- What happens if a city or county fails to comply with Code of Criminal Procedure, Article 103.0033?
- Who determines whether a city or county is in compliance?
- How will the effectiveness of these programs be determined?
- What period of time will the OCA Audit Department use to measure pre-program and post-program collection rates?
- Will the results of the pre-program and post-program collection rate reviews determine whether a county or municipality is not in compliance with the Collection Improvement Program requirements and subject to the required penalties as outlined in question #1.?
- Is it possible to obtain a waiver from implementing a collection improvement program?
- Can OCA grant a waiver for a specific component of the Collection Improvement Program?
- Do all courts have to participate?
- Who's responsible for setting up and implementing the collection programs statewide?
- Under what office and/or branch of government should the program operate?
- Will counties be required to have one centralized collection program?
- Will the program require staff dedicated to collection activities?
- How does Article 103.0033, Code of Criminal Procedure affect cities and counties who have outsourced or may be considering outsourcing to collect delinquent court costs, fees, and fines?
- Will contracting for the collection of delinquent court costs, fees, and fines with an outside vendor satisfy all the requirements of Article 103.0033 of the Code of Criminal Procedure?
- Is there a jurisdiction with a model program in place that we can call or visit?
- Does the Collection Improvement Program apply to cases handled by a Community Supervision and Corrections Department (CSCD)?
- Do the Collection Improvement Program requirements apply to the collection of victim restitution or community supervision fees?
- Can a CSCD continue to use existing procedures to handle the collection in cases that were adjudicated prior to the implementation of the Collection Improvement Program?
- What is the possibility of automating the application verification and collection interview process?
- Will the Office of Court Administration continue to support and train cities and counties that voluntarily implement the collection model?
- What is meant by collection rate and how is it calculated?
- "0-30 days" - divide the "Dollars Collected" by the "Dollar Amount Assessed" from this month's report
- "31-60 days" - divide the "Dollars Collected" by the "Dollar Amount Assessed" from the previous month's report
- "61-90 days" - divide the "Dollars Collected" by the "Dollar Amount Assessed" from two-months ago report
- "91-120 days" - divide the "Dollars Collected" by the "Dollar Amount Assessed" from three-months ago report
- Some of the components of the Collection improvement Program require a time period in which that component must be completed. How are these time periods calculated?
- Are extensions of time to pay included in the Collection Improvement Program?
- Do we include civil collections in the Annual Financial Information (AFI) Report?
- What should we include in the Annual Financial Information (AFI) Report?
- Salaries for staff associated with the CIP process. This includes staff time associated with:
- obtaining the application/contact information;
- verifying the application/contact information;
- establishing a payment plan and interviewing the defendant about the payment plan;
- making phone calls and sending out notices related to collections;
- monitoring compliance with payment plans or extensions; and
- reporting CIP data to the OCA and other related CIP tasks.
- Fringe benefits for the staff time reported above. Fringe benefits include:
- the employer's part of social security;
- health and other insurance paid by the employer; and
- paid sick leave and vacation time.
- Direct operating expenses for the CIP processes. Include expenses that are reasonably easy to associate with the CIP staff or processes. Examples are:
- Supplies, such as post cards for mail notices;
- software maintenance for skip tracing, automating phone calls, collection software not related to case management;
- maintenance of equipment used by the CIP staff; and
- other recurring costs.
- Salaries for:
- judges;
- the cashiering function (Some of their costs may be counted if they, for example, take applications or do other functions related to the CIP but not if all they do is receipt money.);
- staff time associated with the collection of non-CIP monies. (The CIP includes collection of court costs, fees, and fines for criminal cases. Staff time associated with the collection of those items listed in the "Other" section of the AFI should not be included.); and
- staff that spend less than 5% of their time on the CIP. (This includes supervisors that do not spend 5% of their time supervising CIP staff.)
- Start-up costs. Start-up costs include:
- purchase of PCs, copiers, fax machines or other equipment;
- purchase of software; and
- installation of equipment or software.
- Indirect costs. Indirect costs include:
- office space; and
- costs for other items that cannot easily be separated or assigned to the CIP process. (An example might be the maintenance cost of a fax machine that is shared by several departments. It probably would be difficult to count the faxes received by each department and break out the costs accordingly. However, if the fax machine were entirely used by the collections department, the maintenance costs could easily be assigned a direct operating expense.)
Local Government Code, Section 133.058(e):
"A municipality or county may not retain a service fee if, during an audit under Article 103.0033(j), Code of Criminal Procedure, the Office of Court Administration of the Texas Judicial System determines that the municipality or county is not in compliance with Article 103.0033, Code of Criminal Procedure, and in the case of a municipality if the municipality is unable to reestablish compliance on or before the 180th day after the date the municipality receives written notice of noncompliance from the office. After any period in which the municipality or county becomes unable to retain a service fee under this section, the municipality or county may begin once more to retain the fee only on receipt of a written confirmation from the office that the municipality or county is in compliance with Article 103.0033, Code of Criminal Procedure.."
