Jurors will get more dollars for their duty

This might soften the blow of your civic duty. Pay for Travis County jurors will increase by a big margin starting Friday. Jurors will now receive $20 for the first day of service – up from $6 – and $40-$58 on subsequent days. (Except for city of Austin jury trials, a news release notes.) The increase is due to House Bill 3474, an omnibus bill passed in the 88th Texas Legislature. “Travis County officials are thrilled about this increase in jury pay,” said Velva L. Price, Travis County district clerk, in a statement. “We hope the pay increase will improve participation and racial and socioeconomic diversity of Travis County jury pools. Combined with online registration and free rides on the public transit system, Travis County is working to make jury service easier and limit the impact to personal and work lives of jurors.”