New York State - Judiciary - JUD - Article 21-B
ARTICLE 21-B JUSTICE COURT ASSISTANCE PROGRAM
Section 849-h. Establishment and administration of program.
849-i. Application procedures.
849-j. Payment procedures; audits.
849-k. Reports.
§ 849-h. Establishment and administration of program. 1. There is hereby established a justice court assistance program (hereinafter referred to in this article as the "program"), to be administered and supervised under the direction of the chief administrator of the courts, to provide funds pursuant to this article to assist the operation of town and village justice courts. The chief administrator shall promulgate rules and regulations to effectuate the purposes of this article, including provisions for periodic monitoring and evaluation of the program. Each town or village receiving funds pursuant to this article shall comply with all such rules and regulations and with all provisions of this article.
2. Funds available pursuant to this article may be used for any purpose having as its end enhancement of the justice courts' ability to provide suitable and sufficient services to their respective communities. These purposes may include, but shall not be limited to, automation of court operations; improvement or expansion of court facilities; provision of appropriate means for the recording of court proceedings; provision of lawbooks, treatises and related materials; and provision of appropriate training for justices and for nonjudicial court staff. Except as may otherwise be provided by rule of the chief administrator, funds available pursuant to this article shall not be used to compensate justices and nonjudicial court staff, nor shall they be used as a means of reducing funding provided by a town or village to its justice court.
§ 849-i. Application procedures. 1. Each town and village having a justice court may make an individual application for funds available pursuant to this article, or two or more such towns or villages, or towns and villages, may make a joint application for such funds. All applications shall be submitted to the chief administrator of the courts for his or her approval.
2. The chief administrator shall require that applications submitted for funding provide such information as he or she deems necessary, including at least the following:
(a) The amount of funding sought.
(b) A detailed description of the purpose or purposes to which the funding will be applied.
(c) A detailed description of the court or courts making the application, including information as to staffing, caseload, budget and facilities as well as general information about the community or communities served, where such general information would be pertinent to the purpose to which the funding will be applied.
3. In determining whether to approve an application, the chief administrator shall consider:
(a) Whether the applicant has complied with all rules and regulations governing the program and all pertinent provisions of this article;
(b) The likely impact of approving such application upon the court or courts to be affected thereby, upon the communities served, and upon the judiciary generally;
(c) The availability of other sources of funding to pay some or all of the costs for which the application seeks funding under the program;
(d) The number and content of all other applications for funding then available under the program;
(e) The extent of funding already received under the program by the applicant (or joint applicants) pursuant to past applications; and
(f) The magnitude of the funding appropriated for the purposes of this article.
4. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the chief administrator shall not approve any application for funding in excess of thirty thousand dollars unless such application is a joint application and the aggregate funding sought thereunder does not exceed an amount equaling the product of the number of joint applicants making such application and thirty thousand dollars.
§ 849-j. Payment procedures; audits. 1. Upon approval of an application, the chief administrator, within available appropriations, may authorize disbursement of funds in any amount up to the amount sought by the application. Such disbursement may be by advance payment to the applicant (or joint applicants, as appropriate) before it incurs the cost for which its application sought funding, by reimbursement to the applicant after it incurs and pays such costs in the first instance, or by some combination thereof, as the chief administrator determines is appropriate under the circumstances.
2. The state comptroller, the chief administrator and their authorized representatives shall have the power to inspect, examine and audit the fiscal affairs of the applicant (or applicants) to an approved application granted pursuant to this article to the extent necessary to determine whether funding received under the program has been used in accordance with the purpose or purposes for which it was sought in the application, and whether there has been compliance with all rules and regulations governing the program and the provisions of this article.
§ 849-k. Reports. The chief administrator of the courts shall report annually to the governor and the legislature regarding the operation and success of the program established by this article.
Section 849-h. Establishment and administration of program.
849-i. Application procedures.
849-j. Payment procedures; audits.
849-k. Reports.
§ 849-h. Establishment and administration of program. 1. There is hereby established a justice court assistance program (hereinafter referred to in this article as the "program"), to be administered and supervised under the direction of the chief administrator of the courts, to provide funds pursuant to this article to assist the operation of town and village justice courts. The chief administrator shall promulgate rules and regulations to effectuate the purposes of this article, including provisions for periodic monitoring and evaluation of the program. Each town or village receiving funds pursuant to this article shall comply with all such rules and regulations and with all provisions of this article.
2. Funds available pursuant to this article may be used for any purpose having as its end enhancement of the justice courts' ability to provide suitable and sufficient services to their respective communities. These purposes may include, but shall not be limited to, automation of court operations; improvement or expansion of court facilities; provision of appropriate means for the recording of court proceedings; provision of lawbooks, treatises and related materials; and provision of appropriate training for justices and for nonjudicial court staff. Except as may otherwise be provided by rule of the chief administrator, funds available pursuant to this article shall not be used to compensate justices and nonjudicial court staff, nor shall they be used as a means of reducing funding provided by a town or village to its justice court.
§ 849-i. Application procedures. 1. Each town and village having a justice court may make an individual application for funds available pursuant to this article, or two or more such towns or villages, or towns and villages, may make a joint application for such funds. All applications shall be submitted to the chief administrator of the courts for his or her approval.
2. The chief administrator shall require that applications submitted for funding provide such information as he or she deems necessary, including at least the following:
(a) The amount of funding sought.
(b) A detailed description of the purpose or purposes to which the funding will be applied.
(c) A detailed description of the court or courts making the application, including information as to staffing, caseload, budget and facilities as well as general information about the community or communities served, where such general information would be pertinent to the purpose to which the funding will be applied.
3. In determining whether to approve an application, the chief administrator shall consider:
(a) Whether the applicant has complied with all rules and regulations governing the program and all pertinent provisions of this article;
(b) The likely impact of approving such application upon the court or courts to be affected thereby, upon the communities served, and upon the judiciary generally;
(c) The availability of other sources of funding to pay some or all of the costs for which the application seeks funding under the program;
(d) The number and content of all other applications for funding then available under the program;
(e) The extent of funding already received under the program by the applicant (or joint applicants) pursuant to past applications; and
(f) The magnitude of the funding appropriated for the purposes of this article.
4. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the chief administrator shall not approve any application for funding in excess of thirty thousand dollars unless such application is a joint application and the aggregate funding sought thereunder does not exceed an amount equaling the product of the number of joint applicants making such application and thirty thousand dollars.
§ 849-j. Payment procedures; audits. 1. Upon approval of an application, the chief administrator, within available appropriations, may authorize disbursement of funds in any amount up to the amount sought by the application. Such disbursement may be by advance payment to the applicant (or joint applicants, as appropriate) before it incurs the cost for which its application sought funding, by reimbursement to the applicant after it incurs and pays such costs in the first instance, or by some combination thereof, as the chief administrator determines is appropriate under the circumstances.
2. The state comptroller, the chief administrator and their authorized representatives shall have the power to inspect, examine and audit the fiscal affairs of the applicant (or applicants) to an approved application granted pursuant to this article to the extent necessary to determine whether funding received under the program has been used in accordance with the purpose or purposes for which it was sought in the application, and whether there has been compliance with all rules and regulations governing the program and the provisions of this article.
§ 849-k. Reports. The chief administrator of the courts shall report annually to the governor and the legislature regarding the operation and success of the program established by this article.
