Texas 2009 - 81st Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1259 Compare Versions

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1	1	S.B. No. 1259
2	2
3	3
4	4	AN ACT
5	5	relating to the management of certain courts, including the storage
6	6	of records by the clerks of the supreme court and the courts of
7	7	appeals and the creation of an appellate judicial system for the
8	8	Seventh Court of Appeals District.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Subchapter C, Chapter 22, Government Code, is
11	11	amended by adding Section 22.2081 to read as follows:
12	12	Sec. 22.2081. APPELLATE JUDICIAL SYSTEM. (a) The
13	13	commissioners court of each county in the Seventh Court of Appeals
14	14	District, by order entered in its minutes, shall establish an
15	15	appellate judicial system to:
16	16	(1) assist the court of appeals for the county in the
17	17	disposition of appeals filed with the court of appeals from the
18	18	county courts, statutory county courts, probate courts, and
19	19	district courts; and
20	20	(2) defray costs and expenses incurred by the county
21	21	under Section 22.208.
22	22	(b) To fund the system, the commissioners court shall set a
23	23	court costs fee of $5 for each civil suit filed in a county court,
24	24	statutory county court, probate court, or district court in the
25	25	county.
26	26	(c) The court costs fee does not apply to a suit filed by the
27	27	county or to a suit for delinquent taxes.
28	28	(d) The court costs fee shall be taxed, collected, and paid
29	29	as other court costs in a suit. The clerk of the court shall collect
30	30	the court costs fee set under this section and pay it to the county
31	31	officer who performs the county treasurer's functions. That
32	32	officer shall deposit the fee in a separate appellate judicial
33	33	system fund for the court of appeals district. The fund may not be
34	34	used for any other purpose. The chief justice of the court of
35	35	appeals has sole discretion as to the use of the fund.
36	36	(e) The commissioners court shall monthly order the funds
37	37	collected under this section to be forwarded to the court of appeals
38	38	for expenditures by the court of appeals for its appellate judicial
39	39	system.
40	40	(f) The commissioners court shall vest management of the
41	41	system in the chief justice of the court of appeals.
42	42	SECTION 2. (a) Subchapter A, Chapter 51, Government Code,
43	43	is amended by adding Sections 51.0045 and 51.0046 to read as
44	44	follows:
45	45	Sec. 51.0045. ELECTRONIC OR MICROFILM STORAGE. (a) In the
46	46	performance of the duties imposed by Section 51.004, the clerk of
47	47	the supreme court may maintain records and documents in an
48	48	electronic storage format or on microfilm. A record or document
49	49	stored electronically or on microfilm in accordance with this
50	50	section is considered an original record or document. If the clerk
51	51	stores records or documents electronically or on microfilm, the
52	52	clerk may destroy the originals or copies of the records or
53	53	documents according to the retention policy described by Subsection
54	54	(b).
55	55	(b) The clerk of the supreme court shall establish a records
56	56	retention policy. The retention policy shall provide a plan for the
57	57	storage and retention of records and documents and shall include a
58	58	retention period to preserve the records and documents in
59	59	accordance with applicable state law and rules of the supreme
60	60	court.
61	61	(c) For purposes of this section, "electronic storage" has
62	62	the meaning assigned by Section 51.105(c).
63	63	Sec. 51.0046. PRIVACY OF CERTAIN RECORDS AND DOCUMENTS;
64	64	LIABILITY. (a) The supreme court shall adopt rules establishing
65	65	procedures for protecting personal information contained in
66	66	records and documents stored by the clerk of an appellate court in
67	67	an electronic storage format and for accessing those records and
68	68	documents. The supreme court by rule shall define "personal
69	69	information" for purposes of this section.
70	70	(b) A person who complies with the rules adopted by the
71	71	supreme court under this section is not liable for damages arising
72	72	from the disclosure of personal information that is included in
73	73	records or documents stored in an electronic storage format.
74	74	(c) For purposes of this section, "electronic storage" has
75	75	the meaning assigned by Section 51.105(c).
76	76	(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act,
77	77	Section 51.0046, Government Code, as added by this section, applies
78	78	to a record or document maintained by a clerk of an appellate court
79	79	that is received by the clerk after the effective date of the rules
80	80	adopted in accordance with Section 51.0046, Government Code.
81	81	SECTION 3. Subchapter B, Chapter 51, Government Code, is
82	82	amended by adding Section 51.1045 to read as follows:
83	83	Sec. 51.1045. ELECTRONIC DOCUMENTS AND DIGITAL MULTIMEDIA
84	84	EVIDENCE. (a) In this section, "digital multimedia evidence" has
85	85	the meaning assigned by Article 2.21, Code of Criminal Procedure.
86	86	(b) The clerk of the court of criminal appeals may accept
87	87	electronic documents and digital multimedia evidence received from
88	88	a defendant, an applicant for a writ of habeas corpus, the clerk of
89	89	the convicting court, a court reporter, or an attorney representing
90	90	the state.
91	91	SECTION 4. Subsection (a), Section 51.105, Government Code,
92	92	is amended to read as follows:
93	93	(a) In the performance of the duties imposed by Section
94	94	51.104, the clerk of the court of criminal appeals may maintain
95	95	writs and other records and documents in an electronic storage
96	96	format or on microfilm. A record or document stored electronically
97	97	or on microfilm in accordance with this section is considered an
98	98	original record or document. If the clerk [electronically] stores
99	99	writs, records, or documents electronically or on microfilm, the
100	100	clerk may destroy the originals or copies of the writs, records, or
101	101	documents according to the retention policy described by Subsection
102	102	(b).
