SB1510 - 522R

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:

Section 1. Section 22-125, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE22-125. Justice of the peace compensation; judicial productivity credits; annual report; definitions

A. The annual salary of each justice of the peace is determinable on the basis of determined by the total judicial productivity credits of each court as reported in statistics compiled by the Arizona supreme court. according to the following formula:

1. Total civil filings, excluding those small claims filings heard by a volunteer hearing officer, divided by ten equals __________ judicial productivity credits. Juvenile hearings pursuant to section 8‑323, excluding juvenile traffic violations, shall be counted as civil filings.

2. Total felony complaint filings divided by ten equals __________ judicial productivity credits.

3. Total misdemeanor filings divided by ten equals __________ judicial productivity credits.

4. Total traffic filings of a violation of sections 28‑662 through 28‑664, 28‑693, 28‑702.01, 28‑702.04, 28‑708, 28‑1381 and 28‑1382 divided by ten equals __________ judicial productivity credits.

5. Total of all other traffic filings divided by sixty equals ___________ judicial productivity credits.

B. Total judicial productivity credits for a justice of the peace is the sum of the figures computed in subsection A of this section.

C. The board of supervisors shall use the average number of cases filed annually in each justice court for the two year period ending December 31, 1979 to determine the initial judicial productivity credits for each of the case load categories described in subsection A of this section. The board of supervisors shall compute judicial productivity credits every two years thereafter using the average annual filings for the preceding two year period.

D. In determining the compensation levels appropriate to the case load of each justice of the peace, the board of supervisors shall use the total judicial productivity credits as follows:

1. Five hundred or more judicial productivity credits, seventy per cent of the annual compensation payable to a judge of the superior court.

2. Two hundred to four hundred ninety‑nine total judicial productivity credits, sixty‑five per cent of the annual compensation payable to a judge of the superior court.

3. One hundred fifty to one hundred ninety‑nine total judicial productivity credits, fifty‑five per cent of the annual compensation payable to a judge of the superior court.

4. One hundred to one hundred forty‑nine total judicial productivity credits, fifty per cent of the annual compensation payable to a judge of the superior court.

5. Fifty to ninety‑nine total judicial productivity credits, forty‑five per cent of the annual compensation payable to a judge of the superior court.

6. Twenty‑five to forty‑nine total judicial productivity credits, thirty‑five per cent of the annual compensation payable to a judge of the superior court.

7. Twenty‑four or fewer total judicial productivity credits, a part‑time case load for one justice of the peace, twenty‑five per cent of the annual compensation payable to a judge of the superior court.

B. Judicial productivity credits are calculated according to the following formula:

1. All civil filings divided by ten equals __________ Judicial productivity credits.

2. All felony counts divided by ten equals __________ Judicial productivity credits.

3. All misdemeanor counts, except those included in paragraph 4 of this subsection, divided by ten equals __________ judicial productivity credits.

4. All counts filed alleging a violation of title 5, chapter 3, article 10, title 28, chapter 4, article 3 or section 28‑8282 divided by five equals __________ judicial productivity credits.

5. All civil traffic counts divided by sixty equals __________ judicial productivity credits.

6. All protective order filings divided by five equals __________ judicial productivity credits.

C. Beginning July 1, 2017, the Arizona supreme court shall annually perform the calculations required by subsection B of this section in each justice court for the previous twelve-month period ending on June 30 to determine the total judicial productivity credits. The Arizona supreme court shall report the total judicial productivity credits for each justice court to the applicable board of supervisors by November 1 of each year. Any adjustment to the salary of a justice of the peace is effective on the following January 1.

D. Each justice of the peace shall be paid a percentage of the salary of a superior court judge based on the following schedule of levels:

1. Five hundred or more judicial productivity credits equals seventy percent.

2. Two hundred or more but less than five hundred judicial productivity credits equals sixty‑five percent.

3. One hundred fifty or more but less than two hundred judicial productivity credits equals sixty percent.

4. One hundred or more but less than one hundred fifty judicial productivity credits equals fifty‑five percent.

5. Fifty or more but less than one hundred judicial productivity credits equals fifty percent.

6. Twenty five or more but less than fifty judicial productivity credits equals forty‑five percent.

7. Twenty‑four or fewer judicial productivity credits equals thirty‑five percent.

E. If a justice court is not assigned clerical help, the board of supervisors shall multiply the total judicial productivity credits by two for purposes of determining compensation the salary of the justice of the peace.

F. If the board of supervisors divides a justice precinct into two or more precincts, the board shall set the level of compensation consistent with the intent of this section until such time as statistics are available for computation of compensation levels using the formula prescribed by this section salary of the justice of the peace of each affected precinct equal to the highest salary of any of the justices of the peace whose precinct population is affected by the division. on January 1 following the end of the first full fiscal year after the precincts are divided, the salary of each justice of the peace shall be adjusted pursuant to the justice court's actual judicial productivity credits.

G. The board of supervisors shall review and adjust the level of compensation annual salary for each justice of the peace within the county pursuant to subsection D of this this section every two years beginning January 1, 1983 year beginning january 1, 2018.

H. The judicial productivity credits for any justice court precinct shall not exceed twelve hundred credits. If the total judicial productivity credits of a justice court precinct exceed twelve hundred credits, the county board of supervisors shall create sufficient courts, or redraw the justice court precinct boundaries according to section 22‑101, in order to reduce the judicial productivity credits for any precinct which exceeds that limit.

I. Except as provided in subsection F of this section, the salary of a justice of the peace may not be reduced during the term in office of the justice of the peace and, if a justice of the peace serves consecutive terms, the salary of the justice of the peace may not be reduced before the start of the consecutive term by more than one level pursuant to subsection D of this section.

J. A filing against a juvenile is determined in the same manner as a similar filing against an adult.

K. For the purposes of this section:

1. "Civil" means a lawsuit, eviction action, petition for provisional remedy or other civil petition, small claims case or civil local ordinance.

2. "Civil traffic" means a traffic violation that is not a misdemeanor or felony.

3. "Felony" includes each felony count that is filed in a complaint.

4. "Misdemeanor" includes each misdemeanor and petty offense count that is filed in a complaint or uniform traffic ticket and complaint.

5. "Protective order" means a petition for an order of protection, an injunction against harassment or workplace harassment or a peace bond. END_STATUTE