Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

State of Alaska
                                                           Fiscal Note
                                                                                             Bill Version:                      CSSB 32(STA)
 2019 Legislative Session
                                                                                             Fiscal Note Number:                9
                                                                                             (S) Publish Date:                  4/19/2019
 Identifier:        SB032-JUD-ACS-02-20-19                                    Department:        Judiciary
 Title:             CRIMES; SENTENCING;MENT.                                  Appropriation: Alaska Court System
                    ILLNESS;EVIDENCE                                          Allocation:        Trial Courts
 Sponsor:           RLS BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR                            OMB Component Number:                 768
 Requester: Senate State Affairs
 Expenditures/Revenues
 Note: Amounts do not include inflation unless otherwise noted below.                                                                 (Thousands of Dollars)
                                                 Included in
                                    FY2020       Governor's
                                Appropriation      FY2020                                           Out-Year Cost Estimates
                                  Requested       Request
 OPERATING EXPENDITURES               FY 2020        FY 2020       FY 2021                     FY 2022             FY 2023            FY 2024         FY 2025
 Personal Services                       776.9                        636.5                      636.5               636.5              636.5           636.5
 Travel                                   36.0                         36.0                        36.0                36.0               36.0           36.0
 Services                                   4.5                         4.5                         4.5                 4.5                4.5             4.5
 Commodities                                3.0                         3.0                         3.0                 3.0                3.0             3.0
 Capital Outlay
 Grants & Benefits
 Miscellaneous
 Total Operating                         820.4            0.0         680.0                       680.0              680.0              680.0             680.0
 Fund Source (Operating Only)
 1004 Gen Fund (UGF)                          820.4                            680.0              680.0              680.0              680.0             680.0
 Total                                        820.4              0.0           680.0              680.0              680.0              680.0             680.0
 Positions
 Full-time                                       6.0                                 6.0             6.0                  6.0              6.0              6.0
 Part-time
 Temporary                                       2.0
 Change in Revenues
 None
 Total                                           0.0             0.0                 0.0             0.0                  0.0              0.0              0.0
 Estimated SUPPLEMENTAL (FY2019) cost:                                  0.0                (separate supplemental appropriation required)
 Estimated CAPITAL (FY2020) cost:                                       0.0                (separate capital appropriation required)
 Does the bill create or modify a new fund or account?       No.
 (Supplemental/Capital/New Fund - discuss reasons and fund source(s) in analysis section)
 ASSOCIATED REGULATIONS
 Does the bill direct, or will the bill result in, regulation changes adopted by your agency?                No
 If yes, by what date are the regulations to be adopted, amended or repealed?                                N/A
 Why this fiscal note differs from previous version/comments:
 Fiscal note updated to account for expected increase in criminal case filings from the Department of Law, which seeks five new
 prosecutors.
 Prepared By:             Nancy Meade, General Counsel                                                               Phone:         (907)463-4736
 Division:                Alaska Court System                                                                        Date:          02/20/2019 10:00 AM
 Approved By:             Nancy Meade for Christine Johnson, Administrative Director                                 Date:          02/20/19
 Agency:                  Alaska Court System
Printed 4/19/2019                                                      Page 1 of 2                                                           Control Code: JOlnb
                                                                                                           CSSB 32(STA) - Fiscal Note 9
                                                  FISCAL NOTE ANALYSIS
STATE OF ALASKA                                                                   BILL NO. SB 32
2019 LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Analysis
   Senate Bill 32 changes many categories of criminal offenses and procedures to return them to the way they were written
   before Senate Bill 91 passed in 2016. Certain provisions of the bill reclassify drug offenses, change the length of sentences
   for felonies and misdemeanors, reclassify certain offenses as crimes rather than violations, and remove inflation
   adjustments for theft offenses. The bill also enacts several new criminal offenses in sections 19-20 (escape), 24-26 (refusal
   to submit to DNA testing), and 27 (terroristic threatening).
   Creating new criminal offenses and reclassifying drug crimes is expected to have the effect of increasing the number of
   cases that are filed with the court, and increased sentences may have the impact of increasing the number of cases that
   proceed to trial. The fiscal note from the Department of Law seeks five new prosecutors for the caseload increases that
   they anticipate. These changes would therefore have a fiscal impact on the court.
   The court system intends to accommodate the increased filings by retaining the equivalent of one full-time pro tem judge
   to help expedite the criminal caseload, at a cost of $194,000 (salary plus benefits). That position would travel to cover
   cases as needed statewide, and therefore the court system anticipates travel costs of $18,000 for the pro tem judge. The
   position would require $1,000 in supplies and $1,500 in contractual services. The total expenditures for the equivalent of
   one full-time pro tem judge would be $214,500. In addition, the pro tem judge must travel with an in-court clerk; this
   note also includes travel costs of $18,000 for that travelling in-court clerk.
