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Below are the attorney general opinions that meet your search criteria.
7 Results
State | Citation | Description/Statute Name | Question | Brief answer | Language from the opinion | When does the case apply? | |
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Virginia | 2000 Va. Op. Att'y. Gen. (2000) | Costs and fines dischargeable in bankruptcy | Other applicable opinions |
"Criminal costs, which may or may not be contingent upon sentence but are associated with conviction, and traffic fines are nondischargeable in Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceedings. Debt for restitution or + See morecriminal fine included in criminal sentence is nondischargeable in Chapter 13 bankruptcy; criminal fines not contingent upon sentence, traffic fines arising from traffic infractions, and civil traffic fines are dischargeable in Chapter 13 bankruptcies."
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Enforcement | |
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Indiana | 2003 Ind. Op. Att'y Gen. No. 2 (Jan. 31, 2003) | RE: Local Ordinances and State Laws | What authority do county or municipal courts have to set fines or fees? | Cities and towns may not enact local ordinances similar to state laws in order to generate revenue |
The Home Rule Act expressly prohibits local units of government from adopting local ordinances which assign a penalty for an act that constitutes a crime or infraction under state statute. + See moreA state statute must be evaluated to determine if the statute deals comprehensively with a subject matter; local ordinances might not be preempted if a state statute does not deal comprehensively with a subject matter and there is room for supplemental local regulation. However, a city or town may not enact a local ordinance where there is an existing state statute dealing comprehensively with the subject matter and local law is considered preempted by state law.
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Indiana | 2010 Ind. Op. Att'y Gen. No. 1 (May 12, 2010) | Re: Civil Forfeitures and the Common School Fund | Other applicable opinions | Civil forfeitures are not committed to the common school funds like criminal fines and fees under the state constitution |
It is our opinion that Article 8, § 2 of the state constitution does not apply to forfeiture actions brought under Ind. Code ch. 34-24-1. Article 8 of the Indiana + See moreConstitution provides for the funding of the common school fund, part of which is derived “from the fines assessed for breaches of the penal laws of the State; and from all forfeitures which may accrue.” Art. 8, § 2. A proceeding under Indiana's forfeiture law is civil in nature, and it is only fines and forfeitures from criminal proceedings that must be paid into the common school fund.
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Revenue flow |
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Rhode Island | R.I.A.G. Op. No. 92-01-02 (Jan. 23, 1992) | Rhode Island-Attorney General opinion | What authority do county or municipal courts have to set fines or fees? | They are limited by state statutes |
Accordingly, it is my opinion that sheriffs, deputy sheriffs, town sheriffs and constables are required to charge the statutory rates set forth in the amendment. There is no provision allowing + See morethese individuals to charge either a lesser or greater rate. See also, R.I.Gen.Laws § 45164.3 which requires constables to serve or execute all writs and process ... at such fees as authorized to sheriffs and deputy sheriffs.
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Fines and fees |
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Utah | Normal G. Angus, Informal Opinion No. 87-06, 1987 WL 272559, at *2-3 (July 15, 1987) | Informal Opinion No. 87-06 |
Are the same procedural protections that are required in criminal proceedings required in civil collection/contempt proceedings arising from criminal justice debt when those proceedings may result in incarceration? What if + See morethe proceedings may only result in additional fines or non-incarceration penalties?
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Unclear. Bail forfeiture proceedings do not provide the same safeguards. I am unsure if this can be extrapolated to collection proceedings. |
Bail forfeiture actions are civil in nature; criminal procedure safeguards are not implicated
.In comparing the two approaches to nonappearancebail forfeiture versus contemptit becomes readily apparent that the contempt process presents + See morefewer obstacles of statutory construction and would be procedurally easier to effectuate.
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Enforcement |
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Utah | Ms. Faye Price, Informal Opinion No. 79-51, 1979 WL 32606, at *1 (Feb. 15, 1979) | Informal Opinion No. 79-51, | Does allowing different municipalities to set their own indigence standards or fines/fees violate the equal protection afforded by the states constitution? |
Possibly. Ability to pay should be consistently applied in reference to statute that requires parents and guardians to pay for the cost and maintenance of State Training School residents. Therefore, + See moreit is possible that determining ability to pay when assessing criminal justice debt presents same constitutional issues.
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there could be constitutional difficulties arise from the manner in which it is applied if great care is not taken to insure that the determination of financial responsibility is made + See moreon a strictly consistent and rational basis.
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Ability to pay |
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Utah | Ronald W. Thompson, Informal Opinion No. 77-150, 1978 WL 25972, at *1 (Feb. 7, 1978) | Informal Opinion No. 77-150 | see above | see above |
There is no requirement in the statute that there be a judicial determination of indigence, and it does not appear that a county could properly limit its payments to persons + See morewho have been judicially determined indigent.
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Ability to pay |