H-4163              _______________________________________________

                                                   HOUSE BILL NO. 1917

                        _______________________________________________

State of Washington                              49th Legislature                              1986 Regular Session

By Representatives Chandler, Tilly, Locke, C. Smith and Ballard

Read first time 1/24/86 and referred to Committee on Judiciary.

AN ACT Relating to judges pro tempore; and amending RCW 3.34.130.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

        Sec. 1.  Section 22, chapter 299, Laws of 1961 as last amended by section 302, chapter 258, Laws of 1984 and RCW 3.34.130 are each amended to read as follows:

          (1) Each district court shall designate one or more persons as judge pro tempore who shall serve during the temporary absence, disqualification, or incapacity of a district judge.  The qualifications of a judge pro tempore shall be the same as for a district judge, except that with respect to RCW 3.34.060(1), the person appointed need only be a registered voter of the state.  A judge pro tempore may sit in any district of the county for which he or she is appointed.  A judge pro tempore shall be paid for each day he or she holds a session one-two hundred fiftieth of the annual salary of a full time district judge.  However, in counties who do not employ full time district judges, a judge pro tempore shall be paid one-two hundred fiftieth of the annual salary of the highest paid permanent part-time district judge for each day he or she holds session.  For each day that a judge pro tempore serves in excess of thirty days during any calendar year, the annual salary of the judge in whose place he or she serves shall be reduced by an amount equal to one-two hundred fiftieth of such salary:  PROVIDED, That each full time district judge shall have up to fifteen days annual leave without reduction for service on judicial commissions established by the legislature or the chief justice of the supreme court.  No reduction in salary shall occur when a judge pro tempore serves while a district judge is using sick leave granted in accordance with RCW 3.34.100.

          (2) The legislature may appropriate money for the purpose of reimbursing counties for the salaries of judges pro tempore for certain days in excess of thirty worked per year that the judge pro tempore was required to work as the result of service by a judge on a commission as authorized under subsection (1) of this section.  No later than September 1 of each year, each county treasurer shall certify to the administrator for the courts for the year ending the preceding June 30, the number of days in excess of thirty that any judge pro tempore was required to work as the result of service by a judge on a commission as authorized under subsection (1) of this section.  Upon receipt of the certification, the administrator for the courts shall reimburse the county from money appropriated for that purpose.