FISCAL NOTE
Date Requested: February 14, 2018
Time Requested: 01:58 PM |
| Agency: |
Justice and Community Services, WV Division of |
|---|
| CBD Number: |
Version: |
Bill Number: |
Resolution Number: |
| 2602 |
Introduced |
SB535 |
|
|---|
| CBD Subject: |
Courts |
|---|
|
FUND(S):
Law Enforcement Trianing (LET) Fund
Sources of Revenue:
Special Fund Fee from court costs assessed to criminal court proceedings
Legislation creates:
Increases Revenue From Existing Sources
Fiscal Note Summary
Effect this measure will have on costs and revenues of state government.
Summarize in a clear and concise manner what impact this measure will have on costs and revenues of state government.
This measure is projected to have no impact on the costs of state government in there is already a system in place to collect and distribute to the organizations and programs authorized by Code to receive and use funds collected as part of the assessed court costs for criminal court proceedings. Increasing the currently authorized $2 fee for law enforcement training and approved activities to $10 then will not cost the state additional funds to implement and carry out.
As to the revenues of state government, specifically for funds that would be collected and distributed to the Law Enforcement Training (LET) Fund, it is projected that there would be an increase in revenue of $528,000 each fiscal year period. As noted in the fiscal note detail explanation this figure is based on current collections for the currently authorized $2 fee and projected revenue generated if 100% of the new $10 fee is collected. It is recognized that there may not be a full 100% collection amount for the reasons listed below but the total projected revenue collection is based on the provided figures.
The collection of these additional revenues will allow the Law Enforcement Professional Standards (LEPS) Program of the Division of Justice and Community Services/DMAPS and the LEPS Subcommittee of the Governor's Committee on Crime, Delinquency and Correction (GCCDC) to make sure that the required entry level training of law enforcement officers in West Virginia continues at its required pace. The inability of the program to do so, which will result if the current $2 fee is not increased, or otherwise supplemented from other revenue sources, would result in the direct delay of the required training and professional certification of law enforcement officers in this state. Such a delay would have an impact on the safety of the citizens of this state.
Fiscal Note Detail
| Effect of Proposal |
Fiscal Year |
2018
Increase/Decrease
(use"-") |
2019
Increase/Decrease
(use"-") |
Fiscal Year
(Upon Full
Implementation) |
| 1. Estmated Total Cost |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Personal Services |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Current Expenses |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Repairs and Alterations |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Assets |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Other |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| 2. Estimated Total Revenues |
0 |
528,000 |
528,000 |
Explanation of above estimates (including long-range effect):
Please explain increases and decreases in personal services, current expenses, repairs and alterations, assets, other costs and revenues, including assumptions and data sources and delineation between start-up and ongoing costs. Please also include a long-range schedule of costs and revenues if fiscal impact is expected to vary in future years.
West Virginia Code 30-29-4, Special revenue account - Collections: disbursements; administrative expenses. has been in effect since 1982. The code established at that point that a "A $2 fee shall be added to the usual court costs of all criminal court proceedings ..." This $2 fee is part of the overall total court costs fee to which other programs have been authorized by statute to be a part of such court costs. The $2 fee has not changed since its original authorization. As the court costs fee is an existing program there would be no "cost" to the program by the increase of the $2 for the law enforcement training program to the $10 figure. The costs of collecting and distributing the overall court cost fee to the Supreme Court and its respective Circuit and Magistrate Courts is already in place. Changing the amount collected does not cost the program any money.
As to the estimated total revenue at the current $2 there is an average of $11,000 a month collected and deposited in the special fund established for the law enforcement training program by 30-29-4. If 100% of the additional fees are collected by an increase from $2 to $10, it is estimated, by an analysis of current court cost fee program authorized at the $10 level now, that a monthly collection for the law enforcement training program will be made of $55,000 a month. For a full fiscal year period then, if 100% of the assessed court costs are collected $660,000 would be collected. This represents and increase then of $528,000 from the $132,000 that has been collected on average during FY 17 and FY 18.
There are various factors that can impact the overall collection of the assessed court costs in a given fiscal year period. Such factors include the number of criminal court proceedings that take place as a result of enforcement actions by the police in West Virginia, the ability of the individuals who are assessed such court costs to pay them as a result of their financial situation or their desire to pay the required court costs and associated fines. The success of programs such as the William R Laird IV Second Chance Program in allowing individuals to complete their required court costs and fines affects the amount collected as well. As such it is difficult to project increases or decreased in the amount the court costs will bring in, in this case for the law enforcement training fund.
Memorandum
Please identify any areas of vagueness, technical defects, reasons a bill would not have a fiscal impact, and/or any special issues not captured elsewhere on this form.
Without an increase in the current $2 fee the Law Enforcement Training (LET) fund will reach a zero balance by September 2018. At that time the presentation of entry level training classes for new police officers at the West Virginia State Police Academy, the only location at which such officers are trained, will have to be delayed for an extended period. Even prior to this delay the LET Fund will have been unable to fund for the FY 19 period the salaries of civilian support personnel at the Academy who are employed by the West Virginia State Police (WVSP). The WVSP will have to adjust their FY 19 budget to address the salary shortfall for these positions.
The delay in the training of law enforcement officers for their sixteen week entry level training to gain their certification as West Virginia law enforcement officers will cause agencies to be forced to decide to put officers on the "streets" without required training or to delay hiring them until they can enter the Academy for the required training. Once such a delay occurs there will be a minimum resulting delay of one years plus as to when officers can enter the Academy from the current three month maximum waiting period. The safety of the public is directly impacted by such delays.
A 2012 audit by the Legislature's Performance Evaluation and Research Division (PERD) determined that the $2 court cost fee directed to the LET Fund was not sufficient to meet the training requirements of law enforcement officers. This finding was confirmed during a 2014-15 Legislative Interim Study by the Joint Committee on Finance. That study determined that additional special revenue resources needed to be identified and called for the support of the Legislature in approving any such identified sources. The increase in the long standing $2 fee to a $10 amount is such identified revenue source.
As reflected in the comments of this Fiscal Note this increase will allow additional revenues to be collected as part of the assessment of the overall court costs amount. If 100% of the assessed $10 court costs fee is collected and distributed a total of $660,000 will be collected each fiscal year period. That amount will allow for the costs of operating four entry level training classes each year to be fully met and to cover the costs of the previously funded civilian support positions at the WVSP Academy. It is also projected that is the full assessed costs are collected that the current cost to an agency of sending an officer to the Academy's required entry level training program will be able to be reduced. Such a reduction will be a direct cost savings to the municipal, county and state law enforcement agencies who send officers to the Academy.
Person submitting Fiscal Note: Retired Captain Chuck Sadler, LEPS Program Manager
Email Address: Charles.A.Sadler@wv.gov