Texas counties play a critical role in supporting the state’s judicial system. In fact, support for the judicial system is one of the most significant components of county budgets.
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Key Points
- County governments fund and support much of the judicial system statewide, including district courts, county-level courts, and justice courts. They also provide funding for court staff, prosecutors, and court-appointed attorneys.
- In FY 2016, counties spent an estimated $1.5 billion statewide to support the judicial system.
- State law stipulates the jurisdiction of the district, county and justice courts, which can include felonies, misdemeanors, civil cases and juvenile cases, among many other matters.
- Statewide, civil caseloads are growing across all trial court levels. In 2017, new civil cases filed in district and county courts rose by 8 percent, and increased by 15 percent in justice courts.