BILL REQ. #:  H-4482.2 

Read first time 01/21/10.   Referred to Committee on General Government Appropriations.

     AN ACT Relating to redirecting funding from the judicial information system account to the access to justice account; amending RCW 2.68.040; reenacting and amending RCW 2.68.020 and 43.84.092; and adding a new section to chapter 2.68 RCW.

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

Sec. 1   RCW 2.68.020 and 2009 c 564 s 1802 and 2009 c 564 s 918 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:
     There is created an account in the custody of the state treasurer to be known as the judicial information system account. The administrative office of the courts shall maintain and administer the account, in which shall be deposited all moneys received from in-state noncourt users and any out-of-state users of the judicial information system ((and moneys as specified in RCW 2.68.040)) for the purposes of providing judicial information system access to noncourt users and providing an adequate level of automated services to the judiciary. The legislature shall appropriate the funds in the account for the purposes of the judicial information system. The account shall be used for the acquisition of equipment, software, supplies, services, and other costs incidental to the acquisition, development, operation, and administration of information services, telecommunications, systems, software, supplies, and equipment, including the payment of principal and interest on items paid in installments. During the 2007-2009 fiscal biennium, the legislature may transfer from the judicial information system account to the state general fund such amounts as reflect the excess fund balance of the account. During the 2009-2011 fiscal biennium, the legislature may transfer from the judicial information system account to the state general fund such amounts as reflect the excess fund balance of the account.

Sec. 2   RCW 2.68.040 and 1994 c 8 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) To support the ((judicial information system)) access to justice account provided for in ((RCW 2.68.020)) section 3 of this act, the supreme court may provide by rule for an increase in fines, penalties, and assessments, and the increased amount shall be forwarded to the state treasurer for deposit in the account:
     (a) Pursuant to the authority of RCW 46.63.110(((2))) (3), the sum of ten dollars to any penalty collected by a court pursuant to supreme court infraction rules for courts of limited jurisdiction;
     (b) Pursuant to RCW 3.62.060, a mandatory appearance cost in the initial sum of ten dollars to be assessed on all defendants; and
     (c) Pursuant to RCW 46.63.110(((5)))(6), a ten-dollar assessment for each account for which a person requests a time payment schedule.
     (2) Notwithstanding a provision of law or rule to the contrary, the assessments provided for in this section may not be waived or suspended and shall be immediately due and payable upon forfeiture, conviction, deferral of prosecution, or request for time payment, as each shall occur.
     (3) The supreme court is requested to adjust these assessments for inflation.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 3   A new section is added to chapter 2.68 RCW to read as follows:
     The access to justice account is created in the state treasury. All receipts from the assessment provided in RCW 2.68.040 must be deposited into the account. Moneys in the account may be spent only after appropriation. Expenditures from the account may be used only to fund the office of public defense and the office of civil legal aid.

