Senate Judiciary Committee advances district court funding, splits court fee revenue and trims installment fee

The Senate Judiciary Committee on [date not specified] voted to pass House Bill 16‑61, a package of statutory changes meant to reflect the full implementation of Amendment 80 and to revise how court fees and judge salaries are funded.

The bill, presented to the committee by Representative Carol Dolby (District 100, Texarkana) and accompanied by Kristen Clark of the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC), makes three principal changes: (1) it directs that district court judges’ salaries be paid from the state constitutional officers fund rather than by counties and cities; (2) it requires district courts to remit 50% of court costs and fees to the state and retain 50% locally; and (3) it reduces the monthly installment fee assessed when a defendant pays fines in installments from $10 to $7.50, caps total installment fees at $90 per defendant, and attaches a sunset to the installment-fee provision as drafted.

Representative Dolby said the bill implements…