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HB 6138

AN ACT RELATING TO COURTS AND CIVIL PROCEDURE -- COURTS -- SUPERIOR COURT

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Jackie Baginski and 5 co-sponsors

Creates a general magistrate and expands the administrator's powers to handle routine motions, arraignments, bail, and enforcement, to speed Rhode Island Superior Court caseflow.

05/01/2025 Committee recommended measure be held for further study
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Bill Summary · HB 6138

Summary — HB 6138

Title: AN ACT RELATING TO COURTS AND CIVIL PROCEDURE — COURTS — SUPERIOR COURT
Status: 05/01/2025 — Committee recommended measure be held for further study
Introduced: March 26, 2025 (Rhode Island version)
Referred to: House Finance

Note on source material: The materials provided appear to contain text from two different bills both labeled “HB 6138” — (A) a Rhode Island bill amending Superior Court magistrate/administrator statutes (matches the bill title), and (B) an unrelated Michigan bill concerning local road agency employee compensation and transparency (appears to have been included in error). This summary focuses on the Rhode Island Superior Court bill (the measure matching the title). A brief summary of the Michigan content is provided at the end.

Purpose and intent

The Rhode Island bill updates statutes in Chapter 8-2 (Superior Court) to clarify and expand the appointment, term, duties, and powers of (1) the Superior Court administrator/magistrate and (2) a newly codified general magistrate position. The intent is to delegate certain judicial-adjacent functions to magistrates to improve court administration and management of routine matters.

Key provisions (Rhode Island)

  • Appointment and term

    • Administrator/magistrate: may be appointed by the presiding justice (as administrative judge), with advice and consent of the Senate, for a 10‑year term and until successor qualifies. Similar provision for magistrates in service on Jan 1, 2008.
    • General magistrate: created and appointed by presiding justice, with Senate advice and consent, for 10‑year term; appointee must be a member of the Rhode Island bar.

  • Powers and duties of administrator/magistrate

    • Authorized to hear and determine matters assigned by presiding justice with the same legal effect as a justice of the Superior Court.
    • Explicit powers include hearing motions in civil and criminal proceedings, arraignments, accepting pleas (not guilty, guilty, nolo contendere), granting/denying bail, and imposing sentence on a plea of guilty or nolo contendere.
    • Broad procedural authority: regulate proceedings, require production of documents, rule on evidence admissibility, subpoena witnesses, examine parties, issue capias/body attachments.
    • Contempt authority: may adjudicate contempt and order imprisonment up to 72 hours pending review by a Superior Court justice.
    • Orders by the administrator/magistrate are reviewable by a Superior Court justice (review generally on the record); final orders may be appealed to the Supreme Court.
    • Administrator/magistrate subject to judicial ethics and the Judicial Tenure & Discipline commission; retired magistrates may be recalled for limited service.

  • Powers and duties of general magistrate

    • Assist in restitution and collection/monitoring of court‑ordered fines, fees, costs; authorize community service as substitute; handle payment determinations.
    • Manage certain claims (Criminal Injuries Compensation Act, Criminal Royalties Distribution).
    • Authorized to hear motions, pretrial conferences, arraignments, probable cause and bail hearings, revocation hearings; to modify probation terms and court-ordered monetary payment plans; to take testimony and regulate proceedings.
    • May be assigned to other courts within the unified system with full powers of the assigned magistrate position.

Who is affected

  • Superior Court operation and caseflow: justices, magistrates, court administrators, litigants in criminal and civil matters, probationers, victims seeking restitution/compensation, and attorneys.
  • State judiciary oversight bodies (ethical and disciplinary frameworks) because magistrates are explicitly brought under them.

Potential impacts

  • Administrative efficiency: shifts routine, procedural, and enforcement tasks to magistrates, potentially freeing justices for trials and complex matters.
  • Access and speed: could streamline pretrial processing, bail/probable cause decisions, and collection/monitoring functions.
  • Oversight and review preserved: orders are subject to review by a justice and appeal to the Supreme Court.
  • Operational considerations: staffing, assignment practices, and training for magistrates; potential budget/staffing implications not specified in the bill text.

Legislative status / timeline

  • Introduced in House: 03/26/2025; referred to House Finance.
  • Scheduled hearing/consideration: 04/25/2025 (for 05/01/2025).
  • 05/01/2025: Committee recommended measure be held for further study.

Brief note on unrelated Michigan material included in the submission

The packet also contains text from a Michigan House bill (also labeled HB 6138) amending Michigan's Public Act 51 (transportation/local road agencies). That text would: require local road agencies to certify employee compensation plans, set caps and design features for retirement/defined‑benefit plans and employer retirement contributions, require certification regarding compliance with the Publicly Funded Health Insurance Contribution Act (PA 152), authorize withholding of Michigan Transportation Fund distributions for noncompliance, and require county road commission public web transparency (budget, employee counts, financial dashboard). That Michigan bill appears distinct and unrelated to the Rhode Island Superior Court measure.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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