Senate Bill No. 29

Senate Bill No. 29-Committee on Judiciary

CHAPTER

255

AN ACT relating to criminal judgments; revising the provisions governing the collection of delinquent fines, administrative assessments, fees and restitution; allowing a court to impose a collection fee on defendants who are delinquent in paying fines, administrative assessments, fees or restitution; allowing state and local entities to contract with collection agencies to assist in the collection of delinquent fines, administrative assessments, fees or restitution; providing a penalty; and providing other matters properly relating thereto.

[Approved July 3, 1997]

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

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Section 1. Chapter 176 of NRS is hereby amended by adding thereto a new section to read as follows:
1. If a fine, administrative assessment, fee or restitution is imposed upon a defendant pursuant to this chapter, whether or not the fine, administrative assessment, fee or restitution is in addition to any other punishment, and the fine, administrative assessment, fee or restitution or any part of it remains unpaid after the time established by the court for its payment, the defendant is liable for a collection fee, to be imposed by the court at the time it finds that the fine, administrative assessment, fee or restitution is delinquent, of:
(a) Not more than $100, if the amount of the delinquency is less than $2,000.
(b) Not more than $500, if the amount of the delinquency is $2,000 or greater, but is less than $5,000.
(c) Ten percent of the amount of the delinquency, if the amount of the delinquency is greater than $5,000.
2. A state or local entity that is responsible for collecting a delinquent fine, administrative assessment, fee or restitution may, in addition to attempting to collect the fine, administrative assessment, fee or restitution through any other lawful means, take any or all of the following actions:
(a) Report the delinquency to reporting agencies that assemble or evaluate information concerning credit.
(b) Request that the court take appropriate action pursuant to subsection 3.
(c) Contract with a collection agency licensed pursuant to NRS 649.075 to collect the delinquent amount and the collection fee. The collection agency must be paid as compensation for its services an amount not greater than the amount of the collection fee imposed pursuant to subsection 1, in accordance with the provisions of the contract.
3. The court may, on its own motion or at the request of a state or local entity that is responsible for collecting the delinquent fine, administrative assessment, fee or restitution, take any or all of the following actions, in the following order of priority if practicable:
(a) Request that a prosecuting attorney undertake collection of the delinquency, including, without limitation, the original amount and the collection fee, by attachment or garnishment of the defendant's property, wages or other money receivable.
(b) Order the suspension of the driver's license of the defendant. If the defendant does not possess a driver's license, the court may prohibit the defendant from applying for a driver's license for a specified period. If the defendant is already the subject of a court order suspending or delaying the issuance of his driver's license, the court may order the additional suspension or delay, as appropriate, to apply consecutively with the previous order. At the time the court issues an order suspending the driver's license of a defendant pursuant to this paragraph, the court shall require the defendant to surrender to the court all driver's licenses then held by the defendant. The court shall, within 5 days after issuing the order, forward to the department of motor vehicles and public safety the licenses, together with a copy of the order. At the time the court issues an order pursuant to this paragraph delaying the ability of a defendant to apply for a driver's license, the court shall, within 5 days after issuing the order, forward to the department of motor vehicles and public safety a copy of the order. The department of motor vehicles and public safety shall report a suspension pursuant to this paragraph to an insurance company or its agent inquiring about the defendant's driving record, but such a suspension must not be considered for the purpose of rating or underwriting.
(c) For a delinquent fine or administrative assessment, order the confinement of the person in the appropriate prison, jail or detention facility, as provided in NRS 176.065 and 176.075.
4. Money collected from a collection fee imposed pursuant to subsection 1 must be distributed in the following manner:
(a) Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (d), if the money is collected by or on behalf of a municipal court, the money must be deposited in a special fund in the appropriate city treasury. The city may use the money in the fund only to develop and implement a program for the collection of fines, administrative assessments, fees and restitution.
(b) Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (d), if the money is collected by or on behalf of a justice's court or district court, the money must be deposited in a special fund in the appropriate county treasury. The county may use the money in the special fund only to develop and implement a program for the collection of fines, administrative assessments, fees and restitution.
(c) Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (d), if the money is collected by a state entity, the money must be deposited in an account, which is hereby created in the state treasury. The court administrator may use the money in the account only to develop and implement a program for the collection of fines, administrative assessments, fees and restitution in this state.
(d) If the money is collected by a collection agency, after the collection agency has been paid its fee pursuant to the terms of the contract, any remaining money must be deposited in the state, city or county treasury, whichever is appropriate, to be used only for the purposes set forth in paragraph (a), (b) or (c) of this subsection.
Sec. 2. NRS 176.065 is hereby amended to read as follows:
176.0651. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 2, [whenever] when a person is sentenced to both fine and imprisonment, or to pay a forfeiture in addition to imprisonment, [he must] the court may, pursuant to section 1 of this act, order that the person be confined in the state prison, the city or county jail or a detention facility, whichever is designated in his sentence of imprisonment, for an additional period of 1 day for each [$25] $75 of the amount until the administrative assessment and the fine or forfeiture are satisfied or the maximum term of imprisonment prescribed by law for the offense committed has elapsed, whichever is earlier, but his eligibility for parole is governed only by his sentence of imprisonment.
2. The provisions of this section do not apply to indigent persons.
Sec. 3. NRS 176.075 is hereby amended to read as follows:
176.0751. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 2, [whenever] when a person is sentenced to pay a fine or forfeiture without an accompanying sentence of imprisonment, [he must] the court may, pursuant to section 1 of this act, order that the person be confined in the city or county jail or detention facility for a period of not more than 1 day for each [$25] $75 of the amount until the administrative assessment and the fine or forfeiture are satisfied.
2. The provisions of this section do not apply to indigent persons.
Sec. 4. NRS 483.443 is hereby amended to read as follows:
483.443 1. The department shall, upon receiving notification from a district attorney or other public agency collecting support for children that a court has determined a person is in arrears in the payment for the support of a child pursuant to NRS 425.3837, send a written notice to that person that his license is subject to suspension. The notice must include:
(a) The reason for the suspension of the license;
(b) The information set forth in subsections 2, [3 and 4;] 4 and 5; and
(c) Any other information the department deems necessary.
2. If a person who receives a notice pursuant to subsection 1 does not satisfy the arrearage as required in NRS 425.3837 within 30 days after he receives the notice, the department shall suspend his license.
3. The department shall suspend immediately the license of a defendant if so ordered pursuant to section 1 of this act.
4. The department shall reinstate the driver's license of a person whose license was suspended pursuant to this section if it receives:
(a) A notice from the district attorney or other public agency pursuant to NRS 425.3837 that the person has satisfied the arrearages pursuant to that section [;] or from a district judge that a delinquency for which the suspension was ordered pursuant to section 1 of this act has been discharged; and
(b) Payment of the fee for reinstatement of a suspended license prescribed in NRS 483.410.
[4.] 5. The department shall not require a person whose driver's license was suspended pursuant to this section to submit to the tests and other requirements which are adopted by regulation pursuant to subsection 1 of NRS 483.495 as a condition of the reinstatement of his license.
Sec. 5. The amendatory provisions of this act do not apply to offenses that are committed before October 1, 1997, for which any fine, administrative assessment, fee or restitution is ordered pursuant to the provisions of chapter 176 of NRS.
Sec. 6. The provisions of subsection 1 of NRS 354.599 do not apply to any additional expenses of a local government which are related to the provisions of this act.
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