Bush wants more judges, court funds.

Florida's courts would get 40 new trial judges and more than $100 million to carry out Revision 7 to Article V of the Florida Constitution, under the 2004-05 budget proposed by Gov. Jeb Bush.

The governor also called for budget and staff increases for state attorneys and public defenders, although not as much as either group wanted.

Bush released his $55 billion budget on January 20 that included some tax cuts, some increases for some state programs, and $477 million of cuts for others.

According to the Governor's Office, Bush has earmarked a total of $223 million for Revision 7. That includes $102.6 million for state courts and $120.4 million for state attorneys, public defenders, private attorneys' fees in criminal and dependency cases, due process legal costs, and other related costs.

Significant to State Courts Administrator Lisa Goodner is that none of Bush's proposed cuts fell in the state's judicial system, which endured reductions for the past two tight fiscal years.

"That for us is significant," she said. "We're really having a tough year after last year."

Comparing the budget numbers between 2003-04 and 2004-05 isn't easy for several of reasons. For one, the guardian ad litem program has been transferred from the courts to the Justice Administrative Commission. Some other programs, including juror expenses, also were shifted.

But those were more than offset by Revision 7, passed by voters in 1998. Revision 7 mandated that the state take over from the counties substantially more funding of the county and circuit courts, no later than July 1, 2004. The Constitution Revision Commission, which proposed the amendment, envisioned that the funding transfer would be phased in. But because of budget problems and other priorities, the legislature left virtually all of the funding shift until this year.

Goodner and Sixth Circuit Judge Susan Schaeffer, chair of the Trial Court Budget Commission, said the courts asked for an additional $170 million to comply with Revision 7 requirements. After adjustments for the programs transferred from the courts like GAL and allowing for the Supreme Court's requested 88 new judges plus assistants, the total court budget request was $454.1 million.

Bush is recommending $370.2 million, of which $102.6 million is for Revision 7 costs.

Last year, the courts got $277.8 million, with little or none of that related to Revision 7 costs.

Schaeffer and Goodner pointed out the extra money isn't a windfall for the...