Senate Bill sb1702c1
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Florida Senate - 2005 CS for SB 1702
By the Committee on Justice Appropriations; and Senators
Bennett and Bullard
604-2333-05
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to teen courts; amending s.
3 938.19, F.S.; authorizing a board of county
4 commissioners to adopt an ordinance that
5 incorporates the provisions of the act;
6 providing funding for a teen court through the
7 assessment of an additional court cost against
8 each person who pleads guilty or nolo
9 contendere to, or is convicted of, a violation
10 of a criminal law, an ordinance, or a traffic
11 offense in the county; providing for
12 administration by the clerk of the circuit
13 court; authorizing the clerk of the court to
14 retain a specified percentage of the
15 assessments collected as income to the clerk of
16 the court; requiring the teen court to account
17 for all funds deposited into the teen court
18 account; requiring an annual report to the
19 board of county commissioners by a specified
20 date; authorizing specified organizations to
21 operate and administer a teen court program;
22 prohibiting teen courts in counties adopting an
23 ordinance from recovering court costs under s.
24 939.185, F.S.; amending s. 939.185, F.S.;
25 providing an exception for teen court funding;
26 providing an effective date.
27
28 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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30 Section 1. Section 938.19, Florida Statutes, is
31 amended to read:
1
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Florida Senate - 2005 CS for SB 1702
604-2333-05
1 938.19 Teen courts.--
2 (1) Notwithstanding s. 318.121, in each county in
3 which a teen court has been created, the board of county
4 commissioners may adopt a mandatory cost to be assessed in
5 specific cases by incorporating by reference the provisions of
6 this section in a county ordinance. Assessments collected by
7 the clerk of the circuit court under this subsection shall be
8 deposited into an account specifically for the operation and
9 administration of the teen court.
10 (2) A sum of up to $3 shall be assessed as a court
11 cost in the circuit and county court in the county against
12 each person who pleads guilty or nolo contendere to, or is
13 convicted of, regardless of adjudication, a violation of a
14 criminal law or a municipal ordinance or county ordinance or
15 who pays a fine or civil penalty for any violation of chapter
16 316. Any person whose adjudication is withheld under s.
17 318.14(9) or (10) shall also be assessed the cost.
18 (3) The assessment for court costs shall be assessed
19 in addition to any fine or civil penalty or other court cost
20 and may not be deducted from the proceeds of that portion of
21 any fine or civil penalty which is received by a municipality
22 in the county or by the county in accordance with ss. 316.660
23 and 318.21. The assessment shall be specifically added to any
24 civil penalty paid for a violation of chapter 316, regardless
25 of whether the penalty is paid by mail, paid in person without
26 request for a hearing, or paid after hearing and determination
27 by the court. However, the assessment may not be made against
28 a person for a violation of any state law, county ordinance,
29 or municipal ordinance relating to the parking of vehicles,
30 with the exception of a violation of the handicapped parking
31 laws.
2
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Florida Senate - 2005 CS for SB 1702
604-2333-05
1 (4)(a) The clerk of the circuit court shall collect
2 the assessments for court costs established in this section
3 and shall remit the assessments to the teen court monthly.
4 (b) The clerk of the circuit court shall withhold 5
5 percent of the assessments collected, which shall be retained
6 as fee income of the office of the clerk of the circuit court.
7 (5) A teen court that receives the cost assessments
8 established by the adopted county ordinance must account for
9 all funds that have been deposited into the designated account
10 in a written report to the board of county commissioners. The
11 report must be given to the commissioners by August 1 of each
12 year or by a date required by the commissioners.
13 (6) A teen court may be administered by a nonprofit
14 organization, a law enforcement agency, the court
15 administrator, the clerk of the court, or another similar
16 agency authorized by the board of county commissioners.
17 (7) A teen court administered in a county that adopts
18 an ordinance to assess court costs under this section may not
19 receive court costs collected under s. 939.185. Counties are
20 hereby authorized to fund teen courts.
21 Section 2. Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section
22 939.185, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
23 939.185 Assessment of additional court costs.--
24 (1)(a) The board of county commissioners may adopt by
25 ordinance an additional court cost, not to exceed $65, to be
26 imposed by the court when a person pleads guilty or nolo
27 contendere to, or is found guilty of, any felony, misdemeanor,
28 or criminal traffic offense under the laws of this state. Such
29 additional assessment shall be accounted for separately by the
30 county in which the offense occurred and be used only in the
31 county imposing this cost, to be allocated as follows:
3
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Florida Senate - 2005 CS for SB 1702
604-2333-05
1 1. Twenty-five percent of the amount collected shall
2 be allocated to fund innovations to supplement state funding
3 for the elements of the state courts system identified in s.
4 29.004 and county funding for local requirements under s.
5 29.008(2)(a)2.
6 2. Twenty-five percent of the amount collected shall
7 be allocated to assist counties in providing legal aid
8 programs required under s. 29.008(3)(a).
9 3. Twenty-five percent of the amount collected shall
10 be allocated to fund personnel and legal materials for the
11 public as part of a law library.
12 4. Twenty-five percent of the amount collected shall
13 be used as determined by the board of county commissioners to
14 support teen court programs, except as provided in s.
15 938.19(7), juvenile assessment centers, and other juvenile
16 alternative programs.
17
18 Each county receiving funds under this section shall report
19 the amount of funds collected pursuant to this section and an
20 itemized list of expenditures for all authorized programs and
21 activities. The report shall be submitted in a format
22 developed by the Supreme Court to the Governor, the Chief
23 Financial Officer, the President of the Senate, and the
24 Speaker of the House of Representatives on a quarterly basis
25 beginning with the quarter ending September 30, 2004.
26 Quarterly reports shall be submitted no later than 30 days
27 after the end of the quarter. Any unspent funds at the close
28 of the county fiscal year allocated under subparagraphs 2.,
29 3., and 4., shall be transferred for use pursuant to
30 subparagraph 1.
31 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2005.
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Florida Senate - 2005 CS for SB 1702
604-2333-05
1 STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
2 Senate Bill 1702
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4 The committee substitute prohibits a teen court receiving
funding under the existing authority to impose court costs in
5 section 939.185, F.S., from receiving funding under the new
authority established in section 938.19, F.S.
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