103	103	SECTION 5. Subchapter C, Chapter 51, Government Code, is
104	104	amended by adding Section 51.205 to read as follows:
105	105	Sec. 51.205. ELECTRONIC OR MICROFILM STORAGE. (a) In the
106	106	performance of the duties imposed by Section 51.204, the clerk of a
107	107	court of appeals may maintain records and documents in an
108	108	electronic storage format or on microfilm. A record or document
109	109	stored electronically or on microfilm in accordance with this
110	110	section is considered an original record or document. If a clerk
111	111	stores records or documents electronically or on microfilm, the
112	112	clerk may destroy the originals or copies of the records or
113	113	documents according to the retention policy described by Subsection
114	114	(b).
115	115	(b) The clerk of a court of appeals shall establish a
116	116	records retention policy. The retention policy shall provide a
117	117	plan for the storage and retention of records and documents and
118	118	shall include a retention period to preserve the records and
119	119	documents in accordance with Section 51.204 and other applicable
120	120	state law and rules of the court of appeals, the supreme court, or
121	121	the court of criminal appeals.
122	122	(c) For purposes of this section, "electronic storage" has
123	123	the meaning assigned by Section 51.105(c).
124	124	SECTION 6. Subchapter D, Chapter 101, Government Code, is
125	125	amended by adding Section 101.06115 to read as follows:
126	126	Sec. 101.06115. ADDITIONAL DISTRICT COURT FEES: GOVERNMENT
127	127	CODE. The clerk of a district court in the Seventh Court of Appeals
128	128	District shall collect an appellate judicial system filing fee of
129	129	$5 under Section 22.2081.
130	130	SECTION 7. Subchapter E, Chapter 101, Government Code, is
131	131	amended by adding Section 101.08114 to read as follows:
132	132	Sec. 101.08114. ADDITIONAL STATUTORY COUNTY COURT FEES:
133	133	GOVERNMENT CODE. The clerk of a statutory county court in the
134	134	Seventh Court of Appeals District shall collect an appellate
135	135	judicial system filing fee of $5 under Section 22.2081.
136	136	SECTION 8. Subchapter F, Chapter 101, Government Code, is
137	137	amended by adding Section 101.10114 to read as follows:
138	138	Sec. 101.10114. ADDITIONAL STATUTORY PROBATE COURT FEES:
139	139	GOVERNMENT CODE. The clerk of a statutory probate court in the
140	140	Seventh Court of Appeals District shall collect an appellate
141	141	judicial system filing fee of $5 under Section 22.2081.
142	142	SECTION 9. Subchapter G, Chapter 101, Government Code, is
143	143	amended by adding Section 101.12123 to read as follows:
144	144	Sec. 101.12123. ADDITIONAL COUNTY COURT FEES: GOVERNMENT
145	145	CODE. The clerk of a county court in a county in the Seventh Court
146	146	of Appeals District shall collect an appellate judicial system
147	147	filing fee of $5 under Section 22.2081.
148	148	SECTION 10. Article 2.21, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
149	149	amended by amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (k) to
150	150	read as follows:
151	151	(a) In a criminal proceeding, a clerk of the district or
152	152	county court shall:
153	153	(1) receive and file all papers;
154	154	(2) receive all exhibits at the conclusion of the
155	155	proceeding;
156	156	(3) issue all process; [and]
157	157	(4) accept and file electronic documents received from
158	158	the defendant, if the clerk accepts electronic documents from an
159	159	attorney representing the state;
160	160	(5) accept and file digital multimedia evidence
161	161	received from the defendant, if the clerk accepts digital
162	162	multimedia evidence from an attorney representing the state; and
163	163	(6) perform all other duties imposed on the clerk by
164	164	law.
165	165	(k) In this article, "digital multimedia evidence" means
166	166	evidence stored or transmitted in a binary form and includes data
167	167	representing documents, audio, video metadata, and any other
168	168	information attached to a digital file.
169	169	SECTION 11. Sections 51.0045 and 51.205, Government Code,
170	170	as added by this Act, and Section 51.105, Government Code, as
171	171	amended by this Act, apply to a record or document maintained by the
172	172	clerk of the Texas Supreme Court, the clerk of the Texas Court of
173	173	Criminal Appeals, or the clerk of a court of appeals, as applicable,
174	174	regardless of whether the record or document was received by the
175	175	clerk before, on, or after the effective date of this Act.
176	176	SECTION 12. This Act takes effect immediately if it
177	177	receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each
178	178	house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.
179	179	If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate
180	180	effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2009.
181	181	______________________________ ______________________________
182	182	President of the Senate Speaker of the House
183	183	I hereby certify that S.B. No. 1259 passed the Senate on
184	184	April 9, 2009, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0; and that
185	185	the Senate concurred in House amendments on May 29, 2009, by the
186	186	following vote: Yeas 30, Nays 0.
187	187	______________________________
188	188	Secretary of the Senate
189	189	I hereby certify that S.B. No. 1259 passed the House, with
190	190	amendments, on May 12, 2009, by the following vote: Yeas 142,
191	191	Nays 0, one present not voting.
192	192	______________________________
193	193	Chief Clerk of the House
194	194	Approved:
195	195	______________________________
196	196	Date
197	197	______________________________
198	198	Governor