Circuit and superior court budgets mostly flat; interpreter and CASA lines clarified

Circuit Court and Superior Court judges told the council on Oct. 2 that their 2026 budget requests are largely flat compared with 2025, with the main change being planned cost‑of‑living raises for staff. Judges said they included a 3% staff raise in personal‑services lines. Both judges noted one irregularity: interpreter and witness‑interpreter amounts appeared in different line items between the two court budgets. The council and staff reviewed line‑by‑line copies and directed staff to swap and correct the lines so the full‑time part‑time interpreter compensation appears in the correct personal‑services account and witness or language‑line charges (language line/LanguageLine phone interpreter service) appear in the witness/interpreter account. On CASA funding (Court Appointed Special Advocates), presenters said the CASA program is funded about half by a matching amount from a preserve/wrap‑around budget and half by a grant. County funds for CASA pay mileage and partial compensation while experienced volunteers carry most of the time. Presenters said CASA currently has roughly 10–12 volunteers, with several attorneys acting as guardians ad litem; one long‑time director is transitioning to a volunteer role as cases finish and a new director (Nancy Ward) has been hired to take on day‑to‑day duties. Nut graf: Judges asked the council to confirm which lines pay for interpreters and to correct swapped numbers on the published pages; council staff agreed to correct the budget book. Ending: The council will adopt corrected line items for interpreters and carry CASA program funding forward in the draft budgets for later action. Date and timing for final appropriation will follow the usual county budget readings.