11 LC
35 2124
Senate
Bill 213
By:
Senator McKoon of the 29th
A
BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To
amend Article 1 of Chapter 21 of Title 15 of the Official Code of Georgia
Annotated, relating to general provisions for payment and disposition of fines
and forfeitures, so as to establish local Crime Stopper Award Funds to provide
awards for information leading to the detection or apprehension of certain
criminal perpetrators; to provide for related matters; to provide for an
effective date and applicability; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other
purposes.
BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION
1.
Article
1 of Chapter 21 of Title 15 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating
to general provisions for payment and disposition of fines and forfeitures, is
amended by adding a new Code section to read as follows:
"15-21-14.
(a)
In every case in which any state court; probate court; juvenile court; police,
recorder's, or mayor's court; municipal court; magistrate court; or superior
court in this state imposes a fine, which shall be construed to include costs,
for any criminal or quasi-criminal offense against a criminal or traffic law and
violations of local criminal ordinances of this state or a political subdivision
thereof, there shall be imposed an additional fee of $5.00.
(b)
Such sums shall be in addition to that amount required by any other provision of
law to be paid as a fine, fee, penalty, restitution, and any other amounts
provided for by law.
(c)
The sums provided for in this Code section shall be assessed and collected by
the clerk or court officer charged with the duty of collecting moneys arising
from fines and shall be paid over to the governing authority of the county or
consolidated government in which the court is located or, in the case of a court
of a municipality, to the governing authority of the municipality by the tenth
day of the month following the month in which such sums are collected. Such
sums paid over to the governing authority shall be deposited by the governing
authority into a special account to be known as the Crime Stopper Award
Fund.
(d)
Any person whose duty it is to collect and remit the sums provided for in this
Code section who fails or refuses to remit such sums by the date required by
this Code section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
(e)
Moneys collected pursuant to this Code section shall be expended by the
governing authority of the county or municipality for which the fund is
established solely and exclusively for awards for information leading to the
detection or apprehension of the perpetrator of any felony committed within such
governing authority's jurisdiction. Awards shall be offered at a time and in an
amount within the discretion of the governing authority; provided, however, that
any single reward offered by a county, municipality, or consolidated government
shall not exceed the sum of
$10,000.00."
SECTION
2.
This
Act shall become effective on July 1, 2011, and shall apply to convictions
entered on or after such date.
SECTION
3.
All
laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.