Title
Authorization for the Phoenix Municipal Court to Apply for, Accept and Enter into an Agreement for Pilot Hybrid Hearings Program (Ordinance S-49077)
Description
Request to retroactively authorize the Phoenix Municipal Court to apply for, accept and enter into an agreement with the National Center for State Courts (NCSC) for the Hybrid Hearings Improvement Initiative Pilot Program.
Report
Summary
The National Center for State Courts (NCSC) awarded grants to state and local courts as part of its Hybrid Hearings Improvement Initiative Pilot Program. The Phoenix Municipal Court was made aware of the opportunity to apply for this program in late June and the application was due in mid-July. The Court was informed that it had been selected as a participant in August. The goal of this program is to assist courts in learning from, and improving upon, pandemic-era best practices to create permanent changes to the way courts conduct hybrid hearings, as well as overall improvement of remote and virtual offerings. As a participant, the Court will receive support from NCSC to implement technical and operational solutions which may include facilitating the purchase and installation of technical equipment in a minimum of one courtroom, integration with existing systems, and technical assistance to support the preliminary operation of the equipment and development of hybrid hearing procedures.
Contract Term
The term for this agreement is September 1, 2022, through June 30, 2023.
Financial Impact
There is no impact to the general fund.
Department
Responsible Department
The item is recommended by Deputy City Manager Karen Peters and the Municipal Court.