Texas 2011 - 82nd Regular

Texas House Bill HB2174 Compare Versions

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1	1	82R23802 YDB-D
2	2	By: Hartnett, et al. H.B. No. 2174
3	3	Substitute the following for H.B. No. 2174:
4	4	By: Jackson C.S.H.B. No. 2174
5	5
6	6
7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to funding for basic civil legal services, indigent
10	10	defense, and judicial technical support through certain fees and
11	11	court costs and to the establishment of the judicial access and
12	12	improvement account.
13	13	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
14	14	SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 22, Government Code, is
15	15	amended by adding Section 22.016 to read as follows:
16	16	Sec. 22.016. JUDICIAL ACCESS AND IMPROVEMENT ACCOUNT. (a)
17	17	The judicial access and improvement account is an account in the
18	18	general revenue fund.
19	19	(b) Subject to Subsection (d), money in the judicial access
20	20	and improvement account shall be appropriated only as provided by
21	21	this section. The supreme court may use an amount determined by the
22	22	supreme court, which annually may not exceed $1 million, to phase in
23	23	electronic filing and retrieval in courts in this state. The
24	24	remainder of the money in the account shall be divided as follows:
25	25	(1) an amount equal to 70 percent of the remainder
26	26	shall be deposited to the credit of the basic civil legal services
27	27	account of the judicial fund established under Section 51.943 for
28	28	use in programs approved by the supreme court that provide basic
29	29	civil legal services to indigents; and
30	30	(2) an amount equal to 30 percent of the remainder
31	31	shall be deposited to the credit of the fair defense account
32	32	established under Section 71.058.
33	33	(c) The supreme court in consultation with the judicial
34	34	committee on information technology may enter into an agreement
35	35	with the Office of Court Administration of the Texas Judicial
36	36	System to implement the electronic filing and retrieval in courts
37	37	of this state authorized under Subsection (b), including acquiring
38	38	the necessary technology, software, and data storage.
39	39	(d) The comptroller may retain two percent of the money
40	40	remitted to the comptroller for deposit in the judicial access and
41	41	improvement account. The comptroller shall use the money to audit
42	42	and administer fund balances and to ensure the timely deposit of
43	43	money in accounts as required by this section.
44	44	(e) Section 403.095 does not apply to money dedicated under
45	45	this section.
46	46	SECTION 2. Section 101.0615, Government Code, is amended to
47	47	read as follows:
48	48	Sec. 101.0615. DISTRICT COURT FEES AND COSTS: LOCAL
49	49	GOVERNMENT CODE. The clerk of a district court shall collect fees
50	50	and costs under the Local Government Code as follows:
51	51	(1) additional filing fees:
52	52	(A) for each civil suit filed, for court-related
53	53	purposes for the support of the judiciary and for civil legal
54	54	services to an indigent:
55	55	(i) for family law cases and proceedings as
56	56	defined by Section 25.0002, Government Code (Sec. 133.151, Local
57	57	Government Code) . . . $45; or
58	58	(ii) for any case other than a case
59	59	described by Subparagraph (i) (Sec. 133.151, Local Government Code)
60	60	. . . $50; and
61	61	(B) on the filing of any civil action or
62	62	proceeding requiring a filing fee, including an appeal, and on the
63	63	filing of any counterclaim, cross-action, intervention,
64	64	interpleader, or third-party action requiring a filing fee, to fund
65	65	civil legal services for the indigent:
66	66	(i) for family law cases and proceedings as
67	67	defined by Section 25.0002, Government Code (Sec. 133.152, Local
68	68	Government Code) . . . $15 [$5]; or
69	69	(ii) for any case other than a case
70	70	described by Subparagraph (i) (Sec. 133.152, Local Government Code)
71	71	. . . $20 [$10];
72	72	(2) additional filing fee to fund the courthouse
73	73	security fund, if authorized by the county commissioners court
74	74	(Sec. 291.008, Local Government Code) . . . not to exceed $5;
75	75	(3) additional filing fee for filing documents not
76	76	subject to certain filing fees to fund the courthouse security
77	77	fund, if authorized by the county commissioners court (Sec.
