| 2 | 2 | | |
|---|
| 3 | 3 | | |
|---|
| 4 | 4 | | SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION |
|---|
| 5 | 5 | | WHEREAS, Judicial salaries in Texas are consistently lower |
|---|
| 6 | 6 | | than those of other states with similar populations, and the state |
|---|
| 7 | 7 | | judiciary has received only two pay raises since 2000; and |
|---|
| 8 | 8 | | WHEREAS, The Judicial Compensation Commission was created in |
|---|
| 9 | 9 | | 2007 to recommend appropriate salaries for judges of the Texas |
|---|
| 10 | 10 | | Supreme Court, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, the courts of |
|---|
| 11 | 11 | | appeals, and the district courts; since its inception, the JCC has |
|---|
| 12 | 12 | | issued a report during each state legislative session; the only |
|---|
| 13 | 13 | | upgrade in compensation came after the commission's 2012 |
|---|
| 14 | 14 | | endorsement of a 21.5 percent raise in judicial salaries; the |
|---|
| 15 | 15 | | legislature voted to increase wages by 12 percent; and |
|---|
| 16 | 16 | | WHEREAS, The Texas judiciary plays a fundamental role in |
|---|
| 17 | 17 | | upholding the rule of law and safeguarding the rights and |
|---|
| 18 | 18 | | protections guaranteed to citizens by the state and federal |
|---|
| 19 | 19 | | constitutions, and competitive wages help to attract and retain the |
|---|
| 20 | 20 | | most qualified and capable judges for courts across the Lone Star |
|---|
| 21 | 21 | | State; now, therefore, be it |
|---|
| 22 | 22 | | RESOLVED, That the 85th Legislature of the State of Texas |
|---|
| 23 | 23 | | hereby request the lieutenant governor and the speaker of the house |
|---|
| 24 | 24 | | of representatives to create a joint interim committee to study |
|---|
| 25 | 25 | | state judicial salaries; and, be it further |
|---|
| 26 | 26 | | RESOLVED, That the study include the creation of a formula to |
|---|
| 27 | 27 | | calculate state judicial salaries, examining the salaries of the |
|---|
| 28 | 28 | | highest appellate courts of the nine most populous states other |
|---|
| 29 | 29 | | than Texas, the salaries of judges on the United States Courts of |
|---|
| 30 | 30 | | Appeals, and the average starting base salaries of first-year |
|---|
| 31 | 31 | | associate attorneys at the five largest law firms in Texas; and, be |
|---|
| 32 | 32 | | it further |
|---|
| 33 | 33 | | RESOLVED, That the committee's proceedings and operations be |
|---|
| 34 | 34 | | governed by such general rules and policies for joint interim |
|---|
| 35 | 35 | | committees as the 85th Legislature may adopt. |
|---|
| 36 | | - | ______________________________ ______________________________ |
|---|
| 37 | | - | President of the Senate Speaker of the House |
|---|
| 38 | | - | ______________________________ ______________________________ |
|---|
| 39 | | - | President of the Senate Speaker of the House |
|---|
| 40 | | - | I hereby certify that S.C.R. No. 57 was adopted by the Senate |
|---|
| 41 | | - | on May 28, 2017, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0. |
|---|
| 42 | | - | ______________________________ |
|---|
| 43 | | - | Secretary of the Senate |
|---|
| 44 | | - | I hereby certify that S.C.R. No. 57 was adopted by the House |
|---|
| 45 | | - | on May 29, 2017, by the following vote: Yeas 146, Nays 0, |
|---|
| 46 | | - | one present not voting. |
|---|
| 47 | | - | ______________________________ |
|---|
| 48 | | - | Chief Clerk of the House |
|---|