The bill amends Section 45-35-81.01 of the Code of Alabama 1975, specifically for Houston County, to establish additional court costs in various legal cases. An additional docket fee of twenty dollars ($20) will be assessed in juvenile, traffic, criminal, and quasi-criminal cases across the juvenile, district, circuit, and municipal courts. This fee will be collected in cases where the defendant is found guilty, a bond is forfeited, a penalty is imposed, or an alias or capias warrant is issued. Furthermore, in civil cases filed in small claims, district, or circuit courts, including child support and domestic relations cases, the same twenty-dollar fee will apply.

The bill also outlines the distribution of the collected fees, with ten dollars ($10) going to the Houston County General Fund for the operation of the county jail. The previous allocation of one dollar ($1) to the Houston County Circuit Clerk’s Office has been deleted, and the amount distributed to the district attorney’s office has been increased from nine dollars ($9) to ten dollars ($10). The fees established by this section are in addition to any other fees or costs and cannot be waived or remitted unless all fees are waived. The act is set to take effect on October 1, 2024.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 45-35-81
Enrolled: 45-35-81