| TO: | Honorable Pete Gallego, Chair, House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence |
| FROM: | John S O'Brien, Director, Legislative Budget Board |
| IN RE: | HB939 by Gonzalez, Naomi (Relating to the amount of the fee paid by a defendant for certain services performed by a peace officer.), As Introduced |
| Fiscal Year | Probable Net Positive/(Negative) Impact to General Revenue Related Funds |
|---|---|
| 2012 | $200,000 |
| 2013 | $200,000 |
| 2014 | $200,000 |
| 2015 | $200,000 |
| 2016 | $200,000 |
| Fiscal Year | Probable Revenue Gain from General Revenue Fund 1 |
|---|---|
| 2012 | $200,000 |
| 2013 | $200,000 |
| 2014 | $200,000 |
| 2015 | $200,000 |
| 2016 | $200,000 |
The bill would amend the Code of Criminal Procedure, Article 102.011(a) to increase existing fees and create new fees related to peace officer services. The bill would create a $5 fee for making an arrest without a warrant; maintain the $5 fee for issuing a written notice to appear in court, provided that peace officer services are not needed to locate the defendant; create a new $75 fee for issuing a new written notice to appear in court if peace officer services are needed to locate the defendant; and increase the existing $50 fee to $75 for executing an issued arrest warrant, capias, or capias pro fine.
The bill would be effective September 1, 2011.
According to the Comptroller of Public Accounts (CPA) and the Office of Court Administration (OCA), the fee is charged once an individual is convicted of the offense that prompted the arrest warrant, with 80 percent of fee revenue deposited to the county's treasury and 20 percent remitted to the state, if the services are performed by a state peace officer. Currently the fees for peace office services brings in over $1.0 million per year to the state. The CPA estimates that the increase to $75 for the existing $50 fee for executing an issued arrest warrant would bring in an additional $200,000 per year in General Revenue. Additional revenue to the state would depend upon the number of arrests using an arrest warrant, the number of convictions related to those warrants, and the number of arrest warrants served that involve a state peace officer.
For the other fees changes made by the bill, neither the CPA or the OCA were able estimate the impact to the state although a revenue increase is anticipated.
The Comptroller of Public Accounts (CPA) contacted two counties for information about the impact of the increase in fees assessed against a defendant upon conviction for the execution or processing of an arrest warrant. Estimates are based on fiscal year 2010 data and figures provided by the counties. Fiscal year 2012 for the two counties is prorated to account for the January 1, 2012 implementation.
Smith County estimated that the number of issued written notices to appear in court would total 740 in fiscal year 2012 and subsequent years, resulting in a net gain of $55,500 per year to the county.
Somervell County estimated that the number of issued written notices to appear in court for fisacl year 2012 would be 67, with a five percent increase per year, resulting in a net gain of $5,025 to 5,625 per year for fiscal years 2012 to 2016.
The Office of Court Administration (OCA) also anticipated increased revenues for the localities. For the new $75 for issuing a written notice to appear that requires a peace officer to locate a defendant, the potential revenue increase to the localities could not be estimated. For the increased from $50 to $75 for the existing fee on executing an arrest warrant, the OCA anticipates that there would be a 50 percent increase in revenues to localities statewide since the fee is increasing by 50 percent.
| Source Agencies: | 212 Office of Court Administration, Texas Judicial Council, 304 Comptroller of Public Accounts
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| LBB Staff: | JOB, ESi, ZS, JJO, TB
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