Courts cut services in southern Maine

AUGUSTA – The Maine court system announced plans Friday to cut services temporarily at one location, citing inadequate funding.

Clerks’ offices in the Cumberland County courthouse will close to the public 90 minutes early – at 3 p.m. – from Aug. 9 through Sept. 10.

Officials said staffing problems are not limited to Portland, but that the severity of staffing shortages there prompted the office schedule changes.

Officials said they expect a slowing of case processing through the remainder of the fiscal year, which began July 1.

The court system is carrying about 20 vacancies to cope with an $840,000 shortfall, according to Edward Kelleher, a legislative liaison for the court system.

“This is a very difficult decision for the courts of Maine,” Chief Justice Leigh Saufley of the Maine supreme court said in a statement.

“In taking this unusual step, we are making every effort to respond to the personnel crisis in ways that do not disrupt the schedules already in place. We hope to avoid postponing court proceedings already planned for by Maine’s residents.

“We will continue to work closely with the governor’s office and members of the Legislature to obtain adequate funding to ensure the public’s access to justice,” Saufley said.

Administration figures peg General Fund support for the Judicial Department at slightly more than $54 million for fiscal 2005, up from slightly more than $51.8 million in the previous year. Judicial Department funding in fiscal 2002 was slightly more than $47.8 million and in fiscal 2003 slightly more than $50.65 million.

From fiscal 1999, when General Fund support for the Judicial Department was slightly less than $39 million, to fiscal 2005, Judicial Department funding increased by 38.7 percent, compared to an overall General Fund increase of 22.9 percent, administration figures show.

In her annual State of the Judiciary address to a joint legislative session in January, Saufley told lawmakers the courts had undertaken a variety of steps to respond to budget cuts. But she indicated that pressures remained.

“During the last several years, the responsibilities of the judicial branch have increased, while the resources for carrying out those responsibilities have been restricted,” Saufley said. “The responsibilities of the judicial branch must be met through a budget that remains among the lowest in the nation.”

Court officials said Friday they hope the reduction in public hours in the Portland courts will not last more than five weeks.