Bill Text: HI SR189 | 2024 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Requesting The Office Of The Administrative Director Of The Courts To Collect, Compile, And Share Data On The Assessment Of Fees, Court Costs, Fines, And Restitution In Cases Against Minors.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-0)
Status: (Passed) 2024-04-04 - Report and Resolution Adopted, as amended (SD 1). [SR189 Detail]
Download: Hawaii-2024-SR189-Amended.html
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THE SENATE |
S.R. NO. |
189 |
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THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2024 |
S.D. 1 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
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SENATE RESOLUTION
REQUESTING THE OFFICE OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE DIRECTOR OF THE COURTS TO COLLECT, COMPILE, AND SHARE DATA ON THE ASSESSMENT OF FEES, COURT COSTS, FINES, AND RESTITUTION IN CASES AGAINST MINORS.
WHEREAS, research shows that charging fees, fines, costs, and restitution to youth can be harmful to young people and their families; and
WHEREAS, in the State, these consequences disproportionately fall on Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, and Black youth, who are more likely to be arrested, detained, and unable to afford fees, fines, costs, and restitution; and
WHEREAS, although state law authorizes courts to charge youth and their families a range of fees and fines, judges across the state rarely impose such costs in practice; and
WHEREAS, according to data from the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, fees and fines serve no public safety function and may instead undermine public safety by increasing the likelihood of youth recidivism; and
WHEREAS, because youth cannot afford to pay restitution, crime survivors rarely see any compensation for harm they may have experienced; and
WHEREAS, research from the Brennan Center for Justice in its 2019 report "The Steep Costs of Criminal Justice Fees and Fines" found that jurisdictions in the majority of states that assess fees, costs, fines, and restitution to youth spend more money trying to collect those outstanding debts than they receive in revenue; and
WHEREAS, there is a growing consensus that fees and fines should not be assessed for actions taken in a person's youth, regardless of the age or jurisdiction in which the person is adjudicated or sentenced, as illustrated in statements and resolutions from judges, prosecutors, and the law enforcement community, such as the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges' 2018 "Resolution Addressing Fines, Fees, and Costs in Juvenile Courts", and the 2021 "Statement on Abolishing Youth Fines and Fees" from Youth Correctional Leaders for Justice; and
WHEREAS, more than sixteen states throughout the country have eliminated or prohibited the imposition of fees or fines, or both, on young people and their families; and
WHEREAS, current data is needed to better understand the statewide and county-specific imposition and impact of fees, court costs, fines, and restitution on young people and their families in the State; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Thirty-second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2024, that the Office of the Administrative Director of the Courts is requested to collect, compile, and share data on the assessment of fees, court costs, fines, and restitution in cases against minors; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the data is requested to include:
(1) The total and annual average amounts of fees, court costs, fines, and restitution that are assessed, collected, waived, and outstanding in cases against minors for each of the last five years, provided as a statewide aggregate and by court circuit; and
(2) For the circuit, family, and district courts in each judicial district, a description of each fee, court cost, or fine that can be assessed in cases against minors, and their respective amounts; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Office of the Administrative Director of the Courts is requested to submit a report of its findings and recommendations to the Legislature no later than forty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2025; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Office of the Administrative Director of the Courts is requested to post the report on the Judiciary's public website; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Office of the Administrative Director of the Courts is requested to provide a copy of the report to the Judicial Council; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Judicial Council is requested to consult the report during the next Penal Code review; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Chief Justice of the Hawaii Supreme Court and Administrative Director of the Courts.
Office of the Administrative Director of the Courts; Judicial Council; Youth; Data; Fees; Fines; Court Costs; Restitution; Report
