Bill Text: FL H1513 | 2010 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Clerks of the Court

Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill

Status: (Failed) 2010-04-30 - Died in Full Appropriations Council on Education & Economic Development [H1513 Detail]

Download: Florida-2010-H1513-Introduced.html

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HB 1513

1	A bill to be entitled
2	An act relating to the clerks of the court; amending s.
3	11.90, F.S.; providing additional powers and duties of the
4	Legislative Budget Commission; amending s. 28.35, F.S.;
5	specifying that the Florida Clerks of Court Operations
6	Corporation is subject to certain procurement
7	requirements; removing a statement exempting the
8	corporation from the Administrative Procedure Act;
9	revising and expanding the duties and responsibilities of
10	the corporation relating to budget requests; requiring the
11	corporation to submit certain budgets and information to
12	the Legislative Budget Commission; providing duties and
13	responsibilities of the commission; deleting a requirement
14	that clerks of court submit certain financial audit
15	information to the Supreme Court; amending s. 28.36, F.S.;
16	revising required budget procedures for budget requests
17	for funding court-related functions of the clerks of
18	court; providing duties of the corporation; creating s.
19	28.365, F.S.; subjecting clerks of the courts to certain
20	procurement requirements and limitations; amending s.
21	28.37, F.S.; authorizing the chair of the corporation to
22	request a loan of funds from certain funds in the State
23	Treasury under certain circumstances; amending s. 215.22,
24	F.S.; exempting the Clerks of the Court Trust Fund and the
25	State Courts Revenue Trust Fund from certain appropriation
26	requirements; providing an appropriation; providing an
27	effective date.
28
29	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
30
31	Section 1. Subsection (6) of section 11.90, Florida
32	Statutes, is amended to read:
33	11.90 Legislative Budget Commission.-
34	(6) The commission shall have the power and duty to:
35	(a) Review and approve or disapprove budget amendments
36	recommended by the Governor or the Chief Justice of the Supreme
37	Court as provided in chapter 216.
38	(b) Develop the long-range financial outlook described in
39	s. 19, Art. III of the State Constitution.
40	(c) Review and approve or disapprove the budget of the
41	Florida Clerks of Court Operations Corporation.
42	(d) Review, approve, disapprove, or amend the total
43	combined budgets of the clerks of court or the budget of any
44	individual clerk of court.
45	(e) In addition to the powers and duties specified in this
46	subsection, the commission shall exercise all other powers and
47	perform any other duties prescribed by the Legislature.
48	Section 2. Paragraph (c) of subsection (1), subsections
49	(2) and (4), and paragraph (b) of subsection (5) of section
50	28.35, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
51	28.35 Florida Clerks of Court Operations Corporation.-
52	(1)
53	(c) The corporation shall be considered a political
54	subdivision of the state and shall be exempt from the corporate
55	income tax. The corporation is not subject to the procurement
56	provisions of chapter 287 120.
57	(2) The duties of the corporation shall include the
58	following:
59	(a) Adopting a plan of operation.
60	(b) Conducting the election of directors as required in
61	paragraph (1)(a).
62	(c) Recommending to the Legislature changes in the various
63	court-related fines, fees, service charges, and court costs
64	established by law.
65	(d) Developing and certifying a uniform system of
66	performance measures and applicable workload performance
67	standards for the functions specified in paragraph (3)(a) and
68	the service unit costs required in s. 28.36 and measures for
69	clerk workload performance in meeting the workload performance
70	standards. These workload performance measures and workload
71	performance standards shall be designed to facilitate an
72	objective determination of the performance of each clerk in
73	accordance with minimum standards for fiscal management,
74	operational efficiency, and effective collection of fines, fees,
75	service charges, and court costs. The corporation shall develop
76	the performance measures and performance standards in
77	consultation with the Legislature and the Supreme Court. The
78	Legislature may modify the clerk performance measures and
79	performance standards in legislation implementing the General
80	Appropriations Act or other law. When the corporation finds a
81	clerk has not met the workload performance standards, the
82	corporation shall identify the nature of each deficiency and any
83	corrective action recommended and taken by the affected clerk of
84	the court. The corporation shall notify the Legislature and the
85	Supreme Court of any clerk not meeting performance standards and
86	provide a copy of any corrective action plans.
