Judge notes court change costs

Picking up court costs now paid by counties will require up to half a billion dollars over four years.

By SHELBY OPPEL

© St. Petersburg Times, published January 17, 2001

TALLAHASSEE -- State lawmakers must find $400- to $500-million over the next four years for changes in the Florida court system, the state's top judge said Tuesday.

That's how much it will cost to enact a revision to the state Constitution, approved by voters in 1998, that requires the state to pick up court costs that counties pay, said Supreme Court Chief Justice Charles T. Wells, in a speech to Florida journalists.

In the meantime, at least 43 more trial judges are needed to deal with the 5.4-million cases that move through the state courts each year, Wells said.

Without relief during the upcoming legislative session, Wells said, "We cannot go forward without doing real damage to the institution and the structure of the institution."

Wells' demands arrive on the heels of the presidential election contest, during which the state Supreme Court angered Republican lawmakers when it ruled in favor of Democrat Al Gore. Wells dismissed suggestions that the Republican-controlled Legislature would allow such frustration to block funding increases.

"I really do not think that's going to be an inhibiting factor. I feel like the members of the Legislature and the leadership and the Governor understand the necessity that the courts be able to carry out the courts' function," he said.

Gov. Jeb Bush acknowledged the need to pay for changes required by the voter-approved revision. Yet, he said Tuesday, his state budget proposal will include cuts to the court system.

House Speaker Tom Feeney, R-Oviedo, and Senate President John McKay, R-Bradenton, have not committed to funding increases for the courts.

"The judiciary has an incredibly important role to play, but they could do it better," Bush said.

The courts face more than just monetary challenges, Wells said. As Floridians become more ethnically and racially diverse, judges, bailiffs and clerks also need to become so.

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