The Florida Senate

17.20  Assignment of claims for collection.--

(1)  The Department of Banking and Finance shall charge the state attorneys with the collection of all claims that are placed in their hands for collection of money or property for the state or any county or special district, or that it otherwise requires them to collect. The charges are evidence of indebtedness of a state attorney against whom any charge is made for the full amount of the claim, until the charges have been collected and paid into the treasury of the state or of the county or special district or the legal remedies of the state have been exhausted, or until the state attorney demonstrates to the department that the failure to collect the charges is not due to negligence and the department has made a proper entry of satisfaction of the charge against the state attorney.

(2)  The department may assign the collection of any claim to a collection agent who is registered and in good standing pursuant to chapter 559, if the department determines the assignation to be cost-effective. The department may pay an agent from any amount collected under the claim a fee that the department and the agent have agreed upon; may authorize the agent to deduct the fee from the amount collected; may require the appropriate state agency, county, or special district to pay the agent the fee from any amount collected by the agent on its behalf; or may authorize the agent to add the fee to the amount to be collected.

(3)  Notwithstanding any other provision of law, in any contract providing for the location or collection of unclaimed property, the department may authorize the contractor to deduct its fees and expenses for services provided under the contract from the unclaimed property that the contractor has recovered or collected under the contract. The department shall annually report to the Governor, President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives the total amount collected or recovered by each contractor during the previous fiscal year and the total fees and expenses deducted by each contractor.

History.--ss. 1, 2, ch. 1413, 1863; RS 112; GS 116; RGS 128; CGL 158; ss. 12, 35, ch. 69-106; s. 6, ch. 83-132; s. 62, ch. 95-147; s. 6, ch. 95-312; s. 1, ch. 97-60.