87	(e) Pursuant to contract with the Chief Financial Officer,
88	establishing a process for the review of proposed court-related
89	budgets submitted by clerks of the court for completeness and
90	compliance with this section and ss. 28.36 and 28.37. Such
91	process shall be designed and be of sufficient detail to permit
92	independent verification and validation of such budgets. The
93	contract shall specify the process to be used in determining
94	compliance by the corporation with this section and ss. 28.36
95	and 28.37 and shall require the corporation to determine the
96	minimum amount of revenue necessary for each clerk of court to
97	efficiently perform the list of court-related functions
98	specified in paragraph (3)(a) in its budget review and approval
99	process.
100	(f)(e) Reviewing and approving proposed budgets submitted
101	by clerks of the court using the process approved by the Chief
102	Financial Officer pursuant to paragraph (e) for the purposes of
103	making the certification under paragraph (e). As part of such
104	process, the corporation shall:
105	1. Calculate the maximum authorized annual budget pursuant
106	to s. 28.36.
107	2. Calculate the minimum amount of revenue necessary for
108	each clerk to efficiently perform the list of court-related
109	functions specified in paragraph (3)(a).
110	3. Prepare a cost comparison of similarly situated clerks
111	of court, based on county population and numbers of filings,
112	using the standard list of court-related functions specified in
113	paragraph (3)(a).
114	4. Conduct an annual base budget review and an annual
115	budget exercise examining the total budget of each clerk of
116	court. The review shall examine revenues from all sources,
117	expenses of court-related functions, and expenses of non-court-
118	related functions as necessary to determine that court-related
119	revenues are not being used for non-court-related purposes.
120	Funds paid by a clerk to join or be a member of any group or
121	organization shall be separately listed and the benefits
122	received from any such group or organization described in
123	detail. The review and exercise shall identify potential
124	targeted budget reductions in the percentage amount provided in
125	Schedule VIII-B of the state's prior year's legislative budget
126	instructions, as referenced in s. 216.023(3), or an equivalent
127	schedule or instruction as may be adopted by the Legislature.
128	5. Identify those proposed budgets containing funding for
129	items not included on the standard list of court-related
130	functions specified in paragraph (3)(a).
131	6. Identify those clerks projected to have court-related
132	revenues insufficient to fund their anticipated court-related
133	expenditures.
134	(g)(f) Developing and conducting clerk education programs.
135	(h)(g) Publishing a uniform schedule of actual fees,
136	service charges, and costs charged by a clerk of the court
137	pursuant to general law.
138	(i) By August 1 of each year, submitting to the
139	Legislative Budget Commission, as provided in s. 11.90, its
140	proposed budget and the information described in paragraph (f),
141	as well as the approved budgets for each clerk of court and the
142	corporation. By October 1 of each year, the Legislative Budget
143	Commission shall consider the submitted budgets and shall
144	approve or disapprove the corporation's budget and shall
145	approve, disapprove, or amend and approve the total of the
146	clerks' combined budgets or any individual clerk's budget. If
147	the Legislative Budget Commission fails to approve the
148	corporation's budget or the clerks' combined budgets by October
149	1, the clerk shall continue to perform the court-related
150	functions based upon the clerk's approved budget for the
151	preceding county fiscal year.
152	(4) The corporation shall prepare a legislative budget
153	request for the resources necessary to perform its duties,
154	submit the request pursuant to chapter 216, and be funded as a
155	budget entity in the General Appropriations Act. The corporation
156	may hire staff and pay other expenses from state appropriations
157	as necessary to perform the official duties and responsibilities
158	of the corporation as described by law.
