A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to increase the uniform fees paid to jurors for their service and to raise court costs to offset that increase.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  G.S. 7A‑312 reads as rewritten:
"§ 7A‑312.  Uniform fees for jurors; meals.
A juror in the General Court of Justice including a petit juror,  a coroner's juror,  or a grand juror, shall receive  thirty dollars ($30.00) per day, except that if any person serves as a juror for more than five days in any 24‑month period, the juror shall receive  fifty dollars ($50.00) per day for each day of service in excess of five days.  A juror required to remain overnight at the site of the trial shall be furnished adequate accommodations and subsistence. If required by the presiding judge to remain in a body during the trial of a case, meals shall be furnished the jurors during the period of sequestration. Jurors from out of the county summoned to sit on a special venire shall receive mileage at the same rate as State employees."
SECTION 2.  G.S. 7A‑304(a)(4) reads as rewritten:
"(4)	For support of the General Court of Justice, the sum of  eighty‑nine dollars and fifty cents ($89.50) in the district court, including cases before a magistrate, and the sum of  ninety‑six dollars and fifty cents ($96.50) in the superior court, to be remitted to the State Treasurer. For a person convicted of a felony in superior court who has made a first appearance in district court, both the district court and superior court fees shall be assessed. The State Treasurer shall remit the sum of one dollar and five cents ($1.05) of each fee collected under this subdivision to the North Carolina State Bar for the provision of services described in G.S. 7A‑474.4, and ninety‑five cents ($.95) of each fee collected under this subdivision to the North Carolina State Bar for the provision of services described in G.S. 7A‑474.19."
SECTION 3.  G.S. 7A‑305(a)(2) reads as rewritten:
"(2)	For support of the General Court of Justice, the sum of  eighty‑three dollars ($83.00) in the superior court, except that if a case is assigned to a special superior court judge as a complex business case under G.S. 7A‑45.3, an additional two hundred dollars ($200.00) shall be paid upon its assignment, and the sum of  sixty‑eight dollars ($68.00) in the district court except that if the case is assigned to a magistrate the sum shall be fifty‑three dollars ($53.00). Sums collected under this subdivision shall be remitted to the State Treasurer. The State Treasurer shall remit the sum of one dollar and five cents ($1.05) of each fee collected under this subdivision to the North Carolina State Bar for the provision of services described in G.S. 7A‑474.4, and ninety‑five cents ($.95) of each fee collected under this subdivision to the North Carolina State Bar for the provision of services described in G.S. 7A‑474.19."
SECTION 4.  Section 1 of this act becomes effective July 1, 2007, and applies to jury service on or after that date. Section 2 of this act becomes effective July 1, 2007, and applies to all costs assessed or collected on or after that date, except that in misdemeanor or infraction cases disposed of on or after that date by written appearance, waiver of trial or hearing, and plea of guilt or admission of responsibility pursuant to G.S. 7A‑180(4) or G.S. 7A‑273(2), in which the citation or other criminal process was issued before that date, the cost shall be the lesser of those specified in G.S. 7A‑304(a), as amended by Section 2 of this act, or those specified in the notice portion of the defendant's or respondent's copy of the citation or other criminal process, if any costs are specified in that notice. The remainder of this act becomes effective July 1, 2007, and applies to costs assessed or collected on or after that date.