A justice court official asked the commissioners to approve converting a temporary seasonal position to a full-time clerk and to authorize a county contribution toward a juvenile diversion coordinator position that the state is mandating beginning January 2025.

The official told the court that one full-time clerk has been out with an injury since Jan. 5 and that a temporary employee on 29 hours a week is insufficient. She said the state of Texas is requiring counties to have a juvenile diversion coordinator by Jan. 2025 and that the state has paid or partly paid similar positions in other counties. To comply, the justice court requested making a county-paid position full time and allowing the state to pick up the remaining hours of the coordinator position.

Why it matters: The state mandate (cited in the meeting as Article 45.309, Chapter 45, Subchapter E) requires a county-level juvenile diversion coordinator. Commissioners must address staffing and budget allocation to meet the statutory requirement while maintaining court operations.

The court official proposed that one county-level coordinator could cover multiple justice courts and all four precincts rather than creating a full-time coordinator for each court. She said she had discussed the concept with other local officials and that the arrangement could be hosted within the justice court office to centralize privacy-sensitive juvenile work.

No formal vote or motion to adopt funding was recorded in the transcript; the request was presented for commissioners' consideration and questions.

The court official provided a written folder of details for staff to review and offered to answer follow-up questions.

The meeting included discussion of how the existing temporary pay line has been used to pay the seasonal employee rather than an appointed full-time clerk, and commissioners asked for clarification on funding mechanisms and state reimbursement.

Speakers and paraphrases in this article are limited to participants identified in the meeting transcript.