50-State Criminal Justice Debt Reform Builder Bringing transparency to areas of significant legal complexity.
Ability to Pay
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Below are the ability to pay laws that meet your search criteria. Many include a See related provisions prompt which searches our database for laws that may pertain to your result.
154 Results
| State | Statute | Description/Statute Name | Statutory language | Level of offense | Definition of ability to pay | Timeline | Burden of proof | Method of determination | Mandatory | Remedies if unable to pay | |
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Montana | Mont. Code Ann. § 45-6-101(2) | Criminal Mischief |
Upon good cause shown by the convicted person, the court may modify any previous order specifying the amount and manner of restitution. Full payment of the amount of restitution ordered + See moremust be made prior to the release of state jurisdiction over the person convicted
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All | Not provided for | At defendant's request at enforcement | Burden on defendant to show inability to pay | Not provided for | No |
Modify previous order specifying the amount and manner of restitution. |
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North Dakota | N.D. Cent. Code § 12.1-32-08(4)(b) | Hearing prior to ordering restitution, reparation, or reimbursement of indigent defense costs and expenses--Conditions--Collection of restitution for insufficient funds checks--Continuing appropriation |
A defendant who is required to reimburse indigent defense costs and expenses as a condition of probation and who is not willfully in default in that reimbursement may at any + See moretime petition the court that imposed the condition to waive reimbursement of all or any portion of the costs and expenses. If the court is satisfied that reimbursement of the amount due will impose undue hardship on the defendant or the defendant's immediate family, the court may waive reimbursement of all or any portion of the amount due or modify the method of payment.
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All |
the amount due will impose undue hardship on the defendant or the defendant's immediate family |
At defendant's request at enforcement | Burden on defendant to show inability to pay | Determined by judge after hearing | No |
waived |
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Nevada | Nev. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 213.1076 (2) | Fee to defray costs of supervision; regulations; waiver |
2. The Chief may waive the fee to defray the cost of supervision, in whole or in part, if the Chief determines that payment of the fee would create an economic + See morehardship on the parolee, probationer or person supervised by the Division through residential confinement.
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All |
economic hardship |
Not provided for | Not provided for | Not provided for | No |
reduction or waiver of fee |
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California | Cal. Gov. Code § 29550(d)(2) | Funds - Criminal Justice Administrative Fees: Imposition of fee |
The court shall, as a condition of probation, order the convicted person, based on his or her ability to pay, to reimburse the county for the criminal justice administration fee, including applicable overhead costs.
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Other | Not provided for | Not provided for | Not provided for | Not provided for | No | Not provided for |
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Alabama | Ala. Code 1975 §15-27-12 | Expungement of records: Payment in full required |
No order of expungement shall be granted unless all terms and conditions, including court ordered restitution, are satisfied and paid in full, including interest, to any victim, or the Alabama Crime Victim’s Compensation Commission, as well as court costs, fines, or statutory fees ordered by the sentencing court to have been paid, absent a finding of indigency by the court.
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All |
Indigency |
Not provided for | Not provided for | Administrative decision | No |
Not provided for |
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Alaska | Alaska Stat. § 12.55.045(g),(j),(k) | Restitution and Compensation |
(g) The court may not, in ordering the amount of restitution, consider the defendant’s ability to pay restitution; (j) A defendant who is convicted of an offense for which restitution may be ordered shall submit financial information as ordered by the court. The Alaska Court System shall prepare a form, in consultation with the Department of Law, for the submission of the information; the form must include a warning that submission of incomplete or inaccurate information is punishable as unsworn falsification in the second degree under AS 11.56.210. A defendant who is convicted of (1) a felony shall submit the form to the probation office within 30 days after conviction, and the probation officer shall attach the form to the presentence report, or (2) a misdemeanor shall file the form with the defendant’s response or opposition to the restitution amount. The defendant shall provide a copy of the completed form to the prosecuting authority; (k) The court, on its own motion or at the request of the prosecuting authority or probation officer, may order a defendant on probation who has been ordered to pay restitution to submit financial information to the court using the form specified in (j) of this section. The defendant shall file the completed form with the court within five days after the court’s order. The defendant shall provide a copy of the completed form to the prosecuting authority and the person’s probation officer, if any.
