Aug 18

Another benchmark in technology could save money for Oakland County but also potentially eliminate jobs in the process, as the Oakland County Board of Commissioners is considering the acquisition of four digital audio/video court recording systems that will effectuate the dismissal of four court reporters.

The Oakland County Board of Commissioners’ Public Services Committee unanimously approved a one-time appropriation from the county’s fund balance to buy the equipment and has referred the authorizing resolution to the board’s Finance Committee for review on Thursday, Aug. 14.

According to the proposal, the court recording devices will improve the quality and efficiency of court operations.

The resolution is one response to the budget cutting tasks ordered by Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson, who said the courts must slash $2.3 million from their 2010 budget due to projected revenue shortfalls. According to Oakland County Commissioner Jeff Potter (R-Walled Lake, Wixom), chairman of the Public Services Committee, the need for budget cuts has forced the committee to rethink current operations.

“We have been aggressive in supporting technology to keep burdens off the taxpayers,” Potter said. “Implementing this technology will eliminate (a court reporter) sitting in a court room waiting for a lawyer conference or for a court case. That kind of inefficiency is what we’re trying to change.”

Currently there are 16 fully operational digital court recording systems in judicial courtrooms and five in referee hearing rooms within the courthouse.

The resolution proposes that the Oakland County Circuit Court eliminate one court reporting position effective Oct. 1, 2008 and replace it with one digital recording system. Likewise, effective Oct. 1, 2009, it will eliminate two more court reporting positions and replace them with two digital recording systems.

The Oakland County Probate Court plans to follow suit. It has proposed to eliminate one court reporting position and replacing it with one digital recording system next year.

The courts plan to have all four systems installed and operational by Jan. 1, 2009.

The total cost for the video equipment and installation of one unit is a one-time fee of $45,000 in contrast to $95,000 per year for one court reporter (including fringe benefits and salary).

“The investment will be paid back through manpower services several times over,” Potter said.

According to Oakland County Circuit Court Administrator Kevin Oeffner, court reporter positions are not the only jobs being cut. By 2010, Oakland County will terminate 27 positions, with only four of them being court reporters.

“In the short term, it consolidates the need for recording rather than staffing full-time personnel,” Oeffner said.

County employees typically take retirement or are shifted to other jobs when their positions are eliminated, according to Potter.

The future of court reporters in the field, according to Oeffner, lies in the hands of the judges on the bench.

“We have 19 circuit court judges. Some use video, some use court reporters,” he said. “Its at the discretion of the judges on the bench in how they wish to have their court proceedings handled.”

The courts will retain several court reporters on the payroll. Currently, three court reporters are assigned to juvenile court referees; but the probate court uses both video and court reporters depending on the preference of the seated judge.

Potter said the cutting-edge technology is another step toward streamlining production and saving money, but added that the concept is still in the exploratory stage.

“It will bring efficiencies for production,” he said. “We’re already doing it in other courts so in our opinion it’s an expansion of something already in place. We won’t speculate on what the future holds. We have to gauge its success on factors such as community acceptance and costs.”

The estimated total cost of the equipment and installation is $200,000, but a support contract will be needed to maintain the systems at an approximate cost of $3,000 per system each year.

The useful life span of a system is between five and 10 years.

Once the Finance Committee approves the resolution, the final decision rests with the county Board of Commissioners. The board plans to make a decision on Sept. 4.