Volume 8 Issue 3

Indicates featured legislation

Jurisdiction: Newly Introduced

Mississippi HB 44 Prohibits use of foreign law in state's courts. In House Judiciary A Committee.

Missouri SJR 38 (Constitutional Amendment) Requires Missouri courts to interpret the United States Constitution based on its language and the intent of the signers at the time of its passage. Interpretation of its amendments must be based on the intent of the congressional sponsors and co-sponsors. Non-originalist methods of interpretation that consider the constitution a "living, breathing document" and any interpretation that expands federal authority beyond the limited powers enumerated and delegated to the federal government are to be deemed to exceed the limited powers of the federal government. Missouri courts will be required to use this method of interpretation, and any court ruling inconsistent with this method will not be recognized or enforced in Missouri. Allows Missouri citizens to have standing to bring suit to enforce the provisions of the resolution. In Senate (no committee).

West Virginia HB 2216 Bans court use of international law. In House Judiciary Committee.

Jurisdiction: Floor and Committee Activity

NONE

Qualifications and Terms: Newly Introduced

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. In Senate Judiciary Committee.

Indiana SB 109 Effectively eliminates mandatory retirement age for appellate judges. Provides appellate judges to retire at same age as Circuit/Superior Court judges (Note: those ages were repealed in HB 1266 of 2011). In Senate Judiciary Committee.

Oklahoma SB 1237 Limits county officials including clerk of court to 3 terms of 4 years. Prefiled.

Qualifications and Terms: Floor and Committee Activity

NONE

Rule Making Authority: Newly Introduced

Indiana HB 1018 Requires firearms be allowed in all state owned land and buildings. Prohibits judicial branch from issuing orders to prohibit carrying of firearms into buildings or land it controls. In House Public Policy Committee.

Oklahoma SB 1242 Provides Supreme Court may require court make use of electronic jury management system approved of by the Supreme Court. Prefiled.

Virginia HB 1038 Provides that no scheduled hearing or trial by jury shall be removed from any district court or circuit court docket for failure to comply with any local rule prescribed by a district or circuit court. In House (no committee).

Rule Making Authority: Floor and Committee Activity

NONE

Salary and Budget: Newly Introduced

Indiana HB 1015 Establishes the court security fund to be administered by supreme court to provide grants to a county, city, or town to pay for the costs of installing, operating, maintaining, and upgrading security measures, plans, procedures, and systems in and around state courts. Requires the clerk of a circuit court and the clerk of a city or town court to collect a court security fee of $1 in all civil, criminal, infraction, and ordinance violation actions before July 1, 2019. In House Ways & Means Committee.

Indiana SB 155 Requires court clerks collect a court security fee of $2 in each action in which a person is required to pay a criminal costs fee or a civil costs fee. Requires the clerks to distribute 100% of the court security fees collected to the auditor of state. Requires the auditor of state to transfer the court security fees to each county. Provides that the court security fees are to be: (1) distributed equally among the counties; and (2) deposited in each county's court security fund. Establishes a court security fund in each county to pay for the costs of installing, operating, maintaining, and upgrading security measures, plans, procedures, and systems in and around: (1) courtrooms; and (2) buildings that contain courtrooms; located in the county. In Senate (no committee).

Kentucky HB 182 (Constitutional Amendment) Creates independent state salary commission to set salaries for state elected officials including all judges. Allows voters to collect signatures to challenge and overturn any salary increases. In House (no committee).

Kentucky SB 6 Requires Kentucky Judicial Form Retirement System to disclose names, status, projected or actual benefit payments, and other retirement information of each member or recipient of a retirement allowance of the systems. Requires systems to also make the information available on a searchable database on the systems' Web site or on a Web site established by the judicial branch to provide government expenditure and salary data to the public. In Senate (no committee).

Mississippi HB 67 Allows special judges appointed to serve on emergency basis to receive up to 50% of the annual salary of a regular judge of the same court (currently limited to 25%). In House Judiciary A Committee.

Maryland HB 108 Requires the State Court Administrator and Chief Judge of the District Court to assess surcharges in specified cases to be deposited in the Circuit Court Real Property Records Improvement Fund. In House Judiciary Committee.

West Virginia HB 2988 Provides the West Virginia Courthouse Facilities Improvement Authority with the ability, power, and authority to issue bonds to raise funds for paying the costs of approved modifications or construction of courthouse facilities. In House Finance Committee.

