Monday, August 8, 2016 • Financial News & Daily Record • Page A-11
E-filing costs increased Price goes up for credit cards and e-checks
By Gary Blankenship The Florida Bar News It is costing slightly more to electronically file documents with the Florida court system following an increase in credit card and electronic check fees for using the system’s statewide e-filing portal. The Florida Courts E-Filing Authority at its June meeting voted to raise credit card convenience fees from 3 percent to 3.5 percent and the cost for using an electronic check to pay filing fees and costs from $3 to $5 in its 201617 budget. That action became effective July 1 with the start of the 2016-17 fiscal year. The authority vote included initiating discussions with the Supreme Court and the Office of the State Courts Administrator about ways to cover costs of portal operations to make it selfsufficient. About 33 percent of filers pay via credit card and virtually all of the remainder with electronic checking. The budget issues with the portal originate with the way the authority was formed. At the time, the court system was looking for ways to establish an electronic document filing system and the Florida Court Clerks & Comptrollers offered to set up the system using computers and software already owned by the clerks. The result was an interlocal agreement between the courts and the FCCC that created the e-filing authority to oversee the electronic filing system and the statewide portal through which
the filing is done. As part of the arrangement, the clerks agreed to pay the costs for the first five million filings annually. In 2015, there were 14 million filings. The authority contracts with the FCCC to operate the portal. Aside from the FCCC contribution, the authority also receives credit card convenience and electronic check fees paid by filers. Under the interlocal agreement, that income is required to provide for e-filing, electronic service of documents, and batch filing of documents for state attorneys and public defenders as well as other delineated services at no cost to users beyond those fees. The hike in credit card and electronic check fees is the first since the portal began operations in 2011 and attorneys were required to use it beginning in 2013. E-filing authority Secretary/ Treasurer Tara Green, Clay County clerk of court, presented four budget options to the authority board. One called for accepting Visa (the portal currently only accepts American Express, Discover and MasterCard); one for continuing with the present charges and credit card companies; one raising the convenience fees to 3.5 percent and the electronic check fee to $5; and one raising those charges to 3.75 percent and $5.25 respectively. Not making any change would leave a $1 million deficit, even with the FCCC already contributing $671,070 in support, she said. The FCCC would make up that shortfall. Adding Visa would reduce the deficit to around $231,000,
although the exact number would depend on how many filers pay using Visa. The third option, raising the credit card convenience fee to 3.5 percent and the electronic check fee to $5, would produce a surplus of around $523,000, with the FCCC still contributing $671,070. The last option with the higher convenience and electronic check fees would produce around a $214,000 surplus without any FCCC contribution. Authority member Bob Inzer, Leon County clerk of court, moved the third option, and also to accept Visa and to explore with the court ways to further raise funds to make the portal selfsupporting. He said no money generated from e-filing would go for anything but authority expenses and would not go to any county clerk of court’s office or the FCCC. Green noted that a National Center for State Courts study of electronic filing estimated lawyers saved at least $25 for each electronic filing versus paper filing, with the savings coming in paper, postage, printing, courier charges, and other costs. The FCCC contribution is a sensitive issue because the Legislature has cut clerk budgets, and most clerks are struggling with staff cutbacks and reduced hours. Money spent by the FCCC on portal operations means less money for helping financially strapped clerks. The interlocal agreement creating the authority allows it to set credit card and electronic check fees similar to other state agencies, to cover the costs of accepting electronic payments.
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Biden could become familiar face in Florida campaigns By Jim Turner The News Service of Florida Floridians should expect to see Vice President Joe Biden a lot over the next three months. During a stop Friday in Tallahassee, Biden said he intends to spend more time campaigning in Florida, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Michigan for Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and congressional candidates. “These are the states that are going to determine the outcome of this election,” Biden said as he picked up a late lunch at a popular restaurant near the Florida A&M University campus south of the state Capitol. “Florida is always in play and always important, but it’s particularly important this year,” Biden said. “But it doesn’t take much to convince me to come to Florida.” The fried-chicken meal came between a Tallahassee campaign event for Congressman Patrick Murphy, who is running for the U.S. Senate, and an event scheduled later in the day in Coconut Grove for the re-election bid of Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz. Murphy is seeking to unseat Republican Marco Rubio in a race that could help determine which party controls the U.S. Senate after the November elections. That was the focus of the first part of the day for Biden, who attended a fundraiser for Murphy at the home of personal-injury attorney Don Hinkle. Murphy still must get through a primary that features four opponents, including U.S. Rep. Alan Grayson. But Biden clearly appeared more concerned with the general election after briefly chatting with the owner and diners at Olean’s Cafe. “It’s really important that we win back the United States Senate,” Biden said. “No matter what the outcome of the presidential (election), and I think we’re going to do well in the presidential, but there is so much at stake in terms of the Senate.” Rubio has held comfortable leads in polls. Asked about being able to defeat the incumbent, Biden said he believes Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump may prove to be a drag on down-ballot GOP candidates. Biden said Trump is “pandering to fear and a sort of hostility.” “Our economy is larger than any economy in the world, it’s stronger than any economy in the world, it doesn’t mean there aren’t headwinds out there,” Biden said. “He (Trump) talks about our military, that he’s going to make it great again. We spend more on our military than the next eight nations in the world combined. Combined. It’s the finest fighting force in the history of the world. That is not hyperbole. That is a natural fact,” Biden said. Olean McCaskill, owner of the restaurant that has offered an “Obama Breakfast Special” since President Barack Obama first ran
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Biden for the White House, said she was so excited she forgot to have Biden sign the $20 bill he left as a tip. “This has been a wonderful experience,” McCaskill said. “I am so grateful and elated that the vice president has come to Olean’s.” Murphy called it “humbling” to have the White House support in the Senate race. While Biden was in Tallahassee, Grayson’s campaign sent out a release calling Murphy “Obama’s Judas” for having voted about 65 times against the desires of the White House. “Patrick helped Republicans smear Secretary Clinton by voting to create the Benghazi Committee, and Murphy actually joined with the radical right in rebuking President Obama over the Bowe Bergdahl prisoner exchange,” Grayson’s campaign manager Michael Ceraso said in a release. “Patrick can’t be counted on to have any White House Democrat’s back.” Apparently the White House disagrees. “He’s smart as hell for one. Number two he is a CPA,” Biden said in reference to reports that have questioned Murphy’s experience as a certified public accountant. “It’s all part of the game too. I just want him counting the dollars in the Senate.” The Democratic establishment has rallied around Murphy, who has been under fire from Grayson and Republican groups about allegations of resume padding. In addition to Biden’s trips, Obama has headlined a fundraiser in Miami for Murphy and appeared in a campaign ad on Murphy’s behalf. Other party leaders also have not been shy about supporting Murphy. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., has openly acknowledged disdain for Grayson. While Murphy has been ahead in primary polls, he and Grayson lag behind Rubio in hypothetical head-to-head contests, according to a Suffolk University poll released Thursday. Rubio led Murphy 46 percent to 33 percent and led Grayson by a margin of 45 percent to 31 percent, according to the Suffolk poll. In both scenarios about 20 percent of the likely voters remained undecided.