Florida Senate - 2018                        COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
       Bill No. CS for SB 1396
       
       
       
       
       
       
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                              LEGISLATIVE ACTION                        
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       Appropriations Subcommittee on Criminal and Civil Justice
       (Steube) recommended the following:
       
    1         Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
    2  
    3         Delete everything after the enacting clause
    4  and insert:
    5         Section 1. Section 25.025, Florida Statutes, is created to
    6  read:
    7         25.025 Headquarters.—
    8         (1)(a) A Supreme Court justice who permanently resides
    9  outside Leon County shall, if he or she so requests, have a
   10  district court of appeal courthouse, a county courthouse, or
   11  other appropriate facility in his or her district of residence
   12  designated as his or her official headquarters pursuant to s.
   13  112.061. This official headquarters may serve only as the
   14  justice’s private chambers.
   15         (b)A justice for whom an official headquarters is
   16  designated in his or her district of residence under this
   17  subsection is eligible for subsistence at a rate to be
   18  established by the Chief Justice for each day or partial day
   19  that the justice is at the headquarters of the Supreme Court for
   20  the conduct of the business of the court. In addition to the
   21  subsistence allowance, a justice is eligible for reimbursement
   22  for transportation expenses as provided in s. 112.061(7) for
   23  travel between the justice’s official headquarters and the
   24  headquarters of the Supreme Court for the conduct of the
   25  business of the court.
   26         (c) Payment of subsistence and reimbursement for
   27  transportation expenses relating to travel between a justice’s
   28  official headquarters and the headquarters of the Supreme Court
   29  shall be made to the extent appropriated funds are available, as
   30  determined by the Chief Justice.
   31         (2) The Chief Justice shall coordinate with each affected
   32  justice and other state and local officials as necessary to
   33  implement paragraph (1)(a).
   34         (3)(a)This section does not require a county to provide
   35  space in a county courthouse for a justice. A county may enter
   36  into an agreement with the Supreme Court governing the use of
   37  space in a county courthouse.
   38         (b) The Supreme Court may not use state funds to lease
   39  space in a district court of appeal courthouse, county
   40  courthouse, or other facility to allow a justice to establish an
   41  official headquarters pursuant to subsection (1).
   42         Section 2. Subsection (9) of section 26.031, Florida
   43  Statutes, is amended to read:
   44         26.031 Judicial circuits; number of judges.—The number of
   45  circuit judges in each circuit shall be as follows:
   46  
   47  JUDICIAL CIRCUIT                                           TOTAL
   48         (9) Ninth...........................................45 43
   49         Section 3. Section 34.01, Florida Statutes, is amended to
   50  read:
   51         34.01 Jurisdiction of county court.—
   52         (1) County courts shall have original jurisdiction:
   53         (a) In all misdemeanor cases not cognizable by the circuit
   54  courts.;
   55         (b) Of all violations of municipal and county ordinances.;
   56         (c)1. Of all actions at law filed on or before December 31,
   57  2019, in which the matter in controversy does not exceed the sum
   58  of $15,000, exclusive of interest, costs, and attorney
   59  attorney’s fees, except those within the exclusive jurisdiction
   60  of the circuit courts.; and
   61         2. Of all actions at law filed on or after January 1, 2020,
   62  in which the matter in controversy does not exceed the sum of
   63  $50,000, exclusive of interest, costs, and attorney fees, except
   64  those within the exclusive jurisdiction of the circuit courts.
   65  This limit must be adjusted every 5 years after January 1, 2020,
   66  to reflect the rate of inflation or deflation as indicated in
   67  the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers, U.S. City
   68  Average, All Items, or successor reports as reported by the
   69  United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics,
   70  or its successor. Such adjustments must be rounded to the
   71  nearest $5,000.
   72         (d) Of disputes occurring in the homeowners’ associations
   73  as described in s. 720.311(2)(a), which shall be concurrent with
   74  jurisdiction of the circuit courts.
   75  
   76  The party instituting an action at law under subparagraph (c)2.
   77  in which the amount in controversy exceeds $15,000 shall pay the