Local Government Code, Section 133.103(c-1):
"The treasurer shall send to the comptroller 100 percent of the fees collected under this section if, during an audit under Article 103.0033(j), Code of Criminal Procedure, the Office of Court Administration of the Texas Judicial System determines that the municipality or county is not in compliance with Article 103.0033, Code of Criminal Procedure, and in the case of a municipality if the municipality is unable to reestablish compliance on or before the 180th day after the date the municipality receives written notice of noncompliance from the office. After any period in which the treasurer is required under this subsection to send 100 percent of the fees collected under this section to the comptroller, the municipality or county shall begin once more to dispose of fees as otherwise provided by this section on receipt of a written confirmation from the office that the municipality or county is in compliance with Article 103.0033, Code of Criminal Procedure."
NOTE: Compliance audits were previously conducted by the Comptroller of Public Accounts (CPA). During the 2011 legislative session, responsibility for conducting the compliance audits was transferred to the Office of Court Administration (OCA).
The Collection Improvement Program Audit Department (hereinafter "Audit Department") of OCA makes this determination, via periodic audits to verify compliance with the requirements. These requirements can be found in 1 Tex. Admin. Code §175.3 [pdf] or in more "user friendly" language on the Collection Improvement Program web page under Components - Collection Improvement Program [pdf]. The compliance audit form that the OCA auditors will use is the Collection Program Survey [doc].
NOTE: Collection rate determinations were previously conducted by the CPA. During the 2011 legislative session, responsibility for the determination of collection rates was transferred to OCA.
The OCA Audit Department is responsible for determining, by a review, a jurisdiction's pre-program and post-program collection rates. Affected cities and counties are required to provide relevant assessment and collection data to assist in this effort.
For the pre-program collection rate, the OCA auditor will select cases from 4 to 16 months prior to the implementation date of the mandatory Collection Improvement Program. A sampling of cases will be taken from each court that handles criminal cases, and the activities, payments, and credits will be captured in the first 120 days after the court costs, fees, and fines are assessed. For the post-program collection rate, cases will be selected from a time period subsequent to the implementation date of the mandatory Collection Improvement Program and the same methodology will be applied for the calculation.
No. The results of the pre and post-program collection rates have no bearing in determining whether a county or municipality is in compliance with the Collection Improvement Program requirements. The collection rates are simply a tool to measure the effectiveness of a mandatory program.
The OCA auditors will conduct a compliance review of mandatory programs to determine whether a county or municipality is in compliance with the Collection Improvement Program requirements.
Under 1 Tex. Admin. Code §175.7(b), OCA may grant a blanket waiver from implementation of a collection improvement program when the requesting entity demonstrates that:
"(1) the estimated costs of implementing the program are greater than the estimated additional revenue that would be generated by implementing the program; and
(2) a compelling reason exists for submitting the waiver request after the entity's published implementation deadline. The requesting entity and OCA program staff each must submit documentation supporting their cost and revenue projections to the administrative director for determination."
In our opinion, OCA does not have authority to grant a waiver for a specific component of the Collection Improvement Program. The statutory language regarding a waiver speaks to the waiver from implementation of a Collection Improvement Program in its entirety. However, to provide more flexibility in the implementation of the program, 1 Tex. Admin. Code §175.7(c) provides for a temporary waiver from implementation of a program:
"Temporary waivers. OCA will consider a request to grant a temporary waiver for good cause that could not have been reasonably anticipated. Such temporary waivers may be granted after an audit to allow a program to correct deficiencies discovered during the audit."
Yes, except juvenile courts. [NOTE: Cases involving a juvenile, minor or child are excluded from the Collection Improvement Program, including cases involving a minor in possession of alcohol or tobacco.] All criminal courts in the affected counties are required to participate to achieve compliance. However, to provide more flexibility to a county with its implementation, 1 Tex. Admin. Code §157.5(c) [pdf] provides for 90 percent participation of all county criminal courts or a one court exemption. Full participation of a municipal court (i.e., presiding judge and all associate judges) is required as it is considered a single court.
At the state level, the OCA Collection Improvement Program Technical Support Department is responsible for providing technical assistance, training and consultation for the affected cities and counties to develop and implement collection programs. This group is separate and independent from the OCA Audit Department.
This is a very important and sometimes difficult issue. We expect each locality to determine under which office and/or branch of government the collection program will most appropriately operate.
No. Although this approach may enhance efficiency, it is sometimes not feasible given the variety of stakeholders involved. County government is free to develop and determine a program approach that best serves its individual requirements. Contact your regional collection specialist for further information on the various ways your county can organize a decentralized program.
Yes. Our experience has shown that it is fundamental to have at least one local staff person whose priority job function is collection activities. Further staffing of a collection office may be accomplished by staff who spend only a portion of their time performing collection activities. 1 Tex. Admin. Code §175.3(b) provides:
"Components for Local Program Operations.
