Criminal Justice Policy Program at Harvard Law School
50-State Criminal Justice Debt Reform Builder Bringing transparency to areas of significant legal complexity.
50-State Criminal Justice Debt Reform Builder Bringing transparency to areas of significant legal complexity.
Ability to Pay
Keyword search across all of the laws in the states. Subject-area tabs above allow you to narrow results. Click the advanced search for further refinement.
Every law can be saved to the Reform Builder
See all ability to pay policy recommendations in CJPP’s Policy Guide
State
- Alabama (0)
- Alaska (0)
- Arizona (0)
- Arkansas (2)
- California (6)
- Colorado (0)
- Connecticut (12)
- Delaware (1)
- Florida (2)
- Georgia (3)
- Hawaii (3)
- Idaho (2)
- Illinois (3)
- Indiana (8)
- Iowa (2)
- Kansas (3)
- Kentucky (6)
- Louisiana (1)
- Maine (2)
- Maryland (0)
- Massachusetts (14)
- Michigan (1)
- Minnesota (0)
- Mississippi (1)
- Missouri (4)
- Montana (15)
- Nebraska (1)
- Nevada (0)
- New Hampshire (4)
- New Jersey (3)
- New Mexico (0)
- New York (1)
- North Carolina (0)
- North Dakota (9)
- (-) Ohio (3)
- Oklahoma (1)
- Oregon (3)
- Pennsylvania (0)
- Rhode Island (0)
- (-) South Carolina (9)
- South Dakota (0)
- Tennessee (3)
- Texas (4)
- Utah (1)
- Vermont (3)
- Virginia (5)
- Washington (3)
- (-) Washington DC (3)
- West Virginia (9)
- Wisconsin (0)
- Wyoming (7)
Keyword search
Reset
Reset all filtersTimeline
Burden of proof
Method of determination
Mandatory
Narrrow results
Level of Offense
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.
15 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Add to Dashboard
|
Ohio | Ohio Rev. Code § 2929.19(B)(5) | Sentencing hearing |
Before imposing a financial sanction under section 2929.18 of the Revised Code or a fine under section 2929.32 of the Revised Code, the court shall consider the offender's present and future ability to pay the amount of the sanction or fine.
|
Felony |
Not provided for |
Before imposition of fine or fee | Not provided for | Determined by judge without hearing | Yes |
Likely no requirement to pay financial sanction |
|
Add to Dashboard
|
Ohio | Ohio Rev. Code § 2929.37(A) | Policy requiring prisoner to pay costs of confinement |
The amount assessed under this section shall not exceed the total amount that the prisoner is able to pay. |
All |
Not provided for |
Before imposition of fine or fee | Not provided for | Not provided for | Yes |
Likely no requirement to pay costs of confinement |
|
Add to Dashboard
|
Ohio | Ohio Rev. Code § 2941.51(D) | Person represented shall pay for part of costs if able |
The fees and expenses approved by the court under this section shall not be taxed as part of the costs and shall be paid by the county. However, if the person represented has, or reasonably may be expected to have, the means to meet some part of the cost of the services rendered to the person, the person shall pay the county an amount that the person reasonably can be expected to pay.
|
All |
Not provided for. |
Before imposition of fine or fee | Not provided for | Not provided for | Yes |
County will pay representation fees in-full or in part. |
|
Add to Dashboard
|
South Carolina | S.C. Code Ann. § 16-3-2040(C) | Restitution for victims of trafficking | (C) If a person is unable to pay restitution at the time of sentencing, or at any other time, the court may set restitution pursuant to Section 16-3-1270. | All | Not provided for | Before imposition of fine or fee | Not provided for | Not provided for | Yes |
not specified |
|
Add to Dashboard
|
South Carolina | S.C. Code Ann. § 17-22-350(A) | Fees; waiver; distribution of fee proceeds |
Participation in a traffic education program may not be denied due to a person's inability to pay. If a person is deemed unable to pay, both the application fee and + See morethe participation fee must be waived.
|
All | Not provided for | Before imposition of fine or fee | Not provided for | Not provided for | Yes |
waiver |
|
Add to Dashboard
|
South Carolina | S.C. Code Ann. § 17-22-550 | Fees; waiver |
However, participation in an alcohol education program may not be denied due to a person's inability to pay these fees. If a person is deemed unable to pay, the fees + See morefor enrollment, education, and supervision services may be waived or reduced at the discretion of each solicitor.
