Bill Text: TX SB1607 | 2011-2012 | 82nd Legislature | Comm Sub
Bill Title: Relating to the duties and responsibilities of certain county officials and the functions of county government.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2011-04-12 - Not again placed on intent calendar [SB1607 Detail]
Download: Texas-2011-SB1607-Comm_Sub.html
By: Carona | S.B. No. 1607 | |
(In the Senate - Filed March 11, 2011; March 23, 2011, read | ||
first time and referred to Committee on Jurisprudence; | ||
April 6, 2011, reported favorably by the following vote: Yeas 6, | ||
Nays 0; April 6, 2011, sent to printer.) |
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relating to the duties and responsibilities of certain county | ||
officials and the functions of county government. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. Subsection (b), Section 51.305, Government Code, | ||
is amended to read as follows: | ||
(b) The commissioners court of a county may adopt a district | ||
court records archive fee of not more than $5 for the filing of a | ||
suit, including an appeal from an inferior court, or a | ||
cross-action, counterclaim, intervention, contempt action, motion | ||
for new trial, or third-party petition, in a district court or | ||
statutory county court, if the court exercises concurrent | ||
jurisdiction over the suit with a district court, in the county as | ||
part of the county's annual budget. The fee must be set and | ||
itemized in the county's budget as part of the budget preparation | ||
process and must be approved in a public meeting. The fee is for | ||
preservation and restoration services performed in connection with | ||
maintaining a district court records archive. | ||
SECTION 2. Subsection (c), Section 51.605, Government Code, | ||
is amended to read as follows: | ||
(c) A clerk must each year [ |
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continuing education courses including at least one hour of | ||
continuing education courses regarding registry funds handled | ||
under Chapter 117, Local Government Code, in the performance of the | ||
duties of office. The 20 hours of required continuing education | ||
courses must include at least one hour of continuing education | ||
regarding fraudulent court documents and fraudulent document | ||
filings. | ||
SECTION 3. Subsection (a), Section 62.106, Government Code, | ||
is amended to read as follows: | ||
(a) A person qualified to serve as a petit juror may | ||
establish an exemption from jury service if the person: | ||
(1) is over 70 years of age; | ||
(2) has legal custody of a child younger than 12 [ |
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years of age and the person's service on the jury requires leaving | ||
the child without adequate supervision; | ||
(3) is a student of a public or private secondary | ||
school; | ||
(4) is a person enrolled and in actual attendance at an | ||
institution of higher education; | ||
(5) is an officer or an employee of the senate, the | ||
house of representatives, or any department, commission, board, | ||
office, or other agency in the legislative branch of state | ||
government; | ||
(6) is summoned for service in a county with a | ||
population of at least 200,000, unless that county uses a jury plan | ||
under Section 62.011 and the period authorized under Section | ||
62.011(b)(5) exceeds two years, and the person has served as a petit | ||
juror in the county during the 24-month period preceding the date | ||
the person is to appear for jury service; | ||
(7) is the primary caretaker of a person who is an | ||
invalid unable to care for himself; | ||
(8) except as provided by Subsection (b), is summoned | ||
for service in a county with a population of at least 250,000 and | ||
the person has served as a petit juror in the county during the | ||
three-year period preceding the date the person is to appear for | ||
jury service; or | ||
(9) is a member of the United States military forces | ||
serving on active duty and deployed to a location away from the | ||
person's home station and out of the person's county of residence. | ||
SECTION 4. Subchapter E, Chapter 101, Government Code, is | ||
amended by adding Section 101.08118 to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 101.08118. ADDITIONAL STATUTORY COUNTY COURT FEES: | ||
