Update On Re-Engineering Efforts In The State Courts

SJI awarded a Strategic Initiatives Grant (SIG) to the National Center for State Courts (NCSC) in FY 2009 to focus on re-engineering in the state courts in response to severe budget cutbacks. NCSC began Phase I of these efforts by establishing the Budget Resource Center (BRC) – a website to track latest budget issues and cost saving measures in the state courts, by state. NCSC also provided direct technical assistance to several sites, including: 1) Vermont Judiciary – A workload study for judges and court staff was completed. Using the information from the workload, various recommendations with potential savings were developed. A final report was provided to a commission charged with overseeing the project. The project began with the state legislature directing the judiciary to look at the court system and find efficiencies. Since many of the recommended changes require legislative changes, the Judiciary is now awaiting legislative action on the report’s recommendations; 2) 6th Judicial District of Minnesota – NCSC assisted the Court in adjusting to reduced staff by instituting a change management process; 3) Salem, Oregon, Municipal Court – The goal of this project was to help the Court improve its collections processes. A final report was developed with recommendations, and the Court is currently implementing the recommendations; and 4) Taylorsville, Utah, Municipal Justice Court – NCSC assisted in documenting and recommending operational efficiencies.

SJI recently awarded a new SIG to NCSC to continue these activities. Phase II will include new TA sites in Alabama, New Hampshire, and Nebraska. In addition, it includes the continuation of the BRC and budget monitoring nationwide, and the development of a Toolkit for re-engineering that will provide guidance in making policy decisions and implementing changes in areas such as centralized traffic tickets and payables; centralizing jury operations; video conferencing; and utilizing technology.