S.B. 217 Enrolled

1

INCREASE IN SURCHARGE ON FINES
2 2010 GENERAL SESSION
3 STATE OF UTAH
4 Chief Sponsor: Scott K. Jenkins
5 House Sponsor: Kevin S. Garn
6
7 LONG TITLE
8 General Description:
9 This bill increases the surcharges on fines and penalties to provide funds for increased
10 law enforcement presence in areas with halfway houses.
11 Highlighted Provisions:
12 This bill:
13 . increases the surcharges on criminal fines and penalties from 85% to 90%;
14 . creates a Law Enforcement Services Account for the increased amounts;
15 . requires that the Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice administer the
16 account;
17 . requires that the account be used for increased law enforcement in areas with
18 halfway houses; and
19 . allows law enforcement agencies to receive funds based on the number of halfway
20 house beds in their jurisdiction to accomplish the purpose of the account.
21 Monies Appropriated in this Bill:
22 This bill appropriates as an ongoing appropriation subject to future budget constraints,
23 $619,000 from the Law Enforcement Services Account for fiscal year 2010-11 to the
24 Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice.
25 Other Special Clauses:
26 This bill takes effect on July 1, 2010.
27 Utah Code Sections Affected:
28 AMENDS:
29 51-9-401, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2008, Chapter 3 and renumbered and

30 amended by Laws of Utah 2008, Chapter 382
31 51-9-402, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2008, Chapter 3 and renumbered and
32 amended by Laws of Utah 2008, Chapter 382
33 ENACTS:
34 51-9-412, Utah Code Annotated 1953
35
36 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
37 Section 1. Section 51-9-401 is amended to read:
38 51-9-401. Surcharge -- Application and exemptions.
39 (1) (a) A surcharge shall be paid on all criminal fines, penalties, and forfeitures
40 imposed by the courts.
41 (b) The surcharge shall be:
42 (i) [85%] 90% upon conviction of a:
43 (A) felony;
44 (B) class A misdemeanor;
45 (C) violation of Title 41, Chapter 6a, Part 5, Driving Under the Influence and Reckless
46 Driving; or
47 (D) class B misdemeanor not classified within Title 41, Motor Vehicles, including
48 violation of comparable county or municipal ordinances; or
49 (ii) 35% upon conviction of any other offense, including violation of county or
50 municipal ordinances not subject to the [85%] 90% surcharge.
51 (c) The Division of Finance shall allocate the collected 90% surcharge in Subsection
52 (1)(b)(i) in the following order:
53 (i) the first $30,000 to the General Fund;
54 (ii) the next 4.5% to the Law Enforcement Services Account established in Section
55 51-9-412 ; and
56 (iii) the remainder as prescribed in Sections 51-9-403 through 51-9-411 .
57 (2) The surcharge may not be imposed:

58 (a) upon nonmoving traffic violations;
59 (b) upon court orders when the offender is ordered to perform compensatory service
60 work in lieu of paying a fine; and
61 (c) upon penalties assessed by the juvenile court as part of the nonjudicial adjustment
62 of a case under Section 78A-6-602 .
63 (3) (a) The surcharge and the exceptions under Subsections (1) and (2) also apply to
64 all fines, penalties, and forfeitures imposed on juveniles for conduct that would be criminal if
65 committed by an adult.
66 (b) However, the surcharge does not include amounts assessed or collected separately
67 by juvenile courts for the Juvenile Restitution Account, which is independent of this part and
68 does not affect the imposition or collection of the surcharge.
69 (4) The surcharge under this section shall be imposed in addition to the fine charged
70 for a civil or criminal offense, and no reduction may be made in the fine charged due to the
71 surcharge imposition.
72 (5) Fees, assessments, and surcharges related to criminal or traffic offenses shall be
73 authorized and managed by this part rather than attached to particular offenses.
74 Section 2. Section 51-9-402 is amended to read:
75 51-9-402. Division of collected monies retained by state treasurer and local
76 governmental collecting entity -- Purpose of surcharge -- Allocation of collections --
77 Financial information.
78 (1) The amount of the surcharge imposed under this part by courts of record shall be
79 collected before any fine and deposited with the state treasurer.
80 (2) The amount of the surcharge and the amount of criminal fines, penalties, and
81 forfeitures imposed under this part by courts not of record shall be collected concurrently.
82 (a) As monies are collected on criminal fines, penalties, and forfeitures subject to the
83 [85%] 90% surcharge, the monies shall be divided pro rata so that the local governmental
84 collecting entity retains [54%] 53% of the collected monies and the state retains [46%] 47% of
85 the collected monies.

