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Home My WebLink AboutIR 9577 INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No. 9577 To the Mayor and Members of the City Council August 6, 2013 Page 1 of 3 r SUBJECT: MUNICIPAL COURT BUSINESS HOURS/ONLINE SERVICES The purpose of this Informal Report is to provide information related to the Municipal Courts current hours of operation and provide an update on the Department's current progress toward enhancing the business processes to improve services to stakeholders. It is further intended to provide the Mayor and City Council a current roadmap of staff efforts in producing a leaner, user-friendly, customer service oriented environment while balancing available resources in the implementation of such services. MUNICIPAL COURT BUSINESS HOURS The Municipal Court has continually evaluated its operational hours over the past five years while balancing customer service needs, budget constraints, staffing resources, facility options, and case workload. As a result of this ongoing process the department has adjusted customer service operational hours to meet the business need within the city's financial constraints. Though the department has adjusted its customer service hours this has actually benefited the operation of the court in several ways to include but not limited to: • Concentration of resources to utilize staff to perform multiple tasks rather than more specialized functions. • Reduction in the number of overtime and compensatory time hours earned on an annual basis. • The court has mitigated significantly long lines at cashier windows and long wait times in the walk- in courtrooms. • Revenue and foot traffic actually increased during the initial adjustments of hours. • Increase in the number of cases set for Court. There are several factors that have accommodated the reduced service hours. The court has seen an almost forty-five percent (45%) decrease in the number of case filings over the last five (5) years, so activity has decreased. Additionally, the opening of an additional customer service location at Southwest Municipal Court has allowed for greater convenience for citizens during the standard business hours. Current customer service locations and hours are provided below: Location Address Hours of Operation A.D. Marshall Public Safety & 1000 Throckmorton Street Monday-Friday: 8 a.m. — 5 p.m. Courts Building (Full Service) Saturday & Sunday: Closed Southwest Municipal Court 3741 S.W. Loop 820 Monday: 8 a.m. — 8 p.m. (Full Service) Tuesday-Friday: 8 a.m. — 5 p.m. Saturday & Sunday: Closed School Attendance Court 5701 Meadowbrook Drive, Monday-Friday: 8 a.m. — 5 p.m. (Truancy Only) Building 3 (Closed from noon to 1 p.m.) Carnival Food Store 102 N.W. 28 Street Tuesday-Friday: 9 a.m. - 6 p.m. (Payments and Proof Only) Saturday: 8 a.m. — 5 p.m. Hazel Harvey Peace Center 818 Missouri Ave 24 Hour Drop Box (Drop Box Only) ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER FORT WORTH, TEXAS INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No. 9577 To the Mayor and Members of the City Council August 6, 2013 Page 2 of 3 SUBJECT: MUNICIPAL COURT BUSINESS HOURS/ONLINE SERVICES During FY2009 and FY2010, the Department averaged $17M in revenue of which approximately 16% was collected after hours. The following year, after ending extended hours, the Department receipted approximately $17.98 million. The reinstatement of extended hours does not guarantee new revenue but the redistribution of income, between the times. Below is a chart detailing the monies collected from FY2009 through FY2012. FY2009 Before 5pm 14,461,161.32 14,070,369.02 17,980,632.20 17,793,010.44 After 5pm 2,845,281.20 2,639,242.18 0 0 Total 17,306,442.52 16,709,611.20 17,980,632.20 17,793,010.44 Note: All online payments are posted in the "Before 5pm" section of the chart. Staff conducted a survey of other larger Municipal Courts to review their operating structure (please see the table below). The results show that a city such as Houston, which has a population almost three times the size of Fort Worth, offers extended or Saturday hours at selected locations whereas the City of El Paso adjusts their hours to accommodate the adjusted workdays of their staff during the summertime. However federal, state, county and municipal courts in our region overwhelmingly operate during normal business hours. City Location Hours of Operation Extended Hours Main M-F 7:00am-5:30pm N/A Main M-T 7:00a m-10:00p m Friday 7:00a m-6:00p m North Substation M-F 8:00am-4:30pm South Substation M-F 8:00am-4:30pm Downtown Austin Community Court M-F8:00am-5:00pm Main M-F 7:30am-4:30pm Proof or Plea Court Hours are: Monday—Thursday,8:30 AM-10:45 AM and 1:00 PM-3:30 PM, Friday,8:30 AM-10:45 AM and Saturday 8:00 AM-11:45 AM You must be within the first 21 days of receipt of citation and have a copy of your citation. „Main M-T7:00am-6:00pm Closed Fridays 4-10 Schedule Begins on Sunday May 20,2013 and Ends on Saturday September 7,2013 Northeast M-T7:00am-6:00pm Closed Fridays Arraingment Court Hours M-T7:30 am-11:30 am and 1:30 pm-5:00 pm Pebble Hills M-T7:00am-6:00pm Closed Fridays Weside M-T7:00am-6:00pm Closed Fridays Closed Fo r Lu nc h 1:00p m-2:00pm Mission Valley M-T7:00am-6:00pm Closed Fridays Main M-F 8:00am-5:00pm Teen Court Approximately 2 times per month 5-9:30 pm. 11 Main M-F 8:00am-10:00pm Sat 8:00am-4:00pm North Command Station M-F 8:00am-5:00pm Clear Lake Sub Station Thursday 8:00am-5:00pm Kingwood Annex Court Wednesday8:00am-7:00pm Southeast Command Station M-F8:00am-5:00pm Westside Command Station M-F 8:00am-9:00pm ;.Main M-T8:00am-4:30pm Friday 8:00am-5:00pm Cashiers are open from 8:00 a.m.to 6:00 p.m.,Monday through Friday ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER FORT WORTH, TEXAS INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No. 9577 To the Mayor and Members of the City Council August 6, 2013 Page 3 of 3 r SUBJECT: MUNICIPAL COURT BUSINESS HOURS/ONLINE SERVICES MUNICIPAL COURT ONLINE SERVICES For the convenience of citizens the Court currently offers the following online options for payment and information retrieval of fines and fees: • Citizens can pay their citations online including parking tickets online, by phone and in person at any Western union location world wide. • Municipal Court Services Department also offers online access to a database for outstanding warrants. The Warrant Online Database is updated every morning between the hours of 4:30 and 5:30 a.m. Central Time. The Court is currently in the preliminary stages to begin a competitive process for procurement of a new case management system. While this may be a long process, Court staff is currently exploring other technology projects in order to augment services. These initiatives include: • eServices Suite (ePayment, eFiling and eAccess) • Virtual Court • Online plea options and parking citation contesting • Overall development of a comprehensive court technology plan The court is continuing to look for opportunities to enhance our customer service to the community. These opportunities include the consideration in the upcoming bond election of a kiosk solution for far north Fort Worth and an additional jury courtroom at the A.D. Marshall Public Safety Building. Tom Higgins City Manager ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER FORT WORTH, TEXAS