Volume 8 Issue 15

Indicates featured legislation

Jurisdiction: Newly Introduced

NONE

Jurisdiction: Floor and Committee Activity

Delaware HB 232 (Constitutional Amendment) Adds "the highest appellate court of any foreign country, or any foreign governmental agency regulating the public issuance or trading of securities" to the list of entities that may certify questions of law to the Delaware Supreme Court.  Approved by full House 4/1/14.

Florida SB 386 Bans court use of international or foreign law in dissolution proceedings and support enforcement under the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act. Exempts corporations, contract provisions, common law of England and tribal court determinations. Approved by Senate Governmental Oversight and Accountability Committee 4/3/14.

Hawaii HB 1846 Increases the maximum claim amount that determines district court jurisdiction in civil cases from $25,000 to $40,000.  Approved by full Senate 4/4/14.

Missouri HB 1439 Provides it is state court's duty to protect 2nd Amendment rights of those in Missouri and prohibits them from enforcing or upholding any federal law or executive order in violation of 2nd Amendment. Removes official and qualified immunity from any judge who enforces such laws or executive orders. Approved by full House 4/3/14.

Qualifications and Terms: Newly Introduced

Louisiana SB 583 Removes exemption that those justices of the peace serving as of August 15, 2006 need not retire at age 70. In Senate Judiciary A Committee.                                                                                                                                                         

Qualifications and Terms: Floor and Committee Activity

Alabama SB 68 Authorizes a person who previously served as an appellate court judge to act as a private judge on a trial court. Allows a person who is serving as a private judge to be called to active duty status or accept appointment as a special or senior judge while also serving as a private judge. Approved by House Judiciary Committee 4/1/14.

Louisiana SB 11 (Constitutional Amendment) Removes mandatory judicial retirement age. Approved by full Senate 4/1/14.

Rule Making Authority: Newly Introduced

Louisiana SB 628 Provides discovery rules of the Code of Civil Procedure and Code of Criminal Procedure shall apply to any investigation or hearing of the state's judicial disciplinary commission. In Senate Judiciary A Committee. 

Rule Making Authority: Floor and Committee Activity

Connecticut SB 456 Authorizes the Supreme Court to adopt the Connecticut Code of Evidence. Approved by Joint Judiciary Committee 4/1/14.

Salary and Budget: Newly Introduced

Louisiana HB 1130 Authorizes municipal governing authorities to contract with private collection agencies for purposes of collecting city court fines, forfeitures, penalties, and costs. In House Judiciary Committee.

New Jersey SB 1901 Grants county governing body final authority to determine expenditures for "suitable" courtroom facilities.  In Senate Judiciary Committee. 

Salary and Budget: Floor and Committee Activity

Alabama SB 358 Requires the Administrative Director of Courts to provide a quarterly report containing the total amount of court costs, docket fees, fines, and other fees that each court waived or remitted during the quarter. Approved with House amendment by House Judiciary Committee 4/2/14.

Florida SB 1628 Requires Supreme Court, Florida Clerks of Court Operations Corporation, Justice Administrative Commission, and others establish controls to detect fraud, waste, and abuse.  Approved by Senate Governmental Oversight and Accountability Committee 4/3/14.

Kansas HB 2338 ORIGINAL: Amends numerous docket fees. AS AMENDED: Appropriates $2.0 million in additional State General funds for the Judicial Branch in FY 2015. Increases docket fee revenue to the Judicial Branch. Removes power of supreme court to name chief judges of court of appeals and district courts. Removes supreme court's power over district court budgets. Provides allocating a budget for each judicial district court with chief judge to have the authority to expend funds as necessary. Allows for delay in filling judicial vacancies for up to 120 days. Deletes statutory requirement for the payment of longevity to Judicial Branch non-judicial staff. Provisions of bill are non-severable; if courts find any portion unconstitutional entire bill including funding voided. Conference committee report approved by Senate 4/2/14 and by House 4/4/14. To Governor for signature.

Louisiana HB 154 Authorizes an increase of 50 cents in court costs for certain filings in all courts. Approved by House Judiciary Committee 3/31/14.          

Louisiana SB 111 Establishes that fees for e-filing may not exceed the fee amount for regular paper filing of documents. Approved by House Judiciary A Committee 4/1/14.

Maine HB 1281 Authorizes $15 million bond offer for efiling and case management system. Requires chief justice report on matters regarding this system. Approved by full House 4/2/14.

Tennessee SB 1673 ORIGINAL: Authorizes court clerks to retain fifty percent of the fines, costs, or litigation taxes in default for six months or more which are collected using an in-house collection procedure. AS AMENDED: Deletes all language. Beginning July 1, 2015, reduces, from 50 percent to 40 percent, the amount of collected fees, fines, costs, and taxes a third - party agent can receive for its fee. Prohibits state funds from being used to pay for any computer system or software changes that may be necessitated by the proposed legislation. Provides any changes shall be funded by fees collected by court clerks which are dedicated funds for computer related expenses of court clerks under existing statute. Approved as amended by full House 4/3/14. 

Selection: Newly Introduced

Rhode Island HB 8006 Extends until 2015 law allowing any individual whose name was publicly submitted to the governor by the judicial nominating commission, eligible for subsequent nomination by the governor. In House Judiciary Committee.

