OTTAWA COUNTY; ADD'L JUDGESHIP H.B. 5259:
SUMMARY OF BILL
REPORTED FROM COMMITTEE
House Bill 5259 (as reported without amendment)
Sponsor: Representative Luke Meerman
CONTENT
The bill would amend Chapter 5 (Circuit Courts: Organization and Powers) of the Revised Judicature Act to allow the 20th Judicial Circuit, which consists of Ottawa County, to have one additional judge effective January 1, 2023.
Under Chapter 5 of the Act, the 20th Judicial Circuit consists of Ottawa County and has three judges. Subject to Section 550, the 20th Judicial Circuit may have one additional judge effective January 1, 2005. Instead, under the bill, the 20th Judicial Circuit would consist of Ottawa County and would have four judges. Subject to Section 550, the 20th Judicial Circuit could have one additional judge effective January 1, 2023. If the judgeship were added to the 20th Judicial Circuit, the initial term of office of the judgeship would be eight years.
MCL 600.521 Legislative Analyst: Stephen Jackson
FISCAL IMPACT
The bill would add a circuit judgeship to the 20th Judicial Circuit, as recommended in the 2019 Judicial Resources Recommendations. Costs for a judgeship are shared by the State and the local county government in which the judge sits. The State covers salary and retirement costs, while the local government covers the cost of additional benefits, personnel costs, supplies, equipment, office space, etc. At $182,500 per judgeship, State spending on circuit judges would increase by slightly less than 0.5%, annually. The total cost to Ottawa County to increase from three circuit judges to four is not known.
Date Completed: 11-5-21 Fiscal Analyst: Michael Siracuse
This analysis was prepared by nonpartisan Senate staff for use by the Senate in its deliberations and does not constitute an official statement of legislative intent.