(1) Dedicated Program Staff. Each local program must designate at least one employee whose job description contains an essential job function of collection activities. The collection job function may be concentrated in one individual employee or distributed among two or more employees. The collection function need not require 40 hours per week of an employee's time, but must be a priority."
Article 103.0033 of the Code of Criminal Procedure does not affect the ability of cities and counties to contract with a vendor or private attorney for the collection of delinquent court costs, fees, and fines.
No. Article 103.0033 of the Code of Criminal Procedure has two components. The first component requires specific "in-house" collection of current cases as outlined by OCA. The second component requires the collection of delinquent cases, which may be implemented by contracting with an outside vendor or private attorney.
Yes. Contact us and we will be happy to assist you with making the appropriate connection and arrangements.
Chapter 133 of the Local Government Code provides that the county treasurer is responsible for reporting and remitting the court costs, fees, and fines due by the county to the Comptroller, regardless of who collects them. While the CSCD may collect court costs, fees and fines, the county is still ultimately responsible for the reporting and remittance to the Comptroller. In addition, none of the components required for compliance conflict with the broad range of judicial authority and discretion. Based on this, it is our opinion that a CSCD which serves a county required to implement a program pursuant to Article 103.0033 of the Code of Criminal Procedure is not exempt from the requirements of the Collection Improvement Program when the CSCD collects court costs, fees, and fines imposed by a court.
No. The Collection Improvement Program requirements do not apply to the collection of victim restitution or supervision and related fees collected by the CSCD.
For CSCD cases that were adjudicated prior to the mandatory implementation date of the Collection Improvement Program, the CSCD may continue to use existing collection procedures. Cases adjudicated after the mandatory implementation date must be handled according to the Collection Improvement Program requirements.
OCA will review any process, including automated processes for compliance with Collection Improvement Program requirements. Any process that meets the documented requirements of the Collection Improvement Program is acceptable.
Absolutely, as time and resources permit.
The OCA auditors will calculate a pre-mandatory program implementation collection rate and a post-mandatory program implementation collection rate for those jurisdictions required to implement the Collection Improvement Program and for whom the pre- and/or post-program collection rate determination has not been already calculated. Neither of these collection rates affects compliance/non-compliance with the Collection Improvement Program. These rates are used to assist OCA in determining the effectiveness of the Collection Improvement Program. Previously, the Comptroller, in conjunction with OCA, determined that it would be reasonable to track collections for 120 days after the assessment of court costs, fees, and fines and calculate separate rates for each court level (district, county, justice, and municipal). OCA will continue to utilize this process for consistency.
| Pre/Post Mandatory Implementation Collection Rate | Amount collected in dollars from assessment date through 120 days from assessment date / (divided by) Amount assessed from assessment date through 120 days from assessment date |
|---|---|
| Pre/Post Mandatory Implementation Compliance Rate | Amount collected in dollars + the dollar value of jail time served + the dollar value of community service performed from assessment date through 120 days from assessment date / (divided by) Amount assessed from assessment date through 120 days from assessment date |
Rates are also computed by the Online Collection Data Reporting System once a jurisdiction is entering their monthly collection data.
| Percent of Assessed | For each item shown on the Collection Reporting screen indicating a "Percent of Assessed" - The "Percent of Assessed" is computed by dividing the amount in the "Dollar Amount" column for each item by the amount in the "Dollar Amount Assessed" item. |
|---|---|
| Percentage Collected | The "Percentage Collected" is computed for: |
1 Tex. Admin. Code §175.3(a) provides that in computing any period of time under the Collection Improvement Program rules, "when the last day of the period falls on a Saturday, Sunday, legal holiday, or other day on which the office is not open for business, then the period runs until the end of the next day on which the office is open for business."
One Month: One month is from the day of the month until the close of business the same day of the next month. The number of days in a month will vary based on the month.
Example: February 1 to March 1 is considered one month and will have fewer days than March 1 to April 1.
Days: The number of days that is allowed for a component is added to the comparison date and will include weekends and holidays within the number of days.
Example: The verification of the application/contact information, must be accomplished within five (5) calendar days from receiving the information. Assuming no holidays, the below table illustrates the five-day deadline for accomplishing the verification component.
| Application Day | 5 Days from Application Day | Verification done by close of business* |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | Saturday | Monday |
| Tuesday | Sunday | Monday |
| Wednesday | Monday | Monday |
| Thursday | Tuesday | Tuesday |
| Friday | Wednesday | Wednesday |
* Should this day be a holiday, the deadline would be extended until the close of business the next day the court is open.
Yes. While extensions of time to pay court costs, fees and fines have always been considered payment plans under the Collection Improvement Program, some programs did not consider the term "payment plan," as it was previously defined in the Collection Improvement Program rules, to include extensions of time to pay. The Collection Improvement Program rules were amended, in 2012, to clarify that extensions of time to pay are considered payment plans.
No. In preparing the Annual Financial Information Report, do not include the costs incurred by the county or city for civil collections.
Include:
Exclude:
Updated: 25-Sep-2012