159	(5)
160	(b) Certified public accountants conducting audits of
161	counties pursuant to s. 218.39 shall report, as part of the
162	audit, whether or not the clerks of the courts have complied
163	with the requirements of this section and s. 28.36. In addition,
164	each clerk of court shall forward a copy of the portion of the
165	financial audit relating to the court-related duties of the
166	clerk of court to the Supreme Court. The Auditor General shall
167	develop a compliance supplement for the audit of compliance with
168	the budgets and applicable workload performance standards
169	certified by the corporation.
170	Section 3. Section 28.36, Florida Statutes, is amended to
171	read:
172	28.36 Budget procedure.-There is established a budget
173	procedure for preparing budget requests for funding for the
174	court-related functions of the clerks of the court.
175	(1) For the county fiscal year beginning October 1, 2011,
176	and for each county fiscal year thereafter, each clerk of court
177	shall prepare a budget request for court-related expenditures
178	which the last quarter of the county fiscal year and the first
179	three quarters of the next county fiscal year. The proposed
180	budget shall be prepared, summarized, and submitted by the clerk
181	in each county to the Florida Clerks of Court Operations
182	Corporation in the manner and form prescribed by the corporation
183	to meet the requirements of law. Each clerk shall forward a copy
184	of his or her budget request to the Supreme Court. The budget
185	requests must be provided to the corporation by April 15 October
186	1 of the each year prior to the year of the budget.
187	(2) Each proposed budget shall also conform to the
188	requirements of this subsection. On or before April 15 for each
189	fiscal year thereafter, the clerk of the court in each county
190	shall prepare, summarize, and submit a proposed budget to the
191	Florida Clerks of Court Operations Corporation in the manner and
192	form prescribed by the corporation. However, at a minimum, the
193	proposed budgets shall include for each clerk the information
194	required by the Legislative Budget Commission. The proposed
195	budget must provide detailed information on the anticipated
196	revenues available and expenditures necessary for the
197	performance of the standard list of court-related functions of
198	the clerk's office developed pursuant to s. 28.35(3)(a) for the
199	county fiscal year beginning the following October 1. The
200	Florida Clerks of Court Operations Corporation shall also
201	prepare its proposed budget by July 1 of each year, which shall
202	also contain such information as required by the Legislative
203	Budget Commission and provide a summary listing of clerks who
204	have not met all performance measures and the specific measures
205	that each clerk did not achieve clerk shall include in his or
206	her budget request a projection of the amount of court-related
207	fees, service charges, and any other court-related clerk fees
208	which will be collected during the proposed budget period. If
209	the corporation determines that the proposed budget is limited
210	to the standard list of court-related functions in s.
211	28.35(3)(a) and the projected court-related revenues are less
212	than the proposed budget, the clerk shall increase all fees,
213	service charges, and any other court-related clerk fees and
214	charges to the maximum amounts specified by law or the amount
215	necessary to resolve the deficit, whichever is less.
216	(3) Each clerk shall include in his or her budget request
217	the number of personnel and the proposed budget for each of the
218	following core services:
219	(a) Case processing.
220	(b) Financial processing.
221	(c) Jury management.
222	(d) Information and reporting.
223
224	Central administrative costs shall be allocated among the core-
225	services categories.
226	(4) The budget request must identify the service units to
227	be provided within each core service. The service units shall be
228	developed by the corporation, in consultation with the Supreme
229	Court, the Chief Financial Officer, and the appropriations
230	committees of the Senate and the House of Representatives.
231	(5) The budget request must propose a unit cost for each
232	service unit. The corporation shall provide a copy of each
233	clerk's budget request to the Supreme Court.
