What Happened?
Voters in Cornelius, Oregon, approved a ballot measure to amend the city’s charter to allow its municipal court to be consolidated and held outside the city limits.
So What?
Currently, the municipal court is open two days per week to handle violations of city ordinances due to staffing constraints and cost concerns. One judge presides over municipal courts in Cornelius and nearby Forest Grove. Measure 34-200 changed section 35 of the city charter to enable the courts to merge, which in turn will increase operational hours for residents and save Cornelius $35,000 annually in operational costs. The saved money would likely be put toward improving other public services such as police force or fire departments.
Court Bill Signed
In Ohio, the governor signed a bill to support the consolidation of local courts, allowing Youngstown to eliminate one of the city’s municipal court judge’s seats in light of population decline and rising costs. The legislation aims to save the city $150,000 annually, consolidating what the third judge was normally responsible for between the remaining two courts. The only concerns expressed about the legislative strategy was the impact consolidating the court system may have on other public services such as veteran’s, housing or mental health court if resources are stretched too thin.
New Jersey Plan
In 2010, the New Jersey municipal courts drafted a consolidation strategy after state aid was cut and expenses increased. The plan aims to reduce costs by:
- reducing the number of courts
- reducing staff size
- share court security measures
- expand management’s scope of control
- consolidate administrative oversight
In New Jersey, 20 percent of municipal courts engage in a shared services program, and 18 of the 21 counties have at least one merged court. The plan identifies two different types of consolidated courts - joined and shared – and evaluates both options to best suit the needs of the communities. Shared municipal courts are autonomous courts that share space, staff and supplies but maintain unique identities. Joint municipal courts create a new, merged identity when they come together and form a larger court encompassing widespread communities. Because joint municipal courts serve more than one city, judges are appointed by the governor rather than the local governing body as in shared courts.
Stages To Shared Or Joint Courts
Local officials must work through certain stages when creating joint or shared courts:
- Exploratory stage
- Governing bodies consider pros and cons of a merger
- Brainstorm how to structure the new court
- Detail stage
- Negotiate on specifics for court structure
- Discuss court revenues and payments
- Decide shared or joint, location and staffing
- Agreement stage
- Draft shared service agreements, ordinance or resolution to establish the court
- Implementation stage
- Establish facility and personnel requirements
- Acquire financial support to enable the transition
- Send formal request to the governor’s office for judge appointments
Consolidation Successes
Gov1 is closely monitoring consolidation plans nationwide that focus on combining valuable services and programs across communities while cutting back on unnecessary expenditure through more efficient practices.