LOCAL GOVERNMENT CODE. The clerk of a statutory county court shall | ||
collect a district court records archive fee of not more than $5 | ||
under Section 118.068, Local Government Code, if adopted by the | ||
county commissioners court. | ||
SECTION 5. Subchapter F, Chapter 101, Government Code, is | ||
amended by adding Section 101.10117 to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 101.10117. ADDITIONAL STATUTORY PROBATE COURT FEES: | ||
LOCAL GOVERNMENT CODE. The clerk of a statutory probate court shall | ||
collect a district court records archive fee of not more than $5 | ||
under Section 118.068, Local Government Code, if adopted by the | ||
county commissioners court. | ||
SECTION 6. Section 191.0045, Health and Safety Code, is | ||
amended by amending Subsection (h) and adding Subsection (i) to | ||
read as follows: | ||
(h) In addition to other fees collected under this section, | ||
a local registrar or county clerk may collect a fee not to exceed $1 | ||
for: | ||
(1) preserving [ |
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records maintained by the registrar or county clerk, including | ||
birth, death, fetal death, marriage, divorce, and annulment | ||
records; | ||
(2) training registrar or county clerk employees | ||
regarding vital statistics records; and | ||
(3) ensuring the safety and security of vital | ||
statistics records. | ||
(i) A fee under this section shall be collected by the | ||
registrar or county clerk on the issuance of a vital statistics | ||
record, including a record issued through a Remote Birth Access | ||
site. | ||
SECTION 7. Section 118.051, Local Government Code, is | ||
amended to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 118.051. CLERICAL DUTIES. Except as provided by | ||
Sections [ |
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subchapter for county civil court dockets under Section 118.052(1) | ||
and county probate court dockets under Section 118.052(2) are fees | ||
for all clerical duties performed in connection with the docket, | ||
including: | ||
(1) filing, registering or recording, docketing, and | ||
taxing costs for an application, will, complaint, petition, return, | ||
document, or proceeding; | ||
(2) issuing and recording the return of a citation, | ||
notice, subpoena, commission to take depositions, execution while | ||
the docket is still open (civil docket), garnishment before | ||
judgment (civil docket), order, writ, process, or any other | ||
document authorized or required to be issued by the clerk on which a | ||
return must be recorded; | ||
(3) attendances in court as clerk of the court; | ||
(4) impaneling a jury (civil docket); | ||
(5) swearing witnesses; | ||
(6) approving bonds involved in court action; and | ||
(7) administering oaths. | ||
SECTION 8. Section 118.052, Local Government Code, is | ||
amended to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 118.052. FEE SCHEDULE. Each clerk of a county court | ||
shall collect the following fees for services rendered to any | ||
person: | ||
(1) CIVIL COURT ACTIONS | ||
(A) Filing of Original Action (Sec. 118.053): | ||
(i) Garnishment after judgment . . . $15.00 | ||
(ii) All others . . . $40.00 | ||
(B) Filing of Action Other than Original (Sec. | ||
118.054) . . . $30.00 | ||
(C) Services Rendered After Judgment in Original | ||
Action (Sec. 118.0545): | ||
(i) Abstract of judgment . . . $5.00 | ||
(ii) Execution, order of sale, writ, or | ||
other process . . . $5.00 | ||
(2) PROBATE COURT ACTIONS | ||
(A) Probate Original Action (Sec. 118.055): | ||
(i) Probate of a will with independent | ||
executor, administration with will attached, administration of an | ||
estate, guardianship or receivership of an estate, or muniment of | ||
title . . . $40.00 | ||
(ii) Community survivors . . . $40.00 | ||
(iii) Small estates . . . $40.00 | ||
(iv) Declarations of heirship . . . $40.00 | ||
(v) Mental health or chemical dependency | ||
services . . . $40.00 | ||
(vi) Additional, special fee (Sec. 118.064) | ||
. . . $5.00 | ||
(B) Services in Pending Probate Action (Sec. | ||
118.056): | ||
(i) Filing an inventory and appraisement as | ||
provided by Section 118.056(d) . . . $25.00 | ||
(ii) Approving and recording bond . . . | ||
$3.00 | ||
(iii) Administering oath . . . $2.00 | ||
(iv) Filing annual or final account of | ||
estate . . . $25.00 | ||
