Bill Text: MS HB165 | 2018 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: County court administrator; require counties to pay salary directly to.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Failed) 2018-01-30 - Died In Committee [HB165 Detail]
Download: Mississippi-2018-HB165-Introduced.html
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2018 Regular Session
To: County Affairs; Appropriations
By: Representative Kinkade
House Bill 165
AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 9-17-1, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REQUIRE THE COUNTIES TO PAY THE COUNTY COURT ADMINISTRATORS; TO BRING FORWARD SECTION 9-13-19, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH PROVIDES FOR THE COMPENSATION OF COURT REPORTERS, FOR THE PURPOSE OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENT; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. Section 9-17-1, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
9-17-1. (1) The judges and chancellors of judicial districts, including chancery, circuit and county courts, may, in their discretion, jointly or independently, establish the office of court administrator in any county by an order entered on the minutes of each participating court in the county.
The establishment of the office of court administrator shall be accomplished by vote of a majority of the participating judges and chancellors in the county, and such court administrator shall be appointed by vote of a majority of the judges or chancellors and may be removed by a majority vote of the judges or chancellors. In case of a tie vote, the senior judge or senior chancellor shall cast two (2) votes.
(2) The court administrator shall be provided office space in the same manner as such is afforded the judges and chancellors.
(3) The annual salary of each court administrator appointed pursuant to this section shall be set by vote of the judges and chancellors of each participating county and shall be submitted to the Administrative Office of Courts for approval pursuant to Section 9-1-36. The salary of the circuit and chancery court administrators shall be paid in twelve (12) installments on the last working day of the month by the Administrative Office of Courts after it has been authorized by the participating judges and chancellors and an order has been duly placed on the minutes of each participating court. The participating counties shall pay the annual salary of each county court administrator directly to each county court administrator in the same manner as all other county employees are paid.
Any county within a judicial district having a chancery or circuit court administrator shall transfer to the Administrative Office of Courts one-twelfth (1/12) of its pro rata cost of authorized compensation as defined in Section 9-1-36 for the chancery or circuit court administrator by the twentieth day of each month for the compensation that is to be paid on the last day of that month. The board of supervisors may transfer the pro rata cost of the county from the funds of that county pursuant to Section 9-17-5(2)(b).
(4) For all travel required
in the performance of official duties, the court administrator shall be paid
mileage by the county in which the duties were performed at the same rate as
provided for state employees in Section 25-3-41 * * *. The court
administrator shall file a certificate of mileage expense incurred during that
term with the board of supervisors of each participating county and payment of
such expense shall be paid proportionately out of the court administration fund
established pursuant to Section 9-17-5.
SECTION 2. Section 9-13-19, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
9-13-19. (1) Court reporters for circuit and chancery courts may be paid an annual salary payable by the Administrative Office of Courts not to exceed Forty-nine Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($49,500.00) for court reporters with five (5) years' experience or less; not to exceed Fifty-eight Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($58,500.00) for court reporters who have more than five (5) years' experience but less than ten (10) years; and not to exceed Sixty-four Thousand Dollars ($64,000,00) for court reporters who have ten (10) years or more experience. No amount of the increase in the maximum salary authorized by this section shall be paid from the State General Fund. The board of supervisors of any county is authorized to pay its court reporters the applicable amount of the maximum salary authorized by this section. In addition, any court reporter performing the duties of a court administrator in the same judicial district in which the person is employed as a court reporter may be paid additional compensation for performing the court administrator duties. The annual amount of the additional compensation shall be set by vote of the judges and chancellors for whom the court administrator duties are performed, with consideration given to the number of hours per month devoted by the court reporter to performing the duties of a court administrator. The additional compensation shall be submitted to the Administrative Office of Courts for approval.
(2) The several counties in each respective court district shall transfer from the general funds of those county treasuries to the Administrative Office of Courts a proportionate amount to be paid toward the annual compensation of the court reporter, including any additional compensation paid for the performance of court administrator duties. The amount to be paid by each county shall be determined by the number of weeks in which court is held in each county in proportion to the total number of weeks court is held in the district. For purposes of this section, the term "compensation" means the gross salary plus all amounts paid for benefits, or otherwise, as a result of employment or as required by employment, but does not include transcript fees otherwise authorized to be paid by or through the counties. However, only salary earned for services rendered shall be reported and credited for retirement purposes. Amounts paid for transcript fees, benefits or otherwise, including reimbursement for travel expenses, shall not be reported or credited for retirement purposes.
For example, if there are thirty-eight (38) scheduled court weeks in a particular district, a county in which court is scheduled five (5) weeks out of the year would have to pay five-thirty-eighths (5/38) of the total annual compensation.
(3) The salary and any additional compensation for the performance of court administrator duties shall be paid in twelve (12) installments on the last working day of each month after it has been duly authorized by the appointing judge or chancellor and an order duly placed on the minutes of the court. Each county shall transfer to the Administrative Office of Courts one-twelfth (1/12) of the amount required to be paid pursuant to subsection (2) of this section by the twentieth day of each month for the salary that is to be paid on the last working day of the month. The Administrative Office of Courts shall pay to the court reporter the total amount of salary due for that month. Any county may pay, in the discretion of the board of supervisors, by the twentieth day of January of any year, the amount due for a full twelve (12) months.
(4) From and after October 1, 1996, all circuit and chancery court reporters will be employees of the Administrative Office of Courts.
(5) No circuit or chancery court reporter shall be entitled to any compensation for any special or extended term of court after passage of this section.
(6) No chancery or circuit court reporter shall practice law in the court within which he or she is the court reporter.
(7) For all travel required in the performance of official duties, the circuit or chancery court reporter shall be paid mileage by the county in which the duties were performed at the same rate as provided for state employees in Section 25-3-41. The court reporter shall file in the office of the clerk of the court which he serves a certificate of mileage expense incurred during that term and payment of such expense to the court reporter shall be paid on allowance by the judge of such court.
SECTION 3. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2018.