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All | Not provided for | Not provided for | Not provided for | Not provided for | No | Not provided for |
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Alaska | Alaska Stat. § 33.30.028(b) | Responsibility for Costs of Medical Care |
The commissioner shall require prisoners who are without resources under (a) of this section to pay the costs of medical, psychological, and psychiatric care provided to them by the department. At a minimum, the prisoner shall be required to pay a portion of the costs based upon the prisoner’s ability to pay.
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All | Not provided for | Not provided for | Not provided for | Administrative decision | No |
Required to pay a portion of the costs. |
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Alaska | Alaska Stat. § 12.55.100(f) | Conditions of Probation |
While on probation and as a special condition of probation for an offense where the aggravating factor provided in AS 12.55.155(c)(29) has been proven or admitted, the court shall require that the defendant submit to electronic monitoring. Electronic monitoring under this subsection must provide for monitoring of the defendant’s location and movements by Global Positioning System technology. The court shall require a defendant serving a period of probation with electronic monitoring as provided under this subsection to pay all or a portion of the costs of the electronic monitoring, but only if the defendant has sufficient financial resources to pay the costs or a portion of the costs. A defendant subject to electronic monitoring under this subsection is not entitled to a credit for time served in a correctional facility while the defendant is on probation. In this subsection, “correctional facility” has the meaning given in AS 33.30.901.
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All |
"Sufficient financial resources to pay the costs or a portion of the costs." |
Not provided for | Not provided for | Not provided for | No | Not provided for |
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Alaska | Alaska Stat. § 09.19.010 | Limitation on Exemption From Filing Fees |
(c) Based on the submission under (b) of this section, the court may grant an exemption from part of the applicable filing fees if the court finds that exceptional circumstances prevent the prisoner from paying full filing fees. Imprisonment and indigency do not constitute exceptional circumstances if the prisoner has available income or resources that can be applied to the filing fee; (d) If the court orders an exemption under (c) of this section, the court shall determine the amount of the exemption and set a filing fee to be paid by the prisoner. In setting the fee, the court, at a minimum, shall require the prisoner to pay filing fees equal to 20 percent of the larger of the average monthly deposits made to the prisoner’s account described in (b)(2) of this section, or the average balance in that account, not to exceed the amount of the full filing fee required under applicable court rules.
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All |
"Exceptional circumstances prevent the prisoner from paying full filing fees" |
At defendant's request before imposition of fine or fee | Burden on defendant to show inability to pay | Administrative decision | No |
Fee is recalculated based on prisoner's resources. |
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Arkansas | A.C.A. § 5-2-331 | Cost of Mental Health Services, Examination, and Treatment of Defendant |
Rules establishing reasonable charges for the cost of treatment or other mental health services under this section shall provide for waiving or postponing the collection of the charges based on: (A) Clinical considerations; (B) The defendant's inability to pay; or (C) A court determination that the defendant is wholly or partly indigent and qualifies for the appointment of an attorney under § 16-87-213.
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All | Not provided for | At enforcement of fine or fee | Not provided for | Administrative decision | No | Not provided for |
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Arkansas | A.C.A. § 16-13-704 | Installment Payments -- Definition |
(a) (1) If the court concludes that the defendant has the ability to pay the fine, but that requiring the defendant to make immediate payment in full would cause a severe and undue hardship for the defendant and the defendant's dependents, the court may authorize payment of the fine by means of installment payments in accordance with this subchapter; (d) "Ability to pay" means that the resources of the defendant, including all available income and resources, are sufficient to pay the fine and provide the defendant and his or her dependents with a reasonable subsistence compatible with health and decency.
