GOVERNMENT CODE

CHAPTER 56. JUDICIAL AND COURT PERSONNEL TRAINING FUND


	§ 56.001.  JUDICIAL AND COURT PERSONNEL TRAINING 
FUND.  (a)  The judicial and court personnel training fund is 
created in the state treasury and shall be administered by the court 
of criminal appeals.
	(b)  In addition to other court costs, a person shall pay $2 
as a court cost on conviction of any criminal offense, including 
cases in which probation or deferred adjudication is granted or in 
which final disposition in the case is deferred.  A conviction that 
arises under Chapter 521, Transportation Code, or a conviction 
under Subtitle C, Title 7, Transportation Code, is included, except 
that a conviction arising under any law that regulates pedestrians 
or the parking of motor vehicles is not included.
	(c)  Court costs due under this section shall be collected in 
the same manner as other fines or costs are collected in the case.
	(d)  The officer collecting the costs in municipal court 
shall keep separate records of the funds collected as costs under 
this section and shall deposit the funds in the municipal treasury.
	(e)  The officer collecting the costs and fees in justice, 
county, and district courts shall keep separate records of the 
funds collected under this section and shall deposit the funds in 
the county treasury.
	(f)  Each officer collecting court costs under this section 
shall file the reports required under Section 103.005, Code of 
Criminal Procedure.  If no funds due as costs under this section 
have been collected in any quarter, the report required for each 
quarter shall be filed in the regular manner, and the report must 
state that no funds under this section were collected.
	(g)  The custodians of municipal and county treasuries shall 
keep records of the amount of funds on deposit collected under this 
section and shall send to the comptroller of public accounts not 
later than the last day of the month following each calendar quarter 
the funds collected under this section during the preceding 
quarter.  A municipality or county may retain as a collection fee 10 
percent of the funds collected under this section and may also 
retain all interest accrued on the funds if the custodian of the 
treasury keeps records of the amount of funds on deposit collected 
under this section and remits the funds to the comptroller within 
the period prescribed in this subsection. Funds collected are 
subject to audit by the comptroller and funds expended are subject 
to audit by the state auditor.
	(h)  The comptroller shall deposit the funds received under 
this section in the judicial and court personnel training fund.
	(i)  On requisition of the court of criminal appeals, the 
comptroller shall draw a warrant on the fund for the amount 
specified in the requisition for a use authorized in Section 
56.003.  A warrant may not exceed the amount appropriated for any 
one fiscal year.  At the end of each state fiscal year, any 
unexpended balance in the fund in excess of $500,000 shall be 
transferred to the general revenue fund.

Added by Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 148, § 2.78(a), eff. Sept. 1, 
1987.  Amended by Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 347, § 5, eff. Oct. 1, 
1989;  Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 896, § 1, 2, eff. Sept. 1, 1993;  
Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 165, § 30.187, eff. Sept. 1, 1997;  
Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 390, § 2, eff. Aug. 31, 1999;  Acts 
2003, 78th Leg., ch. 209, § 85(a)(10), eff. Jan. 1, 2004.


	§ 56.002.  FEES COLLECTED BY CLERKS OF COURTS OF 
APPEALS.  Fifty percent of the fees collected by the clerks of the 
courts of appeals under Section 51.207 shall be deposited in the 
state treasury in the judicial and court personnel training fund 
for the continuing legal education of judges and of court 
personnel.

Added by Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 148, § 2.78(a), eff. Sept. 1, 
1987.   


	§ 56.003.  USE OF FUNDS.  (a)  The court of criminal 
appeals may not use more than three percent of the money 
appropriated in any one fiscal year to hire staff and provide for 
the proper administration of this chapter.
	(b)  No more than one-third of the funds appropriated for any 
fiscal year shall be used for the continuing legal education of 
judges of appellate courts, district courts, county courts at law, 
county courts performing judicial functions, full-time associate 
judges and masters appointed pursuant to Chapter 201, Family Code, 
and full-time masters, magistrates, referees, and associate judges 
appointed pursuant to Chapter 54 as required by the court of 
criminal appeals under Section 74.025 and of their court personnel.
	(c)  No more than one-third of the funds appropriated for any 
fiscal year shall be used for the continuing legal education of 
judges of justice courts as required by the court of criminal 
appeals under Section 74.025 and of their court personnel.
	(d)  No more than one-third of the funds appropriated for any 
fiscal year shall be used for the continuing legal education of 
judges of municipal courts as required by the court of criminal 
appeals under Section 74.025 and of their court personnel.
	(e)  The court of criminal appeals shall grant legal funds to 
statewide professional associations of judges and other entities 
whose purposes include providing continuing legal education 
courses, programs, and projects for judges and court personnel.  
The grantees of those funds must ensure that sufficient funds are 
available for each judge to meet the minimum educational 
requirements set by the court of criminal appeals under Section 
74.025 before any funds are awarded to a judge for education that 
exceeds those requirements.
	(f)  The court of criminal appeals shall grant legal funds to 
statewide professional associations of prosecuting attorneys, 
criminal defense attorneys who regularly represent indigent 
defendants in criminal matters, and justices of the peace, and 
other entities.  The association's or entity's purposes must 
include providing continuing legal education, technical 
assistance, and other support programs.

