Oklahoma House Bill HB3290

Oklahoma 2022 Regular Session

• Introduced: 2/7/22
• Refer: 2/8/22

Caption

Court costs; creating the Criminal Court Costs Modernization Council; codification; effective date.

Impact

The bill mandates that various state, municipal, and county entities cooperate by providing necessary records and data to the Council. Furthermore, it requires the Council to make recommendations on consolidating and simplifying the imposition of these fees in order to create a more efficient system. If successfully implemented, the bill could lead to significant changes in legislation pertaining to how court costs are collected and the allocation of those resources, potentially impacting funding for local services and departments reliant on these revenues.

Summary

House Bill 3290 establishes the Criminal Court Costs Modernization Council with the aim of modernizing the collection and management of court costs associated with criminal and traffic offenses in Oklahoma. The Council is tasked with identifying existing fees, fines, and costs that are court-ordered, as well as evaluating the revenue distribution from these penalties. This initiative is intended to streamline the processes surrounding these charges and improve overall revenue management for state and local entities involved in the criminal justice system.

Contention

While HB 3290 garners support for its intent to modernize and simplify the court cost system, there may be opposition regarding the potential overreach in authority or concerns about the reallocation of funds that currently support various local services. Critics could argue that the simplification process may inadvertently undermine specific local needs by treating all communities uniformly, which could affect smaller or less populous areas that depend heavily on such fees for funding community programs.