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All |
"The resources of the defendant, including all available income and resources, are sufficient to pay the fine and provide the defendant and his or her dependents with a reasonable subsistence compatible with health and decency."
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Before imposition of fine or fee | Not provided for | Not provided for | No | Not provided for |
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Colorado | C.R.S. 16-18.5-104(1);(3) | Initial Collections Investigation - Payment Schedule |
(1) Orders for restitution shall be due and payable at the time that the order of conviction is entered. Unless the defendant is sentenced to the custody of the executive director of the department of corrections, if at the time that the court enters an order for restitution pursuant to section 18-1.3-603, C.R.S., the defendant alleges that he or she cannot pay the full amount of restitution, the court shall direct that the defendant report immediately to the collections investigator.... (3)(a) Upon referral of a defendant pursuant to subsection (2) of this section, the collections investigator shall conduct an investigation into the financial ability of the defendant to pay the restitution ordered by the court. Such investigation may consist of but is not limited to: (I) Submission of written financial affidavits or disclosures of the defendant's personal, household, and business income, assets, and liabilities; (II) Submission to an oral examination of the defendant's financial circumstances; (III) Submission of books, papers, documents, or other tangible things related to the defendant's financial circumstances including but not limited to: (A) Payroll stubs; (B) Financial institution account statements; (C) Stock certificates; (D) Deeds, titles, or other evidence of ownership; (E) State and federal tax records; and (F) Insurance policies and statements; (IV) Research and verification of all oral and written statements made by the defendant. (b) In the case of a juvenile defendant, the collections investigator may conduct the investigation into the juvenile's parents' or legal guardian's financial circumstances as well as the juvenile's. (c) For purposes of conducting the investigation required by this subsection (3), the collections investigator shall have access to data maintained by other state agencies including but not limited to wage data, employment data, and income tax data. The judicial department and any other departments are authorized to enter into agreements for the sharing of such data. (d) Notwithstanding the provisions of article 72 of title 24, C.R.S., documents and information obtained by the collections investigators pursuant to this subsection (3) shall not be public records, but shall be open to public inspection only upon an order of the court based on a finding of good cause. Documents and information obtained by the collection investigators may be made available to the victim and to any private collection agency or third party with whom the judicial department may contract for the collection of past due restitution. In addition, if any warrant is issued for the arrest of any defendant due to nonpayment of restitution, information concerning the defendant's address and place of employment may be shared with a criminal justice agency.
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All | Not provided for | At enforcement of fine or fee | Burden on government to show ability to pay | Administrative decision | No | Not provided for |
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Colorado | C.R.S. 16-18.5-105 | Monitoring - Default - Penalties |
Whenever a defendant fails to make a payment of restitution within seven days after the date that the payment is due pursuant to a payment schedule established pursuant to this article, in addition to any other remedy, the collections investigator may: (a) Conduct an additional financial investigation of the defendant as described in section 16-18.5-104 (3).
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All | Not provided for | At enforcement of fine or fee | Burden on government to show ability to pay | Administrative decision | No | Not provided for |
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Colorado | C.R.S. 18-1.3-701(3);(4) | Judgment for Costs and Fines - Definitions |
(3) Where any person, association, or corporation is granted probation, the court shall order the offender to make such payments toward the cost of care as are appropriate under the circumstances. In setting the amount of such payments, the court shall take into consideration and make allowances for any restitution ordered to the victim or victims of a crime, which shall take priority over any payments ordered pursuant to this article, and for the maintenance and support of the offender's spouse, dependent children, or other persons having a legal right to support and maintenance from the estate of the offender. If the court determines that the offender has a sufficient estate to pay all or part of the cost of care, the court shall determine the amount which shall be paid by the offender for the cost of care, which amount shall in no event be in excess of the per capita cost of supervising an offender on probation; (4) Where any person is sentenced to a term of imprisonment, whether to a county jail or the department of corrections, the court shall order such person to make such payments toward the cost of care as are appropriate under the circumstances. In setting the amount of such payments, the court shall take into consideration and make allowances for any restitution ordered to the victim or victims of a crime, which shall take priority over any payments ordered pursuant to this article, and for the maintenance and support of the inmate's spouse, dependent children, or any other persons having a legal right to support and maintenance out of the offender's estate. The court shall also consider the financial needs of the offender for the six-month period immediately following the offender's release, for the purpose of allowing said offender to seek employment. If the court determines that the person has a sufficient estate to pay all or part of the cost of care, the court shall determine the amount which shall be paid by the offender, which amount in no event shall be in excess of the per capita cost of maintaining prisoners in the institution or facility in which the offender has been residing prior to sentencing for the purpose of reimbursing the appropriate law enforcement agency and the per capita cost of maintaining prisoners in the department of corrections for the purpose of paying the cost of care after sentencing.