   In addition, to accommodate the expected increase in criminal case filings that five new prosecutors would cause, the
   court system is seeking the funding equal to the cost of five clerical positions. The additional resources would permit the
   court to keep current with opening new files, entering data in Court View, and generally processing the additional
   caseload. The cost of the five new clerical positions is $447,500 (salary and benefits for three Range 14 clerks, plus two
   Range 16 clerks, plus $2,000 in supplies/materials and $3,000 in contractual services/computer licenses).
   One section of Senate Bill 32, Section 49, also causes a direct, distinct fiscal impact on the court system. Section 49 directs
   the court system to report to the Department of Public Safety all superior court orders issued on or after October 1, 1981
   for the involuntary commitment of a person under AS 47.30.735  47.30.755, as well as orders of relief from disability
   resulting from an involuntary commitment or if an adjudication of mental illness or mental incompetence is granted by the
   court.
   The court would need to hire two project employees to accomplish the work required under Section 49. These employees
   would research the 21,637 mental commitment cases filed with the courts prior to implementation of our current
   electronic case management system (CourtView). The older case files are stored on microfilm and each case must be
   individually retrieved and reviewed to see if a commitment order was issued. To estimate the work involved, a current
   court system employee who is an experienced court clerk did a sample search of the stored microfilms; from that
   experience, we have estimated that each case would take approximately ten minutes to locate, review, report, and return.
   At ten minutes per search, it will take roughly 480 work days of a single clerks time to research and report these cases.
   The court system would therefore hire two temporary clerks for a period of one year to accomplish thi.
   This fiscal note reflects the one-time, one-year cost for two Range 14A project employees to do the work required by
   Section 49, a total of $140,400. The court system will not need additional supplies or office space to meet the
   requirements of this section. The employees will work to retrieve the orders described by section 49 that are not available
   electronically.
(Revised 11/19/18 OMB/LFD)                                                                                           Page 2 of 2
SB032-JUD-ACS-02-20-19                                          Page 2 of 2                                                Control Code: JOlnb
Statutes affected: 
SB0032A, AM SB 32, introduced 01/23/2019: 11.41.110, 11.41.100, 11.71.010, 11.71.021, 11.71.030, 11.71.040, 11.41.150, 18.66.990, 11.46.130, 11.46.100, 11.46.982, 11.46.120, 11.46.140, 11.46.220, 11.46.150, 11.46.260, 11.46.270, 11.46.280, 11.46.285, 11.46.295, 11.46.360, 11.46.365, 11.46.482, 11.46.484, 11.46.486, 11.46.530, 11.46.620, 11.46.730, 11.56.310, 11.56.335, 11.56.340, 11.56.320, 11.56.730, 11.56.757, 11.56.760, 12.55.015, 44.41.035, 11.56.810, 11.46.495, 11.61.110, 11.71.200, 11.71.140, 11.71.150, 11.71.160, 11.71.050, 11.71.060, 11.71.311, 12.55.090, 12.63.100, 28.35.030, 28.35.032, 12.55.125, 12.55.155, 12.55.175, 12.55.085, 12.55.086, 11.41.130, 08.54.720, 12.55.135, 11.41.230, 11.41.427, 11.41.440, 11.41.460, 11.61.116, 11.61.118, 11.61.120, 33.30.065, 43.23.065, 34.03.360, 47.12.315, 47.12.310, 47.30.907, 47.30.845, 47.30.735, 47.30.755, 47.30.851, 11.41.410, 11.41.458, 11.46.980, 11.56.330, 12.25.180, 12.55.145, 47.30.097
SB0032B, AM CSSB 32(STA), introduced 04/19/2019: 11.41.110, 11.41.100, 11.71.010, 11.71.021, 11.71.030, 11.71.040, 11.41.150, 18.66.990, 11.46.130, 11.46.100, 11.46.982, 11.46.120, 11.46.140, 11.46.220, 11.46.150, 11.46.260, 11.46.270, 11.46.280, 11.46.285, 11.46.295, 11.46.360, 11.46.365, 11.46.482, 11.46.484, 11.46.486, 11.46.530, 11.46.620, 11.46.730, 11.56.310, 11.56.335, 11.56.340, 11.56.320, 11.56.730, 11.56.757, 11.56.810, 11.46.495, 11.61.110, 11.71.200, 11.71.140, 11.71.150, 11.71.160, 11.71.050, 11.71.060, 11.71.311, 12.55.090, 12.63.100, 28.35.030, 28.35.032, 12.55.125, 12.55.155, 12.55.175, 12.55.085, 12.55.086, 11.41.130, 08.54.720, 12.55.135, 11.41.230, 11.41.427, 11.41.440, 11.41.460, 11.61.116, 11.61.118, 11.61.120, 28.15.291, 28.15.181, 33.30.065, 43.23.140, 34.03.360, 47.12.315, 47.12.310, 11.46.980, 11.56.330, 12.25.180, 12.55.145, 47.30.907, 47.30.735, 47.30.755, 47.30.851