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MINUTES OF THE
JUDICIARY INTERIM COMMITTEE

Wednesday, November 18, 1998 - 9:00 a.m. - Room 405 State Capitol


Members Present:
    Sen. Craig L. Taylor, Senate Chair     
    Rep. A. Lamont Tyler, House Chair
    Sen. David L. Buhler
    Sen. Lyle W. Hillyard
    Rep. Patrice M. Arent
    Rep. John B. Arrington
    Rep. Loretta Baca
    Rep. Afton B. Bradshaw
    Rep. Katherine M. Bryson
    Rep. J. W. "Bill" Hickman
    Rep. Keele Johnson
    Rep. Tammy J. Rowan
    Rep. Martin R. Stephens
    Rep. Glenn L. Way
    

Members Absent:
    

Members Excused:
    Sen. Lane Beattie
    Sen. Robert C. Steiner
    Rep. Swen C. Nielsen

Staff Present:
    Mr. Jerry D. Howe,
     Research Analyst
    Ms. Esther Chelsea-McCarty,
     Associate General Counsel
    Ms. Glenda S. Whitney,
     Legislative Secretary

        Note:    A list of others present and a copy of materials distributed in the meeting are on file in the Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel.

1.    Call to Order and Committee Business - Chair Tyler called the meeting to order at 9:20 a.m.

     MOTION: Rep. Arrington moved to approve the minutes of the October 21, 1998 meeting. The motion passed unanimously with Sen. Hillyard, Rep. Arent, Rep. Baca, Rep. Bradshaw, Rep. Hickman, and Rep. Stephens absent for the vote.

    Chair Tyler relinquished the chair to Sen. Taylor while he explained to the committee his bill on identification number fraud.

2.    Identification Number Fraud - Rep. A. Lamont Tyler referred to draft legislation "Identification Number Fraud" distributed in the mailing packet. The legislation relates to commerce and trade and the criminal code, defines an identification number, creates the crime of identification number fraud, and provides a penalty.

     MOTION: Rep. Tyler moved to delete language at page 1, lines 26-27 of the bill and to insert "that person without authorization and with intent" at the end of line 23 on page 2. The motion passed unanimously with Sen. Hillyard, Rep. Baca, Rep. Bradshaw, and Rep. Hickman absent for the vote.

    Sen. Taylor expressed concern with the language on page 2, line 39 referring to multiple violations and suggested that a definition of aggregated offense would lend clarity to the bill.

    Ms. Shelly Cordon Teuscher, American Express, spoke in support of the bill.

    Mr. George Sutton, Association of Financial Services, explained that federal law prohibits the use of someone else's credit card without authorization. In the event of an unauthorized use, Mr. Sutton explained that the card holder is only responsible for the first $50.00, the credit card company will pay the rest of the bill, he said.

    Mr. Mark Zupon, President of the Utah Association of Financial Services, said this bill makes it a crime to steal or try to steal someone's identity. He spoke in support of the bill.     
    MOTION: Rep. Tyler moved to adopt as a committee bill, "Identification Number Fraud" as amended and to authorize staff to provide a definition on multiple offenses and aggregation to single offenses. The motion passed unanimously with Sen. Hillyard, Rep. Baca, and Rep. Hickman absent for the vote.

    Senator Taylor returned the chair back to Representative Tyler.

3.    Statute of Limitations - Real Property Improvements, 1999FL-0189/003. Rep. Gerry Adair apologized to the committee for not being prepared to discuss the bill today. He said that complications in moving his place of employment prevented meetings he needed to hold to work through the suggestions made by this committee. He explained that he will bring the bill before a standing committee during the General Session after the issues identified by the committee have been addressed.

4.    Juvenile Justice Task Force - Sen. Lyle W. Hillyard, Senate Chair, Juvenile Justice Task Force, distributed a handout which included recommendations and draft legislation for the committee to review. He said the principal issues studied by the task force include: prevention, restorative justice and graduated sanctions, serious and violent offenders, and aftercare. He presented and explained draft legislation "Youth Parole Authority," "Compulsory Education Requirements," and "Competency Evaluations for Juveniles." These bills, he said, have been endorsed by the Juvenile Justice Task Force.