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All | Not provided for | At enforcement of fine or fee | Burden on defendant to show inability to pay | Determined by judge after hearing | No |
"The court shall order the offender to make such payments toward the cost of care as are appropriate under the circumstances." |
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Colorado | C.R.S. 17-10-103 | Action for Reimbursement of Cost of Care |
(1) When any person has been sentenced to confinement in a local jail or a correctional facility or to home detention or has been granted probation or has been placed on parole by the state board of parole and the sentencing court has not entered an order pursuant to section 18-1.3-701, C.R.S., requiring such person to pay the full cost of care incurred during such person's sentence, the state, the appropriate prosecuting attorney, the department of corrections, the judicial department, or any government agency which has incurred cost of care of such person may file an action for reimbursement for cost of care. ... (3) If, after a hearing, the court determines that the offender has sufficient assets to pay all or part of the cost of care, the court shall order the offender to make such payments toward the cost of care as are appropriate under the circumstances. In setting the amount of such payments, the court shall take into consideration and make allowances for any restitution ordered to the victim or victims of a crime, which shall take priority over any payments ordered pursuant to this article, and for the maintenance and support of the offender's spouse, dependent children, or any other persons having a legal right to support and maintenance out of the offender's estate. If the offender is confined to a local jail or a correctional facility or is under home detention, the court shall also consider the financial needs of the offender for the six-month period immediately following the offender's release, for the purpose of allowing the offender to seek employment. The court shall determine the amount which shall be paid by the offender for cost of care, which amount shall in no event be in excess of the per capita cost of maintaining prisoners in the local jail or a correctional facility, the per capita cost of maintaining an offender under home detention, the per capita cost of supervising an offender on probation, or the per capita cost of supervising an offender placed on parole, as the case may be.
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All | Not provided for | At enforcement of fine or fee | Not provided for | Determined by judge after hearing | No |
The Court Sets Payments Toward the Cost of Care as are Appropriate Under the Circumstances. |
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Colorado | C.R.S. 18-1.3-206(1);(2) | Repayment of Crime Stopper Reward as a Condition of Probation |
(1) As a condition of every sentence to probation where information received through a crime stopper organization led to the arrest and felony conviction of a defendant, the court may require such defendant, as a condition of probation, to repay all or part of any reward paid by such organization. The amount of such repayment shall not exceed the actual reward paid by any crime stopper organization and shall be used solely for paying rewards. The court shall fix the manner and time of repayment; (2) In the event the defendant fails to repay the crime stopper reward in accordance with an order of the court, the defendant shall be returned to the sentencing court and the court, upon proof of failure to pay, may (a) Modify the amount of the repayment; (b) Extend the period of probation; (c) Order the defendant committed to jail with work release privileges; or (d) Revoke probation and impose the sentence otherwise required by law.
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All | Not provided for | At enforcement of fine or fee | Not provided for | Determined by judge after hearing | No |
The Court may: "(a) Modify the amount of the repayment; (b) Extend the period of probation; (c) Order the defendant committed to jail with work release privileges; or (d) Revoke probation and impose the sentence otherwise required by law."
