What's happening
This bill allows New York courts to waive certain surcharges and fees for young defendants and victims of trafficking.
Why it matters
Reduces financial burdens on young offenders. By allowing courts to waive mandatory surcharges and fees for defendants under 21 in cases of hardship or when it would harm their reintegration, the bill acknowledges the disproportionate impact these costs can have on younger people, potentially reducing cycles of debt and recidivism.
Expands protections for trafficking victims. The bill ensures that individuals identified as victims of sex trafficking or trafficking in persons are not further penalized financially by court-imposed fees, recognizing their victim status and aiming to support their recovery and stability.
Gives judges more flexibility. Courts are granted broader discretion to waive various fees—not just in exceptional hardship cases, but also when it serves the interests of justice or supports successful reentry, reflecting a shift toward individualized sentencing and rehabilitation.
Reflects a shift in criminal justice priorities. By repealing certain provisions and prioritizing reintegration over automatic fee collection, the legislation signals a move away from punitive financial penalties, especially for vulnerable populations, in favor of approaches that consider long-term social outcomes.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Let Courts Waive Court Fees
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
History
- Substituted by A5045
- Ordered to third reading cal.768
- Reported and committed to rules
- Reported and committed to finance
- Referred to codes
- Returned to senate
- Died in assembly
- Referred to ways and means
- Delivered to assembly
- Passed senateVote 41–21
- Ordered to third reading cal.1682
- Committee discharged and committed to rules
Show 2 earlier actions
- Reported and committed to finance
- Referred to codes
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Let Courts Waive Court Fees
Signed by Governor · Sponsor Maritza Davila
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
3457
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
February 7, 2019
Introduced by Sens. MONTGOMERY, BENJAMIN, BRESLIN, JACKSON, PARKER, PERSAUD, RAMOS, SALAZAR, SANDERS, SEPULVEDA, THOMAS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Codes
AN ACT to amend the criminal procedure law, in relation to allowing a court to waive certain surcharges and fees; and to repeal certain provisions of the penal law relating thereto
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Subdivision 2 of section 420.35 of the criminal procedure law, as amended by chapter 189 of the laws of 2018, is amended and a new subdivision 2-a is added to read as follows:
2. [Under] Except as provided in this subdivision or subdivision two-a of this section, under no circumstances shall the mandatory surcharge, sex offender registration fee, DNA databank fee or the crime victim assistance fee be waived [provided, however, that a court may waive the crime victim assistance fee if such defendant is an eligible youth as defined in subdivision two of section 720.10 of this chapter, and the imposition of such fee would work an unreasonable hardship on the defendant, his or her immediate family, or any other person who is dependent on such defendant for financial support]. A court shall waive any mandatory surcharge, DNA databank fee and crime victim assistance fee when: (i) the defendant is convicted of loitering for the purpose of engaging in prostitution under section 240.37 of the penal law (provided that the defendant was not convicted of loitering for the purpose of patronizing a person for prostitution); (ii) the defendant is convicted of prostitution under section 230.00 of the penal law; (iii) the defendant is convicted of a violation in the event such conviction is in lieu of a plea to or conviction for loitering for the purpose of engaging in prostitution under section 240.37 of the penal law (provided that the defendant was not alleged to be loitering for the purpose of patronizing
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD06369-01-9
S. 3457 2
a person for prostitution) or prostitution under section 230.00 of the penal law; or (iv) the court finds that a defendant is a victim of sex trafficking under section 230.34 of the penal law or a victim of trafficking in persons under the trafficking victims protection act (United States Code, Title 22, Chapter 78); or (v) the court finds that the defendant is a victim of sex trafficking of a child under section 230.34-a of the penal law.
2-a. A court may waive any mandatory surcharge, additional surcharge, town or village surcharge, the crime victim assistance fee, DNA databank fee, sex offender registration fee and/or supplemental sex offender victim fee when the court finds that the defendant was under the age of twenty-one at the time the offense was committed and:
(a) the imposition of such surcharge or fee would work an unreasonable hardship on the defendant, his or her immediate family, or any other person who is dependent on such defendant for financial support; or
(b) after considering the goal of promoting successful and productive reentry and reintegration as set forth in subdivision six of section 1.05 of the penal law, the imposition of such surcharge or fee would adversely impact the defendant's reintegration into society; or
(c) the interests of justice.
§ 2. Subdivision 3 of section 420.30 of the criminal procedure law, as amended by section 5 of part F of chapter 56 of the laws of 2004, is amended to read as follows:
3. Restrictions. [In] Except as provided for in subdivision two-a of section 420.35 of this article, in no event shall a mandatory surcharge, sex offender registration fee, DNA databank fee or crime victim assistance fee be remitted [provided, however, that a court may waive the crime victim assistance fee if such defendant is an eligible youth as defined in subdivision two of section 720.10 of this chapter, and the imposition of such fee would work an unreasonable hardship on the defendant, his or her immediate family, or any other person who is dependent on such defendant for financial support].
§ 3. Subdivision 10 of section 60.35 of the penal law is REPEALED.
§ 4. Subdivision 3 of section 60.02 of the penal law is REPEALED.
§ 5. This act shall take effect immediately.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the criminal procedure law, in relation to allowing a court to waive certain surcharges and fees; and to repeal certain provisions of the penal law relating thereto
Purpose or general idea of bill
This legislation would allow the court to waive certain surcharges and fees when it is determined that the defendant is under 21 years of age and demonstrates either that the fee would impose an undue hardship, it prevents* successful reintegration, or that the interests of justice require it.
Summary of provisions
Section 1 of the bill amends the criminal procedure law to clarify language in the existing statute that permits the court to waive fees for certain types of offenses. This section also adds a new subdivision 2-a to permit the court to waive court fees and other surcharges where the defendant is under 21 years of age and the court determines that either the fee would cause undue hardship, it would interfere with successful reentry, or the interests of justice require it.
Sections 2 and 3 of the bill repeal provisions relating to the imposi- tion of fees for defendants declared youthful offenders.
Section 4 of the bill establishes an effective date.
Justification
Courts often impose significant fees and fines on youth and their fami- lies who have contact with the criminal justice system. These monetary sanctions function to further exacerbate a families' financial distress and can incentivize juveniles to engage in illegal behavior to earn money. One report out of Alameda County, California recently determined that it costs juveniles in their juvenile court system approximately two thousand dollars per case.(11 Youth simply have no way to obtain money to pay these costs and fines and the consequences of nonpayment are devastating. Youth and their families who cannot pay court fees face a myriad of penalties including: criminal contempt, civil judgments that follow them into adulthood, probation violations, additional fees, prop- erty liens, and even more periods of incarceration. The disparate impact of such practices is that youth in poverty face harsher consequence and receive less rehabilitative treatment than their more affluent peers.
Certain jurisdictions have already taken steps to make their court systems more equitable for juveniles. For example, the Alameda County Court System repealed their policy of imposing fees for juveniles.{2} In Washington State, the legislature passed the Year Act, which eliminated juvenile diversion fees, juvenile court costs, collection fees, and certain fines specific to juveniles.{3} New York must take similar steps to encourage young people to rehabilitate and have successful reentry. With the passage of Raise the Age last year, this legislature made strides in enabling those youth who come in contact with the justice system to become positive participants of society. This legislation would continue that aim by allowing a judge to waive court fees for a juvenile upon considering certain factors.
Prior legislative history
2017: A08673 (Aubry) Referred to Codes.
Fiscal implications for state and local governments
To be determined.
Effective date
This act shall take effect immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.