HOUSTON — Jurors in Harris County are about to get a pay raise.
Harris County Clerk Marilyn Burgess made the announcement Friday after Texas lawmakers passed House Bill 3474 and the bill was signed by Gov. Greg Abbott earlier this week.
Here's how the juror pay breaks down --- right now, jurors in Harris County get paid $6 for the first day of service and $40 for every subsequent day they're needed. Starting on September 1, when the new law takes effect, Harris County jurors will be paid $20 for the first day and $58 for each day after that.
According to Burgess, it’s the first jury pay increase in Harris County since 2005. She said there will be no cost increase to the county for the jury pay raise because the state covers that.
“Increasing jury pay is critical to individuals with low wages and those who would actually lose wages if they showed up for service,” Burgess said. “In Harris County, jury participation has historically been very low, in the low 20 percent range.”
“Harris County has had problems having people show up for jury service, and thus creating a less diverse, less representative jury pool,” Harris County Precinct 1 Commissioner Rodney Ellis said. “This bill puts us a big step in the right direction.”
The pay increase is part of an omnibus bill authored by Rep. Jeff Leach (R-McKinney).
Watch the full announcement here:
Editor's note: An earlier version of this story identified Rodney Ellis as the Commissioner of Precinct 3. It's been corrected to Precinct 1.