Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1938 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	2017S0456-1 03/09/17
2	2	By: Hughes S.B. No. 1938
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the method of calculating the salary of state judges.
8	8	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
9	9	SECTION 1. Section 659.012(a), Government Code, is amended
10	10	to read as follows:
11	11	(a) Notwithstanding Section 659.011:
12	12	(1) a judge of a district court is entitled to an
13	13	annual salary from the state that is equal to 82.5 percent of the
14	14	salary of a justice of the supreme court other than the chief
15	15	justice [of at least $125,000], except that the combined salary of a
16	16	district judge from state and county sources, including
17	17	compensation for any extrajudicial services performed on behalf of
18	18	the county, may not exceed the amount that is $5,000 less than the
19	19	salary provided for a justice of a court of appeals other than a
20	20	chief justice;
21	21	(2) a justice of a court of appeals other than the
22	22	chief justice is entitled to an annual salary from the state that is
23	23	equal to 91 [110] percent of the salary of a justice of the supreme
24	24	court other than the chief justice [district judge], except that
25	25	the combined salary of a justice of the court of appeals other than
26	26	the chief justice from all state and county sources, including
27	27	compensation for any extrajudicial services performed on behalf of
28	28	the county, may not exceed the amount that is $5,000 less than the
29	29	salary provided for a justice of the supreme court;
30	30	(3) a justice of the supreme court other than the chief
31	31	justice or a judge of the court of criminal appeals other than the
32	32	presiding judge is entitled to an annual salary from the state that
33	33	is the amount as determined by Section 659.0121 [equal to 120
34	34	percent of the salary of a district judge]; and
35	35	(4) the chief justice or presiding judge of an
36	36	appellate court is entitled to an annual salary from the state that
37	37	is $2,500 more than the salary provided for the other justices or
38	38	judges of the court, except that the combined salary of the chief
39	39	justice of a court of appeals may not exceed the amount that is
40	40	$2,500 less than the salary provided for a justice of the supreme
41	41	court.
42	42	SECTION 2. Subchapter B, Chapter 659, Government Code, is
43	43	amended by adding Section 659.0121 to read as follows:
44	44	Sec. 659.0121. DETERMINATION OF JUDICIAL SALARIES.
45	45	(a) The salary of a justice of the supreme court other than the
46	46	chief justice or a judge of the court of criminal appeals other than
47	47	the presiding judge is equal to the sum of:
48	48	(1) one-third of the average salary, on January 1, of
49	49	justices, excluding chief justices, on the highest appellate courts
50	50	of the nine most populous states, as determined by the decennial
51	51	census, not including Texas;
52	52	(2) one-third of the salary, on January 1, of a judge
53	53	of a United States court of appeals; and
54	54	(3) one-third of the average starting base salary, on
55	55	January 1, of first-year associate attorneys employed with the five
56	56	private law firms with the largest number of attorneys licensed in
57	57	this state.
58	58	(b) The Office of Court Administration of the Texas Judicial
59	59	System shall collect and provide to the Legislative Budget Board
60	60	the information described by Subsections (a)(1) and (2) not later
61	61	than February 1 of each year.
62	62	(c) The state bar shall collect and provide to the
63	63	Legislative Budget Board the information described by Subsection
64	64	(a)(3) not later than February 1 of each year.
65	65	(d) The Legislative Budget Board shall calculate the salary
66	66	under Subsection (a) using the information received under
67	67	Subsections (b) and (c) and notify the comptroller of the amount not
68	68	later than March 1 of each year.
69	69	(e) On October 1 of each year, the comptroller shall adjust
70	70	all salaries paid under Section 659.012 based on the amount
71	71	provided by the Legislative Budget Board under Subsection (d).
72	72	(f) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), the salary of a justice
73	73	of the supreme court other than the chief justice or a judge of the
74	74	court of criminal appeals other than the presiding judge may not
75	75	increase annually by more than the greater of:
76	76	(1) four percent; and
77	77	(2) the percentage by which the Consumer Price Index
78	78	for All Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics
79	79	of the United States Department of Labor, or its successor index,
80	80	increased during the previous calendar year.
81	81	(g) The comptroller shall publish in the Texas Register, not
82	82	later than May 1 of each year, a list of all salaries to be paid
83	83	under Section 659.012 effective October 1.
84	84	SECTION 3. Effective August 31, 2021, Chapter 35,
85	85	Government Code, is repealed.
86	86	SECTION 4. Except as otherwise provided by this Act, this
87	87	Act takes effect January 1, 2019.