|
All | Not provided for | Before imposition of fine or fee | Not provided for | Not provided for | Yes |
waived or reduced |
|
Add to Dashboard
|
South Carolina | S.C. Code Ann. § 17-25-150(B) | Responsibilities of program; mandatory community penalty plan provisions; limitation upon use of funds |
(B) Every community penalty plan must include the following:....(4) payment of such fees and costs of the program by the offender unless the court grants a waiver due to indigency. + See moreProcedures for collecting a fee from offenders must be implemented based on a sliding scale according to income and ability to pay;
|
All | Not provided for | Before imposition of fine or fee | Not provided for | Not provided for | Yes |
waiver |
|
Add to Dashboard
|
South Carolina | S.C. Code Ann. § 24-21-80 | Probationers and parolees to pay supervision fee; intensive supervision fee; hardship exemption; delinquencies; substitution of public service |
The intensive supervision fee must be determined by the department based upon the ability of the person to pay. Fees derived from persons under intensive supervision must be retained by + See morethe department, carried forward, and applied to the department's operation. The department may exempt any individual supervised by the department on any community supervision program from the payment of a part or all of the yearly or weekly fee during any part or all of the supervision period only if the department determines that exceptional circumstances exist such that these payments work a severe hardship on the individual.
|
All |
exceptional circumstances exist such that these payments work a severe hardship on the individual. |
Before imposition of fine or fee | Not provided for | Administrative decision | Yes |
partial or total exemption |
|
Add to Dashboard
|
South Carolina | S.C. Code Ann. § 24-21-80 | Probationers and parolees to pay supervision fee; intensive supervision fee; hardship exemption; delinquencies; substitution of public service |
An adult placed on probation, parole, or community supervision shall pay a regular supervision fee toward offsetting the cost of his supervision for so long as he remains under supervision. + See moreThe regular supervision fee must be determined by the Department of Probation, Parole, and Pardon Services based upon the ability of the person to pay.
|
All | Not provided for | Before imposition of fine or fee | Not provided for | Administrative decision | Yes |
not specified |
|
Add to Dashboard
|
South Carolina | S.C. Code Ann. § 24-21-100(B) | Administrative monitoring when fines outstanding; fee |
(B) An individual placed on administrative monitoring shall pay a regular monitoring fee toward offsetting the cost of his administrative monitoring for the period of time that he remains under + See moremonitoring. The regular monitoring fee must be determined by the department based upon the ability of the person to pay.
|
All | Not provided for | Before imposition of fine or fee | Not provided for | Administrative decision | Yes |
not specified |
|
Add to Dashboard
|
South Carolina | S.C. Code Ann. § 24-21-480 | Restitution Center program; distribution of offenders' salaries |
The offender must deliver his salary to the restitution center staff who must distribute it in the following manner: 4) payment of a daily fee for housing and food. This + See morefee may be set by the department with the approval of the Department of Administration. The fee must be based on the offender's ability to pay not to exceed the actual costs.
|
All | Not provided for | Before imposition of fine or fee | Not provided for | Administrative decision | Yes |
not specified |
|
Add to Dashboard
|
South Carolina | S.C. Code Ann § 16-25-20(G) | Acts prohibited; penalties | The offender shall pay a reasonable fee, if required, for participation in the program but no person may be denied participation due to inability to pay. | All | Not provided for | Before imposition of fine or fee | Not provided for | Not provided for | Yes |
not specified |
|
Add to Dashboard
|
Washington DC | DC ST § 16-711 (b) | Restitution or reparation |
(b) When restitution or reparation is ordered, the court shall take into consideration the number of victims, the actual damage of each victim, the resources of the defendant, the defendant's + See moreability to earn, any obligation of the defendant to support dependents, and other matters as pertain to the defendant's ability to make restitution or reparation.
|
All |
"… the court shall take into consideration… resources of the defendant, the defendant's ability to earn, any obligation of the defendant to support dependents…" |
Before imposition of fine or fee | Not provided for | Determined by judge after hearing | Yes | Not provided for |
|
Add to Dashboard
|
Washington DC | DC ST § 11-2604 (f) | Payment for representation |
(f) If a person for whom counsel is appointed under this section appeals to the District of Columbia Court of Appeals, such person may do so without prepayment of fees + See moreand costs or security therefor and without filing the affidavit required by section 1915(a) of title 28, United States Code.
|
All | Not provided for | Before imposition of fine or fee | Not provided for | Other | Yes |
May proceed without prepayment of fees |
|
Add to Dashboard
|
Washington DC | DC ST § 23-106 | Witnesses for defense; fees |
The court shall order at any time that a subpoena be issued for service upon a named witness on behalf of a defendant if the defendant makes an application for + See moresuch an order and makes a satisfactory showing that he is financially unable to pay the fees of the witness and that the presence of the witness is necessary to an adequate defense. If the court orders the subpoena to be issued the costs incurred by the process and the fees of the witness so subpoenaed shall be paid in the same manner in which similar costs and fees are paid in case of a witness subpoenaed in behalf of the prosecuting authority.
|
All | Not provided for | At defendant's request before imposition of fine or fee | Burden on defendant to show inability to pay | Not provided for | Yes |
Subpoena and witness fees will be paid by government |
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.