A clerk of a municipal
  court shall collect from a defendant a court cost of $5 under
  Section 133.108, Local Government Code, on conviction of an
  offense, other than an offense relating to a pedestrian or the
  parking of a motor vehicle.
         SECTION 4.  Section 118.011, Local Government Code, is
  amended by adding Subsection (g) to read as follows:
         (g)  In addition to any other fee collected under this
  section, the county clerk of a county shall collect a document
  recording fee of $4 at the time of the filing of a document in the
  records of the office of the clerk.  The clerk shall send the fee to
  the comptroller for deposit as provided by Section 22.016,
  Government Code, except the clerk may retain five percent of the
  money collected as a fee under this subsection.
         SECTION 5.  Section 133.003, Local Government Code, is
  amended to read as follows:
         Sec. 133.003.  CRIMINAL FEES.  This chapter applies to the
  following criminal fees:
               (1)  the consolidated fee imposed under Section
  133.102;
               (2)  the time payment fee imposed under Section
  133.103;
               (3)  fees for services of peace officers employed by
  the state imposed under Article 102.011, Code of Criminal
  Procedure, and forwarded to the comptroller as provided by Section
  133.104;
               (4)  costs on conviction imposed in certain statutory
  county courts under Section 51.702, Government Code, and deposited
  in the judicial fund;
               (5)  costs on conviction imposed in certain county
  courts under Section 51.703, Government Code, and deposited in the
  judicial fund;
               (6)  the administrative fee for failure to appear or
  failure to pay or satisfy a judgment imposed under Section 706.006,
  Transportation Code;
               (7)  fines on conviction imposed under Section
  621.506(g), Transportation Code;
               (8)  the fee imposed under Article 102.0045, Code of
  Criminal Procedure;
               (9)  the cost on conviction imposed under Section
  133.105 and deposited in the judicial fund; [and]
               (10)  the cost on conviction imposed under Section
  133.107; and
               (11)  the cost on conviction imposed under Section
  133.108.
         SECTION 6.  Section 133.058, Local Government Code, is
  amended by adding Subsection (c-1) to read as follows:
         (c-1)  A municipality or county may retain five percent of
  the money collected as a fee under Section 133.108.
         SECTION 7.  Subchapter C, Chapter 133, Local Government
  Code, is amended by adding Section 133.108 to read as follows:
         Sec. 133.108.  FEE FOR JUDICIAL ACCESS AND IMPROVEMENT. (a)  
  A person convicted in a municipal or justice court of an offense,
  other than an offense relating to a pedestrian or the parking of a
  motor vehicle, shall pay as a court cost, in addition to other
  costs, a fee of $5 to be used to fund basic civil legal services and
  criminal defense for indigents and electronic filing in courts in
  this state through the judicial access and improvement account
  established under Section 22.016, Government Code.
         (b)  The treasurer shall remit the fees collected under this
  section to the comptroller in the manner provided by Subchapter B.
  The comptroller shall credit the remitted fees to the credit of the
  judicial access and improvement account established under Section
  22.016, Government Code.
         SECTION 8.  Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act,
  if all the money in the judicial access and improvement account is
  not appropriated in any state fiscal biennium for the purposes
  provided by Section 22.016, Government Code, as added by this Act:
               (1)  the comptroller and the office of court
  administration shall notify each county clerk and each clerk of a
  justice or municipal court, as appropriate, not to assess fees and
  court costs under Sections 102.1035 and 102.1215, Government Code,
  as added by this Act, and Sections 118.011(g) and 133.108, Local
  Government Code, as added by this Act, during the state fiscal
  biennium; and
               (2)  a county clerk or clerk of a justice or municipal
  court may not assess fees and court costs under Sections 102.1035
  and 102.1215, Government Code, as added by this Act, and Sections
  118.011(g) and 133.108, Local Government Code, as added by this
  Act, during the state fiscal biennium.
         SECTION 9.  (a)  Section 51.607, Government Code, does not
  apply to the imposition of a court cost or fee under this Act.
         (b)  The change in law made by this Act applies only to:
               (1)  court costs imposed on conviction of an offense
  committed on or after:
                     (A)  September 1, 2011, if this Act receives a
  vote of two-thirds of all members elected to each house as required
  for immediate effect; or
                     (B)  January 1, 2012, if this Act takes effect
  September 1, 2011; and
               (2)  fees imposed for services rendered by a county
  clerk on or after September 1, 2011.
         (c)  For purposes of Subsection (b)(1) of this section, an
  offense is committed before the date specified in Subsection (b)(1)
  if any element of the offense occurs before that date.  Court costs
  imposed on conviction of an offense committed before that date are
  governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed,
  and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
         SECTION 10.  This Act takes effect immediately if it
  receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each
  house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.  
  If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate
  effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2011.