(Rpld. 7/1/31)

1. A. The fair jury improvement fund is established consisting of monies received from the additional fees paid on all filings, appearances, responses and answers pursuant to section 12-115 and monies appropriated by the legislature. The monies in the fund shall not be used for any purpose other than as prescribed in this section.
2. B. The supreme court shall administer the fund and shall adopt rules for administering the fund. Not more than three percent of the monies in the fund shall be used for the reasonable and necessary costs of administering the fund. On or before the fifteenth day of each month, on receipt of a request for reimbursement the supreme court shall transmit monies from the fund to a jury commissioner for monies paid to a juror under this section, together with a fee of not less than the amount prescribed in section 12-284, subsection A, class E for each application for payment of replacement or supplemental earnings by a juror.

3. C. Subject to the availability of monies, monies in the fund shall be used to:

   1. 1. Pay full or partial earnings replacement or supplementation to jurors who serve as petit jurors in the superior court and who receive less than full compensation. The amount of replacement or supplemental earnings shall be at least $40 but not more than $300 per day per juror beginning on the first day of jury service.
   2. 2. If monies are available in the fund after paying jurors pursuant to paragraph 1 of this subsection, pay for the management and storage of digital evidence and to facilitate the display of the evidence to the jury and court at a trial and related proceedings.

4. D. A person who serves as a petit juror in the superior court may submit a request for payment from the fund. The amount a juror receives from the fund is limited to the difference between the jury fee prescribed in section 21-221 and the actual amount of earnings a juror earns, not less than $40, up to the maximum level payable under subsection C, paragraph 1 of this section, minus any amount the juror actually received from the juror's employer during the same time period. A juror who requests payment from the fund:

   1. 1. Shall disclose on the form the juror's regular earnings, the amount the juror's employer will pay during the term of jury service starting on the first day and thereafter, the amount of replacement or supplemental earnings being requested and any other information that the jury commissioner deems necessary.
   2. 2. Before receiving payment from the fund, shall submit verification from the juror's employer, if any, regarding the earnings information that is provided under paragraph 1 of this subsection. This verification may include the employee's most recent earnings statement or a similar document.
   3. 3. In order to verify the weekly income if the juror is self-employed or receives compensation other than wages, shall provide a sworn affidavit attesting to the juror's approximate gross weekly income, together with any other information that the supreme court requires.
5. E. Jurors who are unemployed and are not eligible for payment pursuant to subsection C, paragraph 1 and subsection D of this section are eligible to be paid $40 per day, even if they receive income in the form of spousal maintenance, pensions, retirement, unemployment compensation, disability benefits or other similar income. Commissioners shall not deduct these other forms of income in calculating the amount these jurors are to be paid from the fund.