(v) Filing application for sale of real or | ||
personal property . . . $25.00 | ||
(vi) Filing annual or final report of | ||
guardian of a person . . . $10.00 | ||
(vii) Filing a document not listed under | ||
this paragraph after the filing of an order approving the inventory | ||
and appraisement or after the 120th day after the date of the | ||
initial filing of the action, whichever occurs first, if more than | ||
25 pages . . . $25.00 | ||
(C) Adverse Probate Action (Sec. 118.057) . . . | ||
$40.00 | ||
(D) Claim Against Estate (Sec. 118.058) . . . | ||
$2.00 | ||
(E) Supplemental Court-Initiated Guardianship | ||
Fee in Probate Original Actions and Adverse Probate Actions (Sec. | ||
118.067) . . . $20.00 | ||
(3) OTHER FEES | ||
(A) Issuing Document (Sec. 118.059): | ||
original document and one copy . . . $4.00 | ||
each additional set of an original and one copy | ||
. . . $4.00 | ||
(B) Certified Papers (Sec. 118.060): | ||
for the clerk's certificate . . . $5.00 | ||
plus a fee per page or part of a page of . . . $1.00 | ||
(C) Noncertified Papers (Sec. 118.0605): | ||
for each page or part of a page . . . $1.00 | ||
(D) Letters Testamentary, Letter of | ||
Guardianship, Letter of Administration, or Abstract of Judgment | ||
(Sec. 118.061) . . . $2.00 | ||
(E) Safekeeping of Wills (Sec. 118.062) . . . | ||
$5.00 | ||
(F) Mail Service of Process (Sec. 118.063) . . . | ||
same as sheriff | ||
(G) Records Management and Preservation Fee | ||
. . . $5.00 | ||
(H) District Court Records Archive Fee . . . | ||
$5.00 | ||
SECTION 9. Subchapter C, Chapter 118, Local Government | ||
Code, is amended by adding Section 118.068 to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 118.068. DISTRICT COURT RECORDS ARCHIVE FEE. (a) If | ||
adopted by the commissioners court, the clerk of a county court | ||
shall collect a district court records archive fee of not more than | ||
$5 when a person files a suit in a statutory county court for which | ||
the court exercises concurrent jurisdiction with a district court, | ||
including an appeal from an inferior court, or a cross-action, | ||
counterclaim, intervention, contempt action, motion for new trial, | ||
or third-party petition. | ||
(b) The fee imposed under this section does not apply to a | ||
filing by a state agency. | ||
(c) The county clerk, after collecting a fee under this | ||
section, shall pay the fee to the county treasurer, or to an | ||
official who discharges the duties commonly delegated to the county | ||
treasurer, for deposit to the district court records technology | ||
fund established under Section 51.305, Government Code. | ||
SECTION 10. Subsection (a), Section 132.002, Local | ||
Government Code, is amended to read as follows: | ||
(a) The commissioners court of a county may authorize a | ||
county or precinct officer who collects fees, fines, court costs, | ||
or other charges on behalf of the county or the state to accept | ||
payment by credit card or check verified electronically of a fee, | ||
fine, court costs, or other charge. The commissioners court may | ||
also authorize a county or precinct officer to collect and retain a | ||
fee for processing the payment by credit card or check verified | ||
electronically. | ||
SECTION 11. Section 191.030, Health and Safety Code, is | ||
repealed. | ||
SECTION 12. (a) Section 51.607, Government Code, does not | ||
apply to a fee imposed under Section 118.068, Local Government | ||
Code, as added by this Act, or Section 101.08118 or 101.10117, | ||
Government Code, as added by this Act. | ||
(b) The change in law made by this Act applies only to the | ||
imposition of a fee on a filing in a civil action or proceeding made | ||
on or after the effective date of an order of a commissioners court | ||
authorizing imposition of the fee. The imposition of a fee on a | ||
filing made before that date is governed by the law in effect on the | ||
date the filing was made, and the former law is continued in effect | ||
for that purpose. | ||
SECTION 13. This Act takes effect immediately if it | ||
receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each | ||
house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. | ||
If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate | ||
effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2011. | ||
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