By: Rodriguez, et al. S.B. No. 726

(In the Senate - Filed February 15, 2011; February 23, 2011, read first time and referred to Committee on Finance; April 11, 2011, reported adversely, with favorable Committee Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 10, Nays 3; April 11, 2011, sent to printer.)

COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 726 By: Zaffirini

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 shall be appropriated only as provided by this section. The supreme court may use an amount determined by the supreme court, which annually may not exceed $12 million, to phase in electronic filing and retrieval in courts in this state. The supreme court annually 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 as follows:

(1) an amount equal to 70 percent of the remainder shall be deposited to the credit of 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) an amount equal to 30 percent of the remainder shall be deposited to the credit of 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 $10 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 $10 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. Subchapter B, Chapter 403, Government Code, is amended by adding Section 403.0306 to read as follows:

Sec. 403.0306. FEES AND COSTS ASSESSED FOR JUDICIAL ACCESS AND IMPROVEMENT ACCOUNT. Notwithstanding any other law, if in any state fiscal biennium the legislature:

(1) does not appropriate any money to the judicial access and improvement account for the purposes provided by Section 22.016:

(A) the comptroller and the Office of Court Administration of the Texas Judicial System 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 of this code and Sections 118.011(g) and 133.108, Local Government Code, during the state fiscal biennium; and

(B) 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 of this code and Sections 118.011(g) and 133.108, Local Government Code, during the state fiscal biennium; or

(2) appropriates only a portion of the money to the judicial access and improvement account for the purposes provided by Section 22.016:

(A) the comptroller and the Office of Court Administration of the Texas Judicial System shall:

(i) proportionally adjust the amount of the fees and court costs to be assessed under Sections 102.1035 and 102.1215 of this code and Sections 118.011(g) and 133.108, Local Government Code, during the state fiscal biennium; and

(ii) notify each county clerk and each clerk of a justice or municipal court, as appropriate, of the amount of the fees and court costs to be assessed under Sections 102.1035 and 102.1215 of this code and Sections 118.011(g) and 133.108, Local Government Code, during the state fiscal biennium; and

(B) a county clerk or clerk of a justice or municipal court shall assess the amount of the fees and court costs determined by the comptroller under Paragraph (A) during the state fiscal biennium.

SECTION 5. 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 $2 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 6. 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 7. 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 8. 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 $10 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 9. (a) Section 51.607, Government Code, does not apply to the imposition of a court cost or fee under this Act.

(b) If this Act receives a vote of two-thirds of all members elected to each house as required for immediate effect, the change in law made by this Act applies to the costs imposed on or after September 1, 2011, for conviction of an offense that occurs on or after the effective date of this Act. If this Act does not receive a vote of two-thirds of all members elected to each house, the change in law made by this Act applies to the costs imposed on or after January 1, 2012, for conviction of an offense that occurs on or after September 1, 2011.

(c) For purposes of Subsection (b) of this section, an offense is committed before the date specified by that subsection if any element of the offense occurs before the specified date. Court costs imposed on conviction of an offense committed before that specified 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.

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