FY 2016 Appropriation

The Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) provides all support functions to the judicial branch under policy direction from the Judicial Council. The AOC includes all the support functions required to operate a corporate entity with a budget of approximately $130 million.

Funding History

Related Publications

Summary of EOCJ November Meeting

Appropriation Overview

During the 2015 General Session, the Legislature appropriated for Fiscal Year 2016, $5,251,800 from all sources for Administrative Office. This is a 0.7 percent reduction from Fiscal Year 2015 revised estimated amounts from all sources. The total includes $4,703,200 from the General/Education Funds, an increase of 17.5 percent from revised Fiscal Year 2015 estimates.

Appropriation Adjustments

The following appropriation adjustments were made during the 2015 General Session:

DescriptionOngoingOne-Time Decrease Court Trust Interest Accnt. ($81,000)$0
OngoingOne-TimeFinancing Source
($81,000)$0GFR - Court Trust Interest
No Description
Domestic Violence Amendments$9,100$0
OngoingOne-TimeFinancing Source
$9,100$0General Fund
Enactment of this legislation likely will not materially impact state revenue. Enactment of this bill may increase costs to Courts from the General Fund of $9,100 ongoing for additional hearings beginning in FY 2016.
Family Law Center$150,000$0
OngoingOne-TimeFinancing Source
$150,000$0General Fund
No Description
Jury Duty Amendments ($3,300)$0
OngoingOne-TimeFinancing Source
($3,300)$0General Fund
Enactment of this legislation likely will not materially impact state revenue. Enacting this bill will save the Courts $3,300 per year from the General Fund beginning in FY 2016 for reduced postage costs.
Prescription Database Revisions$22,400$0
OngoingOne-TimeFinancing Source
$22,400$0General Fund
Enactment of this legislation could reduce year-end transfers to the General Fund by $17,200 ongoing beginning in FY 2016 and by $16,700 one-time in FY 2016. Enactment of this legislation could cost the Department of Commerce $17,200 ongoing from the Commerce Service Fund beginning in FY 2016 for staff time related to the execution of law enforcement warrants. Commerce could also experience one-time costs in FY 2016 of $16,700 from the Commerce Service Fund related to database enhancements and programming. Spending from the Commerce Service Fund impacts year-end transfers to the General Fund. Enactment of this legislation could also cost the courts $22,400 annually to process warrants.
Replace Existing Court Staff Funding w/ GF$581,000$0
OngoingOne-TimeFinancing Source
$581,000$0General Fund
Currently funding for approximately 5 existing staff positions at the Courts is funded through the Court Trust Interest Account. This fund has been depleted and is not collecting enough revenue to cover these personnel expenditures. This General Fund amount would reflect the amount needed to maintain these positions at the Courts.
White Collar Crime Registry$7,000$28,000
OngoingOne-TimeFinancing Source
$7,000$0General Fund
$0$28,000General Fund, One-time
Enactment of this legislation could increase revenue to the General Fund by $20,000 and to various Courts restricted accounts by $16,000 one-time in FY 2016 from petition filing fees; revenue could increase to the General Fund by $4,000 and to various Courts restricted accounts by $3,200 beginning in FY 2017. This legislation could increase dedicated credits revenue to the Department of Public Safety by $12,000 one-time in FY 2016 and by $2,400 beginning in FY 2017 from application fees. Enactment of this legislation could cost the Department of Public Safety $5,000 from dedicated credits one-time in FY 2016 for computer programming; it could cost $7,500 one-time in FY 2016 and $1,500 beginning in FY 2017 from dedicated credits to issue eligibility certificates. This legislation could cost the Attorney General $25,000 one-time in FY 2016 and $5,000 beginning in FY 2016 from the Criminal Forfeiture Restricted Account for creation and maintenance of the White Collar Crime Offender Registry. This legislation could further cost the Attorney General $12,000 from the General Fund beginning in FY 2016 for staff support. This legislation could cost the Courts $35,000 one-time in FY 2016 and $7,000 beginning in FY 2017 from the General Fund.

Statute

The AOC has broad statutory authority, powers, duties and responsibilities to support and administer the activity of the judicial branch as found in Title 78A of the Utah Code.

  • UCA 78A-2-105 creates the position of State Court Administrator, and
  • UCA 78A-2-107 assigns specific duties and responsibilities to the State Court Administrator.

Under the Judicial Council's direction, the State Court Administrator manages and directs the work of approximately 1,000 staff including judges, clerks, and administrative staff. The AOC is responsible for operation of court administrative functions, service delivery, program management, judicial and staff education, automated systems, and appellate and trial court administration.

Intent Language

HB0003: Item 20

Under Section 63J-1-603 of the Utah Code, the Legislature intends that the appropriations provided for in the Administration line item not lapse at the close of Fiscal Year 2015.

SB0002: Item 16

Under provisions of Section 67-8-2, Utah Code Annotated, salaries for District Court judges for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2015 and ending June 30, 2016 shall be $150,000. Other judicial salaries shall be calculated in accordance with the formula set forth in Section 67-8-2 and rounded to the nearest $50.

SB0003: Item 55

Notwithstanding the judicial salary rate set in Senate Bill 2 Item 16, under provisions of Section 67-8-2, Utah Code Annotated, the new salary for District Court judges for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2015 and ending June 30, 2016 shall be $152,850. Other judicial salaries shall be calculated in accordance with the formula set forth in Section 67-8-2 and rounded to the nearest $50.

The table below details the funding and lists the programs in the Administration line item. Though there are numerous funding sources listed, 85 percent of the budget is from the General Fund.

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COBI contains unaudited data as presented to the Legislature by state agencies at the time of publication. For audited financial data see the State of Utah's Comprehensive Annual Financial Reports.