86 (b) As monies are collected on criminal fines, penalties, and forfeitures subject to the
87 35% surcharge, the monies shall be divided pro rata so that the local governmental collecting
88 entity retains 74% of the collected monies and the state retains 26% of the collected monies.
89 (c) The court shall deposit with the state treasurer the surcharge portion of all monies
90 as they are collected.
91 (3) Courts of record, courts not of record, and administrative traffic proceedings shall
92 collect financial information to determine:
93 (a) the total number of cases in which:
94 (i) a final judgment has been rendered;
95 (ii) surcharges and fines are paid by partial or installment payment; and
96 (iii) the judgment is fulfilled by an alternative method upon the court's order; and
97 (b) the total dollar amounts of surcharges owed to the state and fines owed to the state
98 and county or municipality, including:
99 (i) waived surcharges;
100 (ii) uncollected surcharges; and
101 (iii) collected surcharges.
102 (4) The courts of record, courts not of record, and administrative traffic proceedings
103 shall report all collected financial information monthly to the Administrative Office of the
104 Courts. The collected information shall be categorized by cases subject to the [85%] 90% and
105 35% surcharge.
106 (5) The purpose of the surcharge is to finance the trust funds and support accounts as
107 provided in this part.
108 (6) (a) From the surcharge, the Division of Finance shall allocate in the manner and
109 for the purposes described in Sections 51-9-403 through 51-9-411 .
110 (b) Allocations shall be made on a fiscal year basis.
111 (7) The provisions of this section and Section 51-9-401 may not impact the
112 distribution and allocation of fines and forfeitures imposed in accordance with Sections
113 23-14-13 , 78A-5-110 , and 78A-7-120 .

114 Section 3. Section 51-9-412 is enacted to read:
115 51-9-412. Law Enforcement Services Account -- Funding -- Uses.
116 (1) As used in this section:
117 (a) "Account" means the Law Enforcement Services Account.
118 (b) "Commission" means the Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice created in
119 Section 63M-7-201 .
120 (c) "Law enforcement agency" means a local law enforcement agency.
121 (2) There is created a restricted account within the General Fund known as the "Law
122 Enforcement Services Account."
123 (3) (a) The Division of Finance shall allocate funds from the collected surcharge in
124 accordance with Subsection 51-9-401 (1)(c) to the account, but not to exceed the amount
125 appropriated by the Legislature.
126 (b) Money in the account shall be appropriated to the commission to administer and
127 distribute to law enforcement agencies providing services directly to areas with halfway
128 houses.
129 (4) The commission shall allocate funds from the account to local law enforcement
130 agencies on a pro-rata basis determined by the number of beds in each agency's jurisdiction for
131 increased enforcement in areas with halfway houses.
132 (5) A law enforcement agency may use funds received under this section only for the
133 purposes stated in this section.
134 (6) For each fiscal year, any law enforcement agency that receives funds from the
135 commission under this section shall prepare, and file with the commission and the state
136 auditor, a report in a form specified by the commission. The report shall include the
137 following:
138 (a) the agency's name;
139 (b) the amount received;
140 (c) how the funds were used, including the impact on crime reduction efforts in areas
141 with halfway houses; and

142 (d) a statement signed by both the agency's or political subdivision's executive officer
143 or designee and by the agency's legal counsel that all funds were used for law enforcement
144 operations related to reducing criminal activity in areas with halfway houses.
145 (7) The commission shall report in writing to the legislative Law Enforcement and
146 Criminal Justice Interim Committee annually regarding the funds allocated under this section,
147 including the amounts and uses.
148 Section 4. Appropriation.
149 As an ongoing appropriation subject to future budget constraints, there is appropriated
150 from the Law Enforcement Services Account established in Section 51-9-412 for fiscal year
151 2010-11, $619,000 to the Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice to allocate for the
152 purposes set forth in Section 51-9-412 .
153 Section 5. Effective date.
154 This bill takes effect on July 1, 2010.