Bills have been drafted in the Florida House and Senate to address fiscal problems facing the state’s county clerks of courts.
On Feb. 10, Sen. Jim Boyd (R-Bradenton) and Rep. Webster Barnaby (R-Orange City) filed Senate Bill 838 and House Bill 903, to deal with the falling revenues and financial difficulties facing county clerks, which have worsened under the pandemic.
“To stabilize and improve this system and ensure the services we provide are accessible to Floridians, we developed thoughtful legislation, and look forward to working with the Legislature on these solutions," 2020-2021 President of the Florida Court Clerks of Comptrollers (FCCC) Tara S. Green said. “We thank Sen. Boyd and Rep. Barnaby for their support and the filing of our service stabilization bill.”
The county clerks’ office operates differently than a majority of government entities. While many governing bodies work from an annual budget, the clerks’ office operates on a monthly basis, as their income and spending come directly from court service fees. These often include indigency cases, domestic violence hearings and similar criminal proceedings. Combined with the strained pressure that resulted from the pandemic, falling revenue for Florida’s court clerks from their inconsistent income source have placed additional strain on the office.
Unde SB 838 and HB 903, clerks can accrue statewide reserves for future emergencies (such as the pandemic), as well as allowing clerks to submit funding requests through different avenues, and allow them to carry revenue over from year to year.
“Clerks of court and comptrollers make up a large, essential piece of our court system, and throughout the pandemic they remained vigilant to ensure their services were available to residents," Boyd said.
Barnaby also weighed in on the matter.
“I’m excited to move forward with this legislation that proposes commonsense, practical solutions for longstanding issues that have been present for our great clerks across the state," Barnaby said.