234	(6) The corporation shall review each individual clerk's
235	prior-year expenditures, projected revenue, proposed unit costs,
236	and the proposed budget for each of the core-services
237	categories. The corporation shall compare each clerk's prior-
238	year expenditures and unit costs for core services with a peer
239	group of clerks' offices having a population of a similar size
240	and a similar number of case filings. If the corporation finds
241	that the expenditures, unit costs, or proposed budget of a clerk
242	is significantly higher than those of clerks in that clerk's
243	peer group, the corporation shall require the clerk to submit
244	documentation justifying the difference in each core-services
245	category. Justification for higher expenditures may include, but
246	is not limited to, collective bargaining agreements, county
247	civil service agreements, and the number and distribution of
248	courthouses served by the clerk. If the expenditures and unit
249	costs are not justified, the corporation shall recommend a
250	reduction in the funding for that core-services category in the
251	budget request to an amount similar to the peer group of clerks
252	or to an amount that the corporation determines is justified.
253	(7) The corporation shall complete its review and
254	adjustments to the clerks' budget requests and make its
255	recommendations to the Legislature and the Supreme Court by
256	December 1 each year.
257	(8) The Chief Financial Officer shall review the proposed
258	unit costs associated with each clerk of court's budget request
259	and make recommendations to the Legislature. The Chief Financial
260	Officer may conduct any audit of the corporation or a clerk of
261	court as authorized by law. The Chief Justice of the Supreme
262	Court may request an audit of the corporation or any clerk of
263	court by the Chief Financial Officer.
264	(9) The Legislature shall appropriate the total amount for
265	the budgets of the clerks in the General Appropriations Act. The
266	Legislature may reject or modify any or all of the unit costs
267	recommended by the corporation. If the Legislature does not
268	specify the unit costs in the General Appropriations Act or
269	other law, the unit costs recommended by the corporation shall
270	be the official unit costs for that budget period.
271	(10) For the 2009-2010 fiscal year, the corporation shall
272	release appropriations in an amount equal to one-twelfth of each
273	clerk's approved budget each month. The statewide total
274	appropriation for the 2009-2010 fiscal year shall be set in the
275	General Appropriations Act. The corporation shall determine the
276	amount of each clerk of court budget, but the statewide total of
277	such amounts may not exceed the amount listed in the General
278	Appropriations Act. Beginning in the 2010-2011 fiscal year, the
279	corporation shall release appropriations to each clerk
280	quarterly. The amount of the release shall be based on the prior
281	quarter's performance of service units identified in the four
282	core services and the established unit costs for each clerk.
283	(11) The corporation may submit proposed legislation to
284	the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of
285	the House of Representatives relating to the preparation of
286	budget requests of the clerks of court.
287	Section 4. Section 28.365, Florida Statutes, is created to
288	read:
289	28.365 Procurement.-The clerks of court are subject to the
290	procurement requirements and limitations of chapter 287 for
291	expenditures made pursuant to the budget provided for in s.
292	28.35.
293	Section 5. Subsection (3) is added to section 28.37,
294	Florida Statutes, to read:
295	28.37 Fines, fees, service charges, and costs remitted to
296	the state.-
297	(3) The chair of the Florida Clerks of Court Operations
298	Corporation may request a loan of funds pursuant to s. 215.18,
299	notwithstanding the Clerks of the Court Trust Fund's ability to
300	repay the loan by the end of the fiscal year, if, at any time
301	during the 2010-2011 fiscal year, the Revenue Estimating
302	Conference projects that revenues deposited into the Clerks of
303	the Court Trust Fund will be less than 98 percent of the amount
304	appropriated from the trust fund in the General Appropriations
305	Act for the 2010-2011 fiscal year.
306	Section 6. Paragraphs (x) and (y) are added to subsection
307	(1) of section 215.22, Florida Statutes, to read:
308	215.22 Certain income and certain trust funds exempt.-
309	(1) The following income of a revenue nature or the
310	following trust funds shall be exempt from the appropriation
311	required by s. 215.20(1):
312	(x) The Clerks of the Court Trust Fund.
313	(y) The State Courts Revenue Trust Fund.
314	Section 7. The Legislature shall appropriate in the 2011-
315	2012 General Appropriations Act sufficient funding for the
316	period July 1, 2010, through September 30, 2011, to allow clerks
317	of court to perform court-related duties during such transition
318	period.
319	Section 8. This act shall take effect July 1, 2010.

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.