Bill Text: MI HB5790 | 2011-2012 | 96th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Courts; funding; forensic laboratory funding act; reestablish, and increase assessment. Creates new act. TIE BAR WITH: HB 5791'12
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-08-15 - Printed Bill Filed 07/19/2012 [HB5790 Detail]
Download: Michigan-2011-HB5790-Introduced.html
HOUSE BILL No. 5790
July 18, 2012, Introduced by Rep. LeBlanc and referred to the Committee on Appropriations.
A bill to create the state forensic laboratory fund; to
authorize local forensic laboratory funds; to provide for
assessments against certain criminal defendants; to provide for
expenditures from the forensic laboratories funds; to make certain
appropriations; and to prescribe the powers and duties of certain
department and agencies and local units of government.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
Sec. 1. This act shall be known any may be cited as "the
forensic laboratory funding act".
Sec. 2. As used in this act:
(a) "CSC offense" means a violation or attempted violation of
section 520b, 520c, 520d, 520e, or 520g of the Michigan penal code,
1931 PA 328, MCL 750.520b, 750.520c, 750.520d, 750.520e, and
750.520g.
(b) "Forensic laboratory" means a laboratory maintained by the
department of state police or a municipality that meets all of the
following criteria:
(i) Has at least 1 regularly employed forensic scientist who
conducts analyses of controlled substances or androgenic anabolic
steroids for criminal justice agencies in criminal matters, and
provides testimony with respect to those analyses.
(ii) Is registered as an analytical laboratory with the drug
enforcement administration of the United States department of
justice for possessing all scheduled controlled substances.
(iii) Has at least 1 regularly employed forensic scientist who
conducts forensic tests other than those described in subparagraph
(i) and provides testimony with respect to those forensic tests.
(c) "Forensic test" means a drug analysis, toxicology
analysis, or other forensic analysis or examination in areas
including, but not limited to, latent prints, microchemistry,
serology, firearms, toolmarks, or questioned documents. Forensic
test does not include an analysis of the alcohol content of an
individual's breath.
(d) "Municipality" means a county, township, or village.
Sec. 3. The state forensic laboratory fund is created as a
separate fund in the state treasury. The state treasurer shall
credit to the fund all amounts received under sections 6 and 9.
Money in the fund credited to the department of state police under
section 7 that is not appropriated in a fiscal year shall be
credited to the fund to the credit of the department of state
police and shall not revert to the general fund. Earnings from the
fund shall be credited to the fund.
Sec. 4. A municipality that maintains a forensic laboratory
may establish a forensic laboratory fund within the office of the
treasurer of the municipality.
Sec. 5. The investigating officer of each criminal case being
adjudicated shall advise the prosecuting attorney if a forensic
laboratory has conducted a forensic test in the case.
Sec. 6. (1) The court shall order each person convicted and
sentenced on and after the effective date of this act for 1 or more
crimes in the case to pay an assessment of $250.00 if 1 or more of
the following apply:
(a) The court is notified under section 5 that a forensic
laboratory has conducted a forensic test in the investigation of
the case.
(b) The person is convicted of a CSC offense.
(2) The assessment required under subsection (1) is in
addition to any fine, costs, or other assessments imposed by the
court. An assessment required under subsection (1) shall be ordered
upon the record, and shall be listed separately in the judgment of
sentence or order of probation.
(3) After reviewing a verified petition by the defendant
against whom an assessment is imposed, the court may suspend
payment of all or part of the assessment if it determines the
defendant is unable to pay the assessment.
(4) The court, prosecuting attorney, and originating
investigating law enforcement agency may each retain 5% of all
assessments or portions of assessments collected for costs incurred
under this section and shall transmit that money to their
respective funding units. On the last day of each month, the clerk
of the court shall transmit the remainder of assessments or
portions of assessments collected under this section as follows:
(a) Assessments ordered and collected before the effective
date of this act shall be transmitted to the department of treasury
for deposit in the state forensic laboratory fund created in
section 3.
(b) Assessments ordered before the effective date of this act
but collected on or after the effective date of this act shall be
transmitted to the state treasurer for deposit in the justice
system fund created in section 181 of the revised judicature act of
1961, 1961 PA 236, MCL 600.181.