Selection: Floor and Committee Activity

Alabama HB 543 ORIGINAL: Provides rebuttable presumption of judicial recusal where party, attorney, or law firm in case gave 25% of all contributions to judge's campaign. AMENDED: Replaces threshold with sliding scale: 10% for statewide appellate races, 15% for circuit court, 25% for district court Approved as amended by full Senate 4/3/14. To Governor for approval.

Alaska SJR 21 (Constitutional Amendment) ORIGINAL: Expands Judicial Council, which serves as merit selection commission, from 7 to 16. Provides governor to name majority of council members (10 out of 16). AS AMENDED: Expands Judicial Council from 7 to 10. Provides governor to name majority of council members (6 out of 10). Requires all members of Council be confirmed by legislature. Provides quorum of 7 to take any action. Approved as amended by Senate Finance Committee 3/31/14.

Florida SJR 1188 (Constitutional Amendment) Allows governor to fill "prospective" vacancies in courts via state's merit selection system. Approved by full Senate 4/3/14.

Structure Changes: Newly Introduced

NONE

Structure Changes: Floor and Committee Activity

Louisiana SB 532 Creates veteran's court program in all district courts. Approved by Senate Health and Welfare Committee 4/2/14.

Oklahoma HB 2686 Provides where there is a challenge to a state statute as being unconstitutional, the District Court is to sit as a three judge panel. Failed in Senate Judiciary Committee 4/1/14.

Other: Newly Introduced

Louisiana SB 606 Provides that the various courts shall provide by court rule for the method of electronic signature to be used and to ensure the authenticity of the electronic signature. Repeals law prohibiting electronic signatures relating to court orders or notices, or official court documents, including briefs, pleadings, and other writings, required to be executed in connection with court proceedings. In Senate Judiciary A Committee.

Other: Floor and Committee Activity

Alabama SB 253 (Constitutional Amendment) Allows for impeachment of district court judges by Circuit Court, removes reference to impeachment of chancery court judges. Approved by House Constitution, Campaigns and Elections Committee 4/1/14.

Alabama SB 261 Allows for impeachment of district court judges, removes reference to impeachment of chancery court judges. Approved by House Constitution, Campaigns and Elections Committee 4/1/14.

Connecticut SB 152 Allows authorized Judicial Branch employees to access the Connecticut on-line law enforcement communications teleprocessing (COLLECT) system regarding branch job applicants or employees or job applicants at agencies under contract with the branch who will have access to criminal justice information. Approved by Joint Judiciary Committee 4/1/14.

Kansas HB 2448 HOUSE VERSION: Provides dissemination of personal information of judge or judge's family in certain instances is a crime. SENATE VERSION: Same, but also changes various sentencing and probation statutes. Conference committee report approved by Senate 4/5/14.

Louisiana HB 46 Requires judges to sign and print their names on all judgments.  Approved by House Judiciary Committee 3/31/14.

Louisiana HB 709 ORIGINAL: Allows justices of the peace to solemnize marriages in any parish which has no justice of the peace. AS AMENDED: Same, but also provides when justice of the peace appoints ad hoc justice of the peace to temporarily serve in office must notify attorney general within 72 hours Approved as amended by House Judiciary Committee 3/31/14.

Louisiana HB 888 Creates the Louisiana Clerks' Remote Access Authority (LCRAA) for the purpose of providing infrastructure, governance, standard operating procedures, technology , and training to support a statewide portal for secure remote access of certain court records maintained by LCRAA members to internet users and for document preservation. Approved by House Appropriations Committee 3/31/14.

Maryland HB 45 Provides for an exception to a requirement that specified court documents be published in the Maryland Register if the court document is posted on the Web site of the Maryland Judiciary. Approved by full Senate 3/31/14. To Governor for approval.

Minnesota SB 2718 AS AMENDED: Repeals provision that withholds pay of judges who have decisions pending for longer than 90 days. Provides 90 day deadline requirement to be enforced by chief judge initially rather that via judicial disciplinary board. Provides determinations of compliance to occur on a monthly basis. Provides deadlines and procedures set in statute to be used "unless different procedures for ensuring compliance...are set by the Rules of the Board on Judicial Standards..." Approved as amended by Senate Judiciary Committee 3/28/14.

Pennsylvania SB 1219 Provides in specified cities of specified classifications, repeals power of court of common pleas judges to name interim district attorney when a vacancy occurs. Provides first assistant district attorney to be district attorney. Approved by Senate Local Government Committee 4/1/14.

Pennsylvania SB 1220 Generally repeals power of court of common pleas judges to name interim district attorney when a vacancy occurs. Provides first assistant district attorney to be district attorney. Approved by Senate Local Government Committee 4/1/14.

South Carolina SB 405 Provides judiciary and not state ethics commission to handle complaints against administrative law judges for possible violations of the Code of Judicial Conduct in the same manner as complaints against other judges. Approved by full Senate 3/20/14. To Governor for approval.

Tennessee HB 1520 Removes the requirement that judges must complete POST training in order to carry a firearm in the discharge of the judge's official duties. Approved by full House 3/31/14. To Governor for approval.

Tennessee SB 1566 Extends the Tennessee board of judicial conduct to 2018. Approved by Senate Government Operations Committee 4/2/14.