78	78	291.008, Local Government Code) . . . $1;
79	79	(4) additional filing fee to fund the courthouse
80	80	security fund in Webb County, if authorized by the county
81	81	commissioners court (Sec. 291.009, Local Government Code) . . . not
82	82	to exceed $20;
83	83	(5) court cost in civil cases other than suits for
84	84	delinquent taxes to fund the county law library fund, if authorized
85	85	by the county commissioners court (Sec. 323.023, Local Government
86	86	Code) . . . not to exceed $35; and
87	87	(6) on the filing of a civil suit, an additional filing
88	88	fee to be used for court-related purposes for the support of the
89	89	judiciary (Sec. 133.154, Local Government Code) . . . $42.
90	90	SECTION 3. Subchapter F, Chapter 102, Government Code, is
91	91	amended by adding Section 102.1035 to read as follows:
92	92	Sec. 102.1035. ADDITIONAL COURT COSTS ON CONVICTION IN
93	93	JUSTICE COURT: LOCAL GOVERNMENT CODE. A clerk of a justice court
94	94	shall collect from a defendant a court cost of $5 under Section
95	95	133.108, Local Government Code, on conviction of an offense, other
96	96	than an offense relating to a pedestrian or the parking of a motor
97	97	vehicle.
98	98	SECTION 4. Subchapter G, Chapter 102, Government Code, is
99	99	amended by adding Section 102.1215 to read as follows:
100	100	Sec. 102.1215. ADDITIONAL COURT COSTS ON CONVICTION IN
101	101	MUNICIPAL COURT: LOCAL GOVERNMENT CODE. A clerk of a municipal
102	102	court shall collect from a defendant a court cost of $5 under
103	103	Section 133.108, Local Government Code, on conviction of an
104	104	offense, other than an offense relating to a pedestrian or the
105	105	parking of a motor vehicle.
106	106	SECTION 5. Subchapter B, Chapter 403, Government Code, is
107	107	amended by adding Section 403.0306 to read as follows:
108	108	Sec. 403.0306. FEES AND COSTS ASSESSED FOR JUDICIAL ACCESS
109	109	AND IMPROVEMENT ACCOUNT. Notwithstanding any other law, if in any
110	110	state fiscal biennium the legislature:
111	111	(1) does not appropriate any money to the judicial
112	112	access and improvement account for the purposes provided by Section
113	113	22.016:
114	114	(A) the comptroller and the office of court
115	115	administration shall notify each clerk of a justice or municipal
116	116	court, as appropriate, not to assess fees and court costs under
117	117	Sections 102.1035 and 102.1215 of this code and Section 133.108,
118	118	Local Government Code, during the state fiscal biennium; and
119	119	(B) a clerk of a justice or municipal court may
120	120	not assess fees and court costs under Sections 102.1035 and
121	121	102.1215 of this code and Section 133.108, Local Government Code,
122	122	during the state fiscal biennium; or
123	123	(2) appropriates only a portion of the money to the
124	124	judicial access and improvement account for the purposes provided
125	125	by Section 22.016:
126	126	(A) the comptroller and the office of court
127	127	administration shall:
128	128	(i) proportionally adjust the amount of the
129	129	fees and court costs to be assessed under Sections 102.1035 and
130	130	102.1215 of this code and Section 133.108, Local Government Code,
131	131	during the state fiscal biennium; and
132	132	(ii) notify each clerk of a justice or
133	133	municipal court, as appropriate, of the amount of the fees and court
134	134	costs to be assessed under Sections 102.1035 and 102.1215 of this
135	135	code and Section 133.108, Local Government Code, during the state
136	136	fiscal biennium; and
137	137	(B) a clerk of a justice or municipal court shall
138	138	assess the amount of the fees and court costs determined by the
139	139	comptroller under Paragraph (A) during the state fiscal biennium.
