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SALT LAKE CITY — Utah's capital city is inching closer to having a third branch of government following a law that state leaders passed earlier this year.
Salt Lake City leaders are working on an ordinance that would move the Salt Lake City Justice Court out of the city's administrative branch, or the mayor's office, and turn it into an independent body, separate from the mayor's office or city council, as the result of HB210.
The law, which unanimously cleared the Utah Legislature this year before going into law in May, includes provisions that clarify a justice court is "part of the state judiciary" and that a municipality or county court should be "independent from the other branches of government."
This is the case even if the court is funded by municipal funds or staffed with municipal employees, said Salt Lake City attorney Katie Lewis, who briefed the Salt Lake City Council on the proposed ordinance during a work session Tuesday afternoon.
The state changes won't create a breakoff from the city in a format quite like the Salt Lake City Public Library System, Lewis said. With the library, the city council approves the system's budget, but its employees aren't considered city employees. As for the justice court, all employees would remain connected to Salt Lake City Corporation even as a part of the state judiciary.
Other towns, cities and counties across the state with similar justice court setups are also tasked with these types of changes.
HB210 outlined several other justice court changes this year, too. The law also adjusted job eligibility requirements and salaries, aligning them closer to district judge positions, and set up a new task force to review the justice court system.
Rep. Jon Hawkins, R-Pleasant Grove, who sponsored the bill, explained on the floor of the Utah House of Representatives back in February that the changes were the result of recommendations made by the Utah courts system.
While Salt Lake City didn't offer an opinion on it at any of the public meetings during the legislative session, the bill received support from the League of Utah Cities and Towns at the time.
Lewis said Salt Lake City's proposed ordinance simply complies with the updated state code, but the city is proposing some additional changes. For example, justice court judges would be able to appoint a justice court administrator to help manage court employees and operations under the proposed ordinance.
"If you have a separate branch of government, that branch of government should be entitled to appoint its senior leadership team just exactly like the administration and council do now," she said. "It really flowed from what the law said."
The Salt Lake City Council will still need to hash out other details, including pay and budget logistics.
The new law states that judges must be paid between 70% and 90% of district judges, but the city is proposing that its judges should be paid 90% of district judges. Lewis said this is a possible recruiting tool to bring in new court judges in the future.
This isn't expected to change the budget much in the near future. Salt Lake City Justice Court Judge Jojo Liu said the city's current budget, which the council approved in June, already bumped wages up to this threshold.
Meanwhile, Salt Lake City Council Chairman Darin Mano said he is in favor of the new justice court branch presenting its own budget recommendations every budget year in the future.
It's still unclear when all these changes will be implemented, though. The city hasn't listed a tentative date for when the council will hold a public hearing on the ordinance or when it may vote on the matter.
Members of the council requested that city administrators and justice court officials put together a final plan that dictates how the new city branch operates before the council votes to adopt the ordinance.