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Colorado | C.R.S. 18-19-103.5(1);(3) | Rural Alcohol and Substance Abuse Surcharge - Repeal |
(1) In addition to the surcharges established in section 18-19-103, each drug offender and each alcohol- or drug-related offender who is convicted, or receives a deferred sentence pursuant to section 18-1.3-102, shall be required to pay a surcharge to the clerk of the court in the county in which the conviction occurs or in which the deferred sentence is entered. The surcharge shall be in an amount determined by the judge but shall be not less than one dollar nor more than ten dollars ... (3) The minimum penalty surcharge shall be mandatory, and the court shall have no discretion to suspend or waive the surcharge; except that the court may suspend or waive the surcharge for a defendant determined by the court to be indigent.
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All |
"Indigent." |
At enforcement of fine or fee | Not provided for | Determined by judge after hearing | No |
Surcharge Waived or Suspended by the Court. |
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Colorado | C.R.S. 19-2-114(1)(a) | Cost of Care |
Notwithstanding the provisions of section 19-1-115 (4)(d), where a juvenile is sentenced to a placement out of the home or is granted probation as a result of an adjudication, deferral of adjudication, or direct filing in or transfer to district court, the court may order the juvenile or the juvenile's parent to make such payments toward the cost of care as are appropriate under the circumstances. In setting the amount of such payments, the court shall take into consideration and make allowances for any restitution ordered to the victim or victims of a crime, which shall take priority over any payments ordered pursuant to this section, and for the maintenance and support of the juvenile's spouse, dependent children, any other persons having a legal right to support and maintenance out of the estate of the juvenile, or any persons having a legal right to support and maintenance out of the estate of the juvenile's parent. The court shall also consider the financial needs of the juvenile for the six-month period immediately following the juvenile's release, for the purpose of allowing said juvenile to seek employment.
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Other |
"The court shall take into consideration and make allowances for any restitution ordered to the victim or victims of a crime, which shall take priority over any payments ordered pursuant to this section, and for the maintenance and support of the juvenile's spouse, dependent children, any other persons having a legal right to support and maintenance out of the estate of the juvenile, or any persons having a legal right to support and maintenance out of the estate of the juvenile's parent. The court shall also consider the financial needs of the juvenile for the six-month period immediately following the juvenile's release, for the purpose of allowing said juvenile to seek employment."
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At enforcement of fine or fee | Not provided for | Not provided for | No |
Reduction in Installment Payment Amount. |
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Colorado | C.R.S. 16-18.5-105(1) | Monitoring - Default - Penalties |
The collections investigator shall be responsible for monitoring the payments of restitution by any defendant referred to the investigator pursuant to section 16-18.5-104. Based upon changes in the defendant's financial circumstances, the collections investigator may modify the payment schedule established pursuant to section 16-18.5-104 (4). If a payment schedule has been made an order of the court pursuant to section 16-18.5-104 (4)(a)(II), prior to enforcing a new schedule, the collections investigator shall request and obtain a modification of the order.
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All | Not provided for | At enforcement of fine or fee | Not provided for | Administrative decision | No | Not provided for |
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Florida | Fla. Stat. § 775.083(1) | Fines |
(1) A person who has been convicted of an offense other than a capital felony may be sentenced to pay a fine in addition to any punishment described in s. 775.082; when specifically authorized by statute, he or she may be sentenced to pay a fine in lieu of any punishment described in s. 775.082 . . . Fines imposed in this subsection shall be deposited by the clerk of the court in the fine and forfeiture fund established pursuant to s. 142.01. If a defendant is unable to pay a fine, the court may defer payment of the fine to a date certain.
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All |
Unable to pay a fine |
Not provided for | Not provided for | Not provided for | No |
Defer payment of fine. |
The Criminal Justice Debt Reform Builder is a project of the National Criminal Justice Debt Initiative of the Criminal Justice Policy Program at Harvard Law School in collaboration with the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University and with user experience design by metaLAB (at) Harvard.
For more information, please visit cjpp.law.harvard.edu.