West Virginia HB 4104 Allows state tax department to withhold personal income tax refunds from taxpayers who owe municipal or magistrate court costs. In House Finance Committee.

West Virginia SB 13 Expands definition of facilities that are eligible for funding assistance from Courthouse Facilities Improvement Authority. In Senate Judiciary Committee.

Salary and Budget: Floor and Committee Activity

NONE

Selection: Newly Introduced

Kansas SB 252 Requires applicant information to be made available to the public for those considered for appointment by the governor to a vacancy on the court of appeals. Prefiled.

Utah HB 237 Prohibits judge from accepting more than $9,999 of campaign contributions from same person or source in same two year period. Prefiled.

West Virginia HB 2027 Provides for nonpartisan elections of state officials including justices of supreme court. In House Judiciary Committee.

West Virginia HB 2568 Authorizes nonbinding referendum on 2014 ballot to make judicial elections nonpartisan. In House Judiciary Committee.

West Virginia HB 3012 Provides for nonpartisan election of justices to the Supreme Court of Appeals beginning in 2014.  In House Judiciary Committee.

West Virginia SB 232 Provides for nonpartisan election of justices to the Supreme Court of Appeals.  In Senate Government Organization Committee.

Selection: Floor and Committee Activity

NONE

Structure Changes: Newly Introduced

West Virginia HB 2227 Increases the minimum number of magisterial districts in a county from three to four. In House Political Subdivisions Committee.

Structure Changes: Floor and Committee Activity

NONE

Other: Newly Introduced

Arizona HB 2026 Allows town/city government to set hours of operation for municipal courts. Prefiled.

Indiana SB 134 Makes it a felony to file a false lien on judges or others. Requires Division of State Court Administration create forms to help pro se litigants contest such filings. Prefiled.

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. In House Judiciary Committee.

Maryland HB 46 Enacts Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act. Provides for official publication of decisions of the state's courts except Orphan's Court. In House Health and Government Operations Committee.

Maryland SB 69 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. In Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee.

New Hampshire HB 1318 Allows state court judges to solemnize marriages. Withdrawn with sole sponsor resigned from office.

New Hampshire HB 1452 Provides court must instruct criminal juries with the exact phrase: “The concept of jury nullification is well established in this country. If the jury feels that the law under which the defendant is accused is unjust, or that exigent circumstances justified the actions of the accused, or for any reason which appeals to their logic or passion, the jury has the power to acquit, and the courts must abide by that decision.” Prefiled.

Oklahoma SB 1264 Explicitly bans handguns specifically in courthouses. Allows for carrying of handguns into all other government buildings unless building has security checkpoint. Prefiled.

Utah HB 251 Allows for use of electronic signatures if court based e-filing system in place. Prefiled.

Virginia HB 353 Requires the Supreme Court to develop a weighted caseload system to assess judicial caseloads throughout the Commonwealth, and using that system, requires the Court to determine the need for judicial positions and the optimum distribution of judicial positions throughout the Commonwealth and to report every 10 years on the number of judges needed within the circuits and districts.  In House Courts of Justice Committee.

Virginia HB 1013 Permits the chief judge of a juvenile and domestic relations district court to direct the clerk of that court to destroy documents related to civil and criminal cases that have been ended for a period of three years, provided that the documents have been microfilmed or converted to an electronic format. Currently, the chief judge of a general district court has such authority.  In House (no committee).

Virginia HB 1018 Requires the appellate courts to produce audio or audio-visual recordings of oral arguments and to make such recordings available to the public without charge. Clarifies that clerks are not required to charge fees for access to or copies of orders and opinions and, further, that a clerk may not restrict redistribution of publicly accessible court records.  In House (no committee).

West Virginia HB 2552 Exempts magistrates and municipal court judges from the requirement of having a license to carry a concealed weapon. In House Judiciary Committee.

West Virginia HB 2869 Allows judges and magistrates of West Virginia Courts to carry concealed firearms in court buildings and offices of family court judges.  In House Judiciary Committee.

Virginia HB 967 Removes chief justice's power to recall retired judges back to duty to serve in the Circuit or District courts. Transfers recall power to chief judge of the court affected. In House Courts of Justice Committee.

Other: Floor and Committee Activity

NONE