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F I S C A L I M P A C T R E P O R T

SPONSOR Cervantes

ORIGINAL DATE

LAST UPDATED

2/1/06

HB 741

SHORT TITLE Additional 3

rd

Judicial District Staff

SB

ANALYST McSherry

APPROPRIATION (dollars in thousands)

Appropriation

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY06

FY07

$267.2

Recurring

General Fund

$32.8

Non-Recurring

General Fund

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

House Bill 741 relates to Senate Bill 339, “Additional 3

rd

Judicial District Employees,” Senate

Bill 328, “3

rd

Judicial District additional Programs and Employees,” and to the General Appro-

priations Act appropriation adopted by HAFC.

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LFC Files

Responses Received From

Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC)

SUMMARY

Synopsis of Bill

House Bill 741, “3

rd

Judicial District Additional Employees” appropriates $300,000 from the

general fund to 3

rd

Judicial District Court for the purpose of funding additional full time employ-

ees in the 3

rd

Judicial District.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

The appropriation of $300,000 contained in this bill is a recurring expense to the general fund.

Any unexpended or unencumbered balance remaining at the end of fiscal year 2007 shall revert

to the general fund.

According to AOC, only $267,150 of the $300,000 appropriation would be for recurring costs.

House Bill 741 – Page

2

SIGNIFICANT ISSUES

The bill does not specify what types of positions are proposed to be funded with the $300 thou-

sand appropriation.

$300 thousand could fund 6 or more district court positions and the associated benefits.

According to the AOC, the appropriation would fund five positions: a staff attorney, human re-

source specialist, network specialist, legal assistant and district court judicial leadworker.

When all 3

rd

Judicial District employees are considered, including term positions, the district

does not show a need for additional staff using the staffing study completed in 2004.

HAFC included one expansion position, the staff attoney, and the associated funding in the FY07

recommendation for the 3

rd

Judicial District Court.

The AOC interpretation of the district court staffing study does not count term employees. This

methodology results in the study show a 3

rd

Judicial Court need for 5 new staff.

PERFORMANCE IMPLICATIONS

Additional staff for the 3

rd

judicial district could potentially increase performance outcomes for

the 3

rd

judicial district, depending on the nature of the proposed staff.

ADMINISTRATIVE IMPLICATIONS

Additional staff would result in additional administrative workload.

CONFLICT, DUPLICATION, COMPANIONSHIP, RELATIONSHIP

House Bill 741 relates to Senate Bills 339, “3

rd

Judicial District Additional Employees,” 329

“Additional Judgeship in the 3

rd

District,” and Senate Bill 328 “Third judicial district programs

and employees.”

WHAT WILL BE THE CONSEQUENCES OF NOT ENACTING THIS BILL

The Third Judicial District Court would not be appropriated $300 thousand in additional funds

for additional staff.

POSSIBLE QUESTIONS

1.

What reduction would be appropriate in the proposed appropriation, corresponding with

the amount increased in HAFC for the district’s staff attorney.

2.

What performance improvements are proposed through the proposed staff increases.

EM/nt