   78  filing fees and service charges in the same amounts and in the
   79  same manner as provided in s. 28.241, and the party appealing
   80  any judgment on such action shall pay the filing fees and
   81  service charges in the same amounts and in the same manner as
   82  provided in s. 35.22. The clerk of court shall remit the fees as
   83  provided in those sections.
   84         (2) The county courts shall have jurisdiction previously
   85  exercised by county judges’ courts other than that vested in the
   86  circuit court by s. 26.012, except that county court judges may
   87  hear matters involving dissolution of marriage under the
   88  simplified dissolution procedure pursuant to the Florida Family
   89  Law Rules of Procedure or may issue a final order for
   90  dissolution in cases where the matter is uncontested, and the
   91  jurisdiction previously exercised by county courts, the claims
   92  court, small claims courts, small claims magistrates courts,
   93  magistrates courts, justice of the peace courts, municipal
   94  courts, and courts of chartered counties, including but not
   95  limited to the counties referred to in ss. 9, 10, 11, and 24,
   96  Art. VIII of the State Constitution of 1885, as preserved by s.
   97  (6)(e), Art. VIII of the State Constitution of 1968.
   98         (3) Judges of county courts shall also be committing trial
   99  court judges. Judges of county courts shall be coroners unless
  100  otherwise provided by law or by rule of the Supreme Court.
  101         (4) Judges of county courts may hear all matters in equity
  102  involved in any case within the jurisdictional amount of the
  103  county court, except as otherwise restricted by the State
  104  Constitution or the laws of Florida.
  105         (5) A county court is a trial court.
  106         Section 4. Subsections (9), (12), (17), and (28) of section
  107  34.022, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
  108         34.022 Number of county court judges for each county.—The
  109  number of county court judges in each county shall be as
  110  follows:
  111  
  112  COUNTY                                                     TOTAL
  113         (9) Citrus............................................2 1
  114         (12) Columbia.........................................2 1
  115         (17) Flagler..........................................2 1
  116         (28) Hillsborough...................................19 17
  117         Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2018.
  118  
  119  ================= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T ================
  120  And the title is amended as follows:
  121         Delete everything before the enacting clause
  122  and insert:
  123                        A bill to be entitled                      
  124         An act relating to courts; creating s. 25.025, F.S.;
  125         authorizing certain Supreme Court Justices to have an
  126         appropriate facility in their district of residence
  127         designated as their official headquarters; providing
  128         that an official headquarters may serve only as a
  129         justice’s private chambers; providing that such
  130         justices are eligible for a certain subsistence
  131         allowance and reimbursement for certain transportation
  132         expenses; requiring that such allowance and
  133         reimbursement be made to the extent appropriated funds
  134         are available, as determined by the Chief Justice;
  135         requiring the Chief Justice to coordinate with certain
  136         persons in implementing designations of official
  137         headquarters; providing that a county is not required
  138         to provide space for a justice in a county courthouse;
  139         authorizing counties to enter into agreements with the
  140         Supreme Court for the use of county courthouse space;
  141         prohibiting the Supreme Court from using state funds
  142         to lease space in a facility to allow a justice to
  143         establish an official headquarters; amending s.
  144         26.031, F.S.; adding judges to the Ninth Judicial
  145         Circuit Court; amending s. 34.01, F.S.; increasing the
  146         limit of the amount in controversy in certain actions
  147         at law under which the county court has original
  148         jurisdiction of such actions; providing for
  149         adjustments to the limit at specified intervals due to
  150         inflation or deflation; specifying filing fees,
  151         services charges, and a requirement for the clerk of
  152         court’s remittal of such fees in actions in which the
  153         amount in controversy exceeds a specified amount;
  154         amending s. 34.022, F.S.; adding judges to certain
  155         county courts; providing an effective date.