    Sen. Hillyard expressed concern with duplication of services, which increases administrative costs within the Juvenile Court, the Division of Youth Corrections, and the Division of Child and Family Services. Also, there are no criteria for judging the effectiveness of programs, he said. He further explained that the juvenile justice system has been the focus of an audit conducted by the Legislative Auditor General during the interim. He indicated that the task force is looking forward to reviewing the audit report and expects it to be useful.

    Rep. Rowan expressed a desire to read and understand these bills before the committee considers a motion on whether to endorse them. Sen. Hillyard said he would prefer that the

committee feel comfortable with the legislation before voting on the bills.

     MOTION: Rep. Bryson moved that the committee consider the next item on the agenda.

5.    Miscellaneous Reports as Required by the Utah Code - Mr. Richard Schwermer, Administrative Office of the Courts, reported on four programs administered by the Administrative Office the Courts.

     Visitation Mediation Pilot Program has been functioning for approximately nine months. The bill establishing the program was sponsored by Sen. Millie Peterson two years ago and the court just received a $70,000 grant to implement the program. Mr. Schwermer explained that the program is intended to increase compliance with visitation orders by providing mediation and follow-up services to help ensure future compliance. The program is provided through a joint effort between the Court and the Department of Human Services.

     Divorce Education Program has experienced substantial success. It began as a pilot program four years ago and just over a year ago it was expanded statewide. The program is mandatory. All parties of divorce in Utah with minor children are required to participate in a two-hour course which focuses on the dynamics of the family and the importance of allowing children to have relationships with both parents. Although people initially resent being compelled to attend, Mr. Schwermer explained that nearly 95 percent report that they learned important information that will influence how they treat their children with respect to the other parent and that they recommend other parents be compelled to attend.

     Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) is a voluntary program where those who file a civil law suit are expected to view a video tape that explains ADR and mediation. Mr. Schwermer said the ADR program is a service of the court, it is not mandatory, and for that reason it is difficult to know the exact impact or success. He explained, however, that ADR can be less expensive and parties are generally more pleased with the results of mediation and arbitration than they are with traditional trials. Not all cases lend themselves to ADR, he said, but when the parties are willing to attempt one of these alternatives the results can be encouraging.

     Families, Agencies, and Communities Together (FACT) is a cooperative effort among branches of state and local government to provide needed services to children. Mr. Schwermer distributed a written summary of FACTs 1998 activities for the committee to review.

6.    Other Business - Chair Tyler reminded the committee of its October discussion concerning the In re Young decision. He explained that the Judicial Conduct Commission had requested that this committee review legislation concerning the appointment of members to the Judicial Conduct Commission. Chair Tyler explained that it will not be necessary for the

committee to review that legislation because this committee, or at least the house members of this committee, will begin to hear impeachment questions to advise the Legislature concerning complaints that are raised against judges. Chair Tyler said that there is no action to take today, but the committee might be aware that most of these ideas will probably be discussed during the Legislative Session. If the House members of this committee begin the impeachment process, it will represent a tremendous workload so there will have to be some way to screen complaints although the committee will conduct most of its work in a public setting.

    Rep. Arent asked for clarification on the Judicial Conduct Commission's motion for reconsideration of the In re Young opinion.

    Mr. Jerry D. Howe, Research Analyst, explained that the Judicial Conduct Commission has filed a petition to enlarge the time for filing a petition for rehearing. It appears that the Legislature may also file a petition to enlarge the time so it may also request a rehearing, he said. The outcome of these motions could go several ways, he said; and no one knows what would happen in a rehearing, or if there will even be one.

    Chair Tyler explained that the concern of the Legislature and legislative leaders is that the Legislature have some check and balance on judicial conduct. The only check now available is the impeachment process.

    Mr. Schwermer explained that for retention election purposes any public reprimand received during a judge's term of office is recorded in the Voter Information Pamphlet.

    Sen. Taylor thanked and paid respect to the committee and staff. He expressed gratitude for the opportunity to Chair the Judiciary Committee over the past four years and was proud of the committee's accomplishments. He said it has been a great opportunity to serve the people of the state and that he looks forward to spending more time with his family.

6.    Adjourn -

    MOTION: Rep. Rowan moved to adjourn the meeting at 10:42 a.m. The motion passed unanimously with Sen. Hillyard, Rep. Hickman, and Rep. Stephens absent for the vote.

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