140	140	SECTION 6. Section 133.003, Local Government Code, is
141	141	amended to read as follows:
142	142	Sec. 133.003. CRIMINAL FEES. This chapter applies to the
143	143	following criminal fees:
144	144	(1) the consolidated fee imposed under Section
145	145	133.102;
146	146	(2) the time payment fee imposed under Section
147	147	133.103;
148	148	(3) fees for services of peace officers employed by
149	149	the state imposed under Article 102.011, Code of Criminal
150	150	Procedure, and forwarded to the comptroller as provided by Section
151	151	133.104;
152	152	(4) costs on conviction imposed in certain statutory
153	153	county courts under Section 51.702, Government Code, and deposited
154	154	in the judicial fund;
155	155	(5) costs on conviction imposed in certain county
156	156	courts under Section 51.703, Government Code, and deposited in the
157	157	judicial fund;
158	158	(6) the administrative fee for failure to appear or
159	159	failure to pay or satisfy a judgment imposed under Section 706.006,
160	160	Transportation Code;
161	161	(7) fines on conviction imposed under Section
162	162	621.506(g), Transportation Code;
163	163	(8) the fee imposed under Article 102.0045, Code of
164	164	Criminal Procedure;
165	165	(9) the cost on conviction imposed under Section
166	166	133.105 and deposited in the judicial fund; [and]
167	167	(10) the cost on conviction imposed under Section
168	168	133.107; and
169	169	(11) the cost on conviction imposed under Section
170	170	133.108.
171	171	SECTION 7. Section 133.058, Local Government Code, is
172	172	amended by adding Subsection (c-1) to read as follows:
173	173	(c-1) A municipality or county may retain five percent of
174	174	the money collected as a fee under Section 133.108.
175	175	SECTION 8. Subchapter C, Chapter 133, Local Government
176	176	Code, is amended by adding Section 133.108 to read as follows:
177	177	Sec. 133.108. FEE FOR JUDICIAL ACCESS AND IMPROVEMENT. (a)
178	178	A person convicted in a municipal or justice court of an offense,
179	179	other than an offense relating to a pedestrian or the parking of a
180	180	motor vehicle, shall pay as a court cost, in addition to other
181	181	costs, a fee of $5 to be used to fund basic civil legal services and
182	182	criminal defense for indigents and electronic filing in courts in
183	183	this state through the judicial access and improvement account
184	184	established under Section 22.016, Government Code.
185	185	(b) The treasurer shall remit the fees collected under this
186	186	section to the comptroller in the manner provided by Subchapter B.
187	187	The comptroller shall credit the remitted fees to the credit of the
188	188	judicial access and improvement account established under Section
189	189	22.016, Government Code.
190	190	SECTION 9. Section 133.152(a), Local Government Code, is
191	191	amended to read as follows:
192	192	(a) In addition to other fees collected under Section
193	193	133.151(a) or otherwise authorized or required by law, the clerk of
194	194	a district court shall collect the following fees on the filing of
195	195	any civil action or proceeding requiring a filing fee, including an
196	196	appeal, and on the filing of any counterclaim, cross-action,
197	197	intervention, interpleader, or third-party action requiring a
198	198	filing fee:
199	199	(1) $15 [$5] in family law cases and proceedings as
200	200	defined by Section 25.0002, Government Code; and
201	201	(2) $20 [$10] in any case other than a case described
202	202	by Subdivision (1).
203	203	SECTION 10. (a) Section 51.607, Government Code, does not
204	204	apply to the imposition of a court cost or fee under this Act.
205	205	(b) If this Act receives a vote of two-thirds of all members
206	206	elected to each house as required for immediate effect, the change
207	207	in law made by this Act applies to the costs imposed on or after
208	208	September 1, 2011, for conviction of an offense that occurs on or
209	209	after the effective date of this Act. If this Act does not receive a
210	210	vote of two-thirds of all members elected to each house, the change
211	211	in law made by this Act applies to the costs imposed on or after
212	212	January 1, 2012, for conviction of an offense that occurs on or
213	213	after September 1, 2011.
214	214	(c) For purposes of Subsection (b) of this section, an
215	215	offense is committed before the date specified by that subsection
216	216	if any element of the offense occurs before the specified date.
217	217	Court costs imposed on conviction of an offense committed before
218	218	that specified date are governed by the law in effect on the date
219	219	the offense was committed, and the former law is continued in effect
220	220	for that purpose.
221	221	(d) Section 133.152(a), Local Government Code, as amended
222	222	by this Act, and Section 101.0615, Government Code, as amended by
223	223	this Act, apply only to a civil action or proceeding filed in a
224	224	district court on or after the effective date of this Act. A civil
225	225	action or proceeding filed before that date is governed by the law
226	226	in effect on the date the action or proceeding was filed, and the
227	227	former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
228	228	SECTION 11. This Act takes effect immediately if it
229	229	receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each
230	230	house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.
231	231	If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate
232	232	effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2011.