Added by Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 148, § 2.78(a), eff. Sept. 1, 
1987.  Amended by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 896, § 3, eff. Sept. 
1, 1993;  Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 390, § 3, eff. Aug. 31, 1999;  
Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 654, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 2003.


	§ 56.004.  ALLOCATION OF FUNDS.  (a)  The legislature 
shall appropriate funds from the judicial and court personnel 
training fund to the court of criminal appeals to provide for the 
continuing legal education of judges and court personnel in this 
state.
	(b)  The legislature shall appropriate funds from the 
judicial and court personnel training fund to the court of criminal 
appeals to provide for continuing legal education, technical 
assistance, and other support programs for prosecuting attorneys 
and their personnel, criminal defense attorneys who regularly 
represent indigent defendants in criminal matters, and justices of 
the peace and their court personnel.

Added by Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 2, § 8.34(a), eff. Aug. 28, 
1989.  Amended by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 896, § 4, eff. Sept. 
1, 1993.


	§ 56.005.  JUDICIAL EDUCATION COMMITTEES.  (a)  The 
court of criminal appeals shall appoint the court of criminal 
appeals education committee to recommend educational requirements 
and course content, credit, and standards for judges and court 
personnel of appellate courts, district courts, statutory county 
courts, and county courts performing judicial functions.  The court 
of criminal appeals shall appoint at least two appellate judges, 
four district court judges, two statutory county court judges, and 
one judge of a county court performing judicial functions.  The 
court of criminal appeals may appoint not more than six additional 
members.  Members serve at the will of the court of criminal 
appeals.
	(b)  An entity receiving a grant of funds from the court of 
criminal appeals for the education of justices of the peace and 
their court personnel shall designate a committee to recommend 
educational requirements and course content, credit, and standards 
for the purposes of the grant awarded.
	(c)  An entity receiving a grant of funds from the court of 
criminal appeals under this chapter for the education of municipal 
court judges and their personnel shall designate a committee to 
recommend educational requirements and course content, credit, and 
standards for the purposes of the grant awarded.
	(d)  The court of criminal appeals education committee and 
any committee established as provided by Subsection (b) or (c) 
shall meet at least twice a year to:
		(1)  review and recommend course content, credit, and 
standards for initial and continuing judicial education for judges 
and court personnel;  and
		(2)  make recommendations and take other action 
necessary to carry out the purposes of this chapter.
	(e)  The court of criminal appeals education committee and 
any committee established as provided by Subsection (b) or (c) 
shall:
		(1)  recommend to the court of criminal appeals the 
minimum educational requirements for judges and court personnel;  
and
		(2)  issue an annual report to the court of criminal 
appeals that lists the courses, credits, and standards for the 
judges and court personnel.

Added by Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 2, § 8.34(a), eff. Aug. 28, 
1989.  Amended by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 896, § 5, eff. Sept. 
1, 1993.


	§ 56.006.  RULES;  OVERSIGHT.  (a)  The court of criminal 
appeals may adopt rules for programs relating to education and 
training for attorneys, judges, justices of the peace, district 
clerks, county clerks, and court personnel, including court 
coordinators, as provided by Section 56.003 and for the 
administration of those programs, including rules that:
		(1)  require entities receiving a grant of funds to 
provide legislatively required training;  and
		(2)  base the awarding of grant funds to an entity on 
qualitative information about the entity's programs or services and 
the entity's ability to meet financial performance standards.
	(b)  The court of criminal appeals, for the proper 
administration of this chapter and as part of its oversight of 
training programs for attorneys, judges, justices of the peace, 
district clerks, county clerks, and court personnel, including 
court coordinators, as provided by Section 56.003, shall monitor 
both the financial performance and the program performance of 
entities receiving a grant of funds under this chapter.

Added by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 896, § 6, eff. Sept. 1, 1993.  
Amended by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 718, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 
1995;  Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 45, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1997.


	§ 56.007.  ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.  An entity receiving 
a grant of funds from the court of criminal appeals under this 
chapter for continuing legal education, technical assistance, and 
other support programs may not use grant funds to pay any costs of 
the entity not related to approved grant activities.

Added by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 896, § 6, eff. Sept. 1, 1993.