Sec. 7. (1) Beginning on the effective date of this act the
department of treasury, each month, shall distribute proceeds of
the state laboratory fund that are received from the justice system
fund under section 181 of the revised judicature act of 1961, 1961
PA 236, MCL 600.181, as follows:
(a) For the state fiscal year beginning October 1 of the year
in which this act takes effect, 19% to the department of state
police to defray the cost of complying with the requirements of DNA
profiling and DNA retention under the DNA identification profiling
system act, 1990 PA 250, MCL 28.171 to 28.176, with the balance of
the fund being available for distribution under subsection (2) to
(5).
(b) For the state fiscal year beginning October 1 of the year
immediately following the year in which this act takes effect and
subsequent state fiscal years, 45% to the department of state
police to defray the cost of complying with the requirements of DNA
profiling and DNA retention under the DNA identification profiling
system act, 1990 PA 250, MCL 28.171 to 28.176, with the balance of
the fund being available for distribution under subsections (2) to
(5).
(2) A municipality that maintains a forensic laboratory and
that incurred expenses for a forensic test by that laboratory may
apply for reimbursement of those expenses on a form provided by the
department of treasury.
(3) A municipality applying under subsection (2) shall report
to the department of treasury the number of criminal investigations
in the preceding year for which the municipality's forensic
laboratory performed 1 or more forensic tests. The department of
state police shall report to the department of treasury in the
manner prescribed by that department the number of criminal
investigations in the preceding year for which the department of
state police performed 1 or more forensic tests, whether the
investigation was conducted by the department of state police or by
the law enforcement agency of a municipality. The department of
state police shall also report the number of DNA identification
profilings performed pursuant to the DNA identification profiling
system act, 1990 PA 250, MCL 28.171 to 28.176.
(4) The number of investigations reported pursuant to
subsection (3) shall exclude any investigation reported in a
previous year.
(5) After the distributions under subsection (1) are made, the
department of treasury shall distribute proceeds of the state
forensic laboratory fund annually to a municipality applying under
this section in an amount determined by multiplying the remaining
amount in the fund for that period by a fraction, the numerator of
which is the total of investigations reported pursuant to
subsection (3) by that municipality for that period and the
denominator of which is the total of investigations and DNA
identification profilings reported under subsection (3) for that
period. The balance of the fund for that period after distributions
under subsection (1) and this subsection shall be credited to the
department of state police.
(6) The legislature shall appropriate money in the state
forensic laboratory fund credited to the department of state police
to that department exclusively for forensic science services. The
use of money appropriated pursuant to this section may include, but
is not limited to, any of the following:
(a) Costs incurred in providing forensic tests in connection
with criminal investigations conducted within this state.
(b) Purchasing or maintaining equipment used in performing
forensic tests.
(c) Providing for the continuing education, training, and
professional development of regularly employed laboratory
personnel.
(d) Payment of expenses for implementing and performing
procedures for DNA identification profiling under the DNA
identification profiling system act, 1990 PA 250, MCL 28.171 to
28.176.
(7) Money appropriated from the state forensic laboratory fund
to the division of the department of state police concerned with
forensic sciences shall be in addition to any allocations made
pursuant to existing law and is intended to enhance appropriations
from the general fund and not to replace or supplant those
appropriations.
Sec. 8. (1) A municipality shall appropriate fees deposited in
a forensic laboratory fund established under section 4 to the
forensic laboratory maintained by the municipality.
(2) Money appropriated under this section shall be for the
exclusive use of the forensic laboratory maintained by the
municipality for the same purposes described in section 7(6)(a) to
(d) and shall be in addition to any allocations made by existing
law.
Sec. 9. The department of state police may accept for deposit
in the state forensic laboratory fund by the state treasurer gifts
and grants of money from individuals, federal or state governmental
agencies, corporations, partnerships, associations, foundations,
organizations, societies, or other legal entities.
Sec. 10. The department of state police or the department of
treasury, as applicable, shall report annually to the governor and
to the house and senate appropriations committees the amount
received and appropriated in the fiscal year pursuant to this act,
the amount expended pursuant to appropriations, and the balance in
the state forensic laboratory fund.
Sec. 11. This act shall take effect upon the expiration of 90
days after the date of its enactment. The assessment required by
this act applies to criminal prosecutions for offenses committed on
or after the effective date of this act.
Enacting section 1. This act does not take effect unless
Senate Bill No.____ or House Bill No. 5791(request no. 05870'12 a)
of the 96th Legislature is enacted into law.