Sec. 4   RCW 43.84.092 and 2009 c 479 s 31, 2009 c 472 s 5, and 2009 c 451 s 8 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:
     (1) All earnings of investments of surplus balances in the state treasury shall be deposited to the treasury income account, which account is hereby established in the state treasury.
     (2) The treasury income account shall be utilized to pay or receive funds associated with federal programs as required by the federal cash management improvement act of 1990. The treasury income account is subject in all respects to chapter 43.88 RCW, but no appropriation is required for refunds or allocations of interest earnings required by the cash management improvement act. Refunds of interest to the federal treasury required under the cash management improvement act fall under RCW 43.88.180 and shall not require appropriation. The office of financial management shall determine the amounts due to or from the federal government pursuant to the cash management improvement act. The office of financial management may direct transfers of funds between accounts as deemed necessary to implement the provisions of the cash management improvement act, and this subsection. Refunds or allocations shall occur prior to the distributions of earnings set forth in subsection (4) of this section.
     (3) Except for the provisions of RCW 43.84.160, the treasury income account may be utilized for the payment of purchased banking services on behalf of treasury funds including, but not limited to, depository, safekeeping, and disbursement functions for the state treasury and affected state agencies. The treasury income account is subject in all respects to chapter 43.88 RCW, but no appropriation is required for payments to financial institutions. Payments shall occur prior to distribution of earnings set forth in subsection (4) of this section.
     (4) Monthly, the state treasurer shall distribute the earnings credited to the treasury income account. The state treasurer shall credit the general fund with all the earnings credited to the treasury income account except:
     The following accounts and funds shall receive their proportionate share of earnings based upon each account's and fund's average daily balance for the period: The aeronautics account, the aircraft search and rescue account, the budget stabilization account, the capitol building construction account, the Cedar River channel construction and operation account, the Central Washington University capital projects account, the charitable, educational, penal and reformatory institutions account, the cleanup settlement account, the Columbia river basin water supply development account, the common school construction fund, the county arterial preservation account, the county criminal justice assistance account, the county sales and use tax equalization account, the data processing building construction account, the deferred compensation administrative account, the deferred compensation principal account, the department of licensing services account, the department of retirement systems expense account, the developmental disabilities community trust account, the drinking water assistance account, the drinking water assistance administrative account, the drinking water assistance repayment account, the Eastern Washington University capital projects account, the education construction fund, the education legacy trust account, the election account, the energy freedom account, the energy recovery act account, the access to justice account, the essential rail assistance account, The Evergreen State College capital projects account, the federal forest revolving account, the ferry bond retirement fund, the freight congestion relief account, the freight mobility investment account, the freight mobility multimodal account, the grade crossing protective fund, the public health services account, the health system capacity account, the personal health services account, the high capacity transportation account, the state higher education construction account, the higher education construction account, the highway bond retirement fund, the highway infrastructure account, the highway safety account, the high occupancy toll lanes operations account, the industrial insurance premium refund account, the judges' retirement account, the judicial retirement administrative account, the judicial retirement principal account, the local leasehold excise tax account, the local real estate excise tax account, the local sales and use tax account, the medical aid account, the mobile home park relocation fund, the motor vehicle fund, the motorcycle safety education account, the multimodal transportation account, the municipal criminal justice assistance account, the municipal sales and use tax equalization account, the natural resources deposit account, the oyster reserve land account, the pension funding stabilization account, the perpetual surveillance and maintenance account, the public employees' retirement system plan 1 account, the public employees' retirement system combined plan 2 and plan 3 account, the public facilities construction loan revolving account beginning July 1, 2004, the public health supplemental account, the public transportation systems account, the public works assistance account, the Puget Sound capital construction account, the Puget Sound ferry operations account, the Puyallup tribal settlement account, the real estate appraiser commission account, the recreational vehicle account, the regional mobility grant program account, the resource management cost account, the rural arterial trust account, the rural Washington loan fund, the site closure account, the small city pavement and sidewalk account, the special category C account, the special wildlife account, the state employees' insurance account, the state employees' insurance reserve account, the state investment board expense account, the state investment board commingled trust fund accounts, the state patrol highway account, the state route number 520 corridor account, the supplemental pension account, the Tacoma Narrows toll bridge account, the teachers' retirement system plan 1 account, the teachers' retirement system combined plan 2 and plan 3 account, the tobacco prevention and control account, the tobacco settlement account, the transportation 2003 account (nickel account), the transportation equipment fund, the transportation fund, the transportation improvement account, the transportation improvement board bond retirement account, the transportation infrastructure account, the transportation partnership account, the traumatic brain injury account, the tuition recovery trust fund, the University of Washington bond retirement fund, the University of Washington building account, the urban arterial trust account, the volunteer firefighters' and reserve officers' relief and pension principal fund, the volunteer firefighters' and reserve officers' administrative fund, the Washington fruit express account, the Washington judicial retirement system account, the Washington law enforcement officers' and firefighters' system plan 1 retirement account, the Washington law enforcement officers' and firefighters' system plan 2 retirement account, the Washington public safety employees' plan 2 retirement account, the Washington school employees' retirement system combined plan 2 and 3 account, the Washington state health insurance pool account, the Washington state patrol retirement account, the Washington State University building account, the Washington State University bond retirement fund, the water pollution control revolving fund, and the Western Washington University capital projects account. Earnings derived from investing balances of the agricultural permanent fund, the normal school permanent fund, the permanent common school fund, the scientific permanent fund, and the state university permanent fund shall be allocated to their respective beneficiary accounts. All earnings to be distributed under this subsection (4) shall first be reduced by the allocation to the state treasurer's service fund pursuant to RCW 43.08.190.
     (5) In conformance with Article II, section 37 of the state Constitution, no treasury accounts or funds shall be allocated earnings without the specific affirmative directive of this section.