(a) On the effective date of this chapter, any juvenile probation officer serving the juvenile court and any clerical employee or professional staff member who supports the juvenile probation officers shall become the base group of employees to be transitioned to be employees of the State of Alabama and be included in the state court system personnel system. The foregoing provision shall have no application or effect as to any position that is established and filled after passage of this chapter, unless prior written approval for the additional position is provided by the Administrative Director of Courts, nor shall it apply to any position or employee whose primary responsibility involves support to a juvenile detention or shelter care facility. Any controversy regarding the composition of that class of persons or positions qualifying as court personnel under this chapter shall be determined by the Administrative Director of Courts whose decision shall be final.

(b) Beginning October 1, 1998, the Administrative Office of Courts shall provide salary subsidies to each county for juvenile probation officers and shall continue those subsidies until the beginning of the fiscal year in which the juvenile probation officers are assumed by the state court system personnel system.

(1) The Administrative Office of Courts shall allocate salary subsidies to each county for juvenile probation officers on the basis of one salary subsidy per 15,000 population or a fraction thereof. Provided, however, if legislation is enacted to provide additional salary subsidies for additional juvenile probation officers, the salary subsidy ratio as provided herein shall be adjusted accordingly. The last federal decennial census shall be used for these calculations. If there are counties with a population of less than 30,000 which do not provide matching funds, the salary of one probation officer may be fully funded per county.

(2) The Administrative Office of Courts shall expend funds to provide a salary subsidy of twenty-two thousand dollars ($22,000) or one-half of the total salary actually paid to a juvenile probation officer, whichever is greater, for the number of probation officers' subsidies provided to a county in the formula in subdivision (1). The subsidy shall be paid to each county only for juvenile probation officers authorized and employed. Employment for purposes of this subdivision includes temporary vacancies of 30 days or less. Salary rates and ranges for juvenile probation officers shall be established by county personnel boards, county commissions, or any other local entities. These salary rates and ranges shall be adjusted to reflect a minimum salary for juvenile probation officers of twenty-two thousand dollars ($22,000) effective October 1, 1994. In adjusting the salary rates and ranges of juvenile probation officers, no county shall reduce the portion it pays for any probation officer salary below the salary level in effect on January 1, 1994.

(3) On the first day of the fiscal year in which the juvenile probation officers of a county are transitioned to the state court system personnel system, juvenile probation officer salary subsidies shall no longer be paid to that county. Counties having a population of more than 99,000 according to the 1990 federal decennial census shall continue to receive salary subsidies as provided in subdivisions (1) and (2).