Transparency

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State Statute Description/Statute Name Statutory language Type of obligation Actor
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California Cal. Rules of Court 4.320 Records of criminal convictions
In addition to the information that the Department of Justice requires from courts under Penal Code section 13151, each trial court must also report, electronically or manually, the following information,
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in the form and manner specified by the Department of Justice:(1) Whether the defendant was represented by counsel or waived the right to counsel; and(2) In the case of a guilty or nolo contendere plea, whether:(A) The defendant was advised of and understood the charges;(B) The defendant was advised of, understood, and waived the right to a jury trial, the right to confront witnesses, and the privilege against self-incrimination; and(C) The court found the plea was voluntary and intelligently made. For purposes of this rule, a change of plea form signed by the defendant, defense counsel if the defendant was represented by counsel, and the judge, and filed with the court is a sufficient basis for the clerk or deputy clerk to report that the requirements of (2) have been met.
Obligation to collect or record All courts
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California Cal. Rules of Court 4.541 Minimum requirements of supervision agency reports
Except as provided in (d), a petition for revocation of supervision must include a written report that contains at least the following information:(1) Information about the supervised person, including:(A) Personal
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identifying information, including name and date of birth;(B) Custody status and the date and circumstances of arrest;(C) Any pending cases and case numbers;(D) The history and background of the supervised person, including a summary of the supervised person's record of prior criminal conduct; and(E) Any available information requested by the court regarding the supervised person's risk of recidivism, including any validated risk-needs assessments;(2) All relevant terms and conditions of supervision and the circumstances of the alleged violations, including a summary of any statement made by the supervised person, and any victim information, including statements and type and amount of loss;(3) A summary of any previous violations and sanctions; and(4) Any recommended sanctions
Obligation to report/conduct analysis Supervision agency
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California Cal. Pen. Code § 1463.010 Proceedings in Misdemeanor and Infraction Cases: Enforcement of court orders; Guidelines for collection program; Annual report; Business license suspension program; Amnesty

The uniform imposition and enforcement of court-ordered debts are recognized as an important element of California’s judicial system. Prompt, efficient, and effective imposition and collection of court-ordered fees, fines, forfeitures,

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penalties, restitution, and assessments ensure the appropriate respect for court orders. The California State Association of Counties and the Administrative Office of the Courts are jointly committed to identifying, improving, and seeking to expand access to mechanisms and tools that will enhance efforts to collect court-ordered debt. To provide for this prompt, efficient, and effective collection:(a) The Judicial Council shall adopt guidelines for a comprehensive program concerning the collection of moneys owed for fees, fines, forfeitures, penalties, and assessments imposed by court order. As part of its guidelines, the Judicial Council may establish standard agreements for entities to provide collection services. As part of its guidelines, the Judicial Council shall include provisions that promote competition by and between entities in providing collection services to courts and counties. The Judicial Council may delegate to the Administrative Director of the Courts the implementation of the aspects of this program to be carried out at the state level. (b) The courts and counties shall maintain the collection program that was in place on January 1, 1996, unless otherwise agreed to in writing by the court and county. The program may wholly or partially be staffed and operated within the court itself, may be wholly or partially staffed and operated by the county, or may be wholly or partially contracted with a third party. In carrying out this collection program, each superior court and county shall develop a cooperative plan to implement the Judicial Council guidelines. In the event that a court and a county are unwilling or unable to enter into a cooperative plan pursuant to this section, prior to the arbitration procedures required by subdivision (e) of Section 1214.1, the court or the county may request the continuation of negotiations with mediation assistance as mutually agreed upon and provided by the Administrative Director of the Courts and the California State Association of Counties. (c) The Judicial Council shall develop performance measures and benchmarks to review the effectiveness of the cooperative superior court and county collection programs operating pursuant to this section. Each superior court and county shall jointly report to the Judicial Council, as provided by the Judicial Council, information requested in a reporting template on or before September 1, 2009, and annually thereafter. The Judicial Council shall report to the Legislature on December 31, 2009, and annually thereafter, on all of the following: (1) The extent to which each court or county is following best practices for its collection program. (2) The performance of each collection program. (3) Any changes necessary to improve performance of collection programs statewide. (d) The Judicial Council may, when the efficiency and effectiveness of the collection process may be improved, facilitate a joint collection program between superior courts, between counties, or between superior courts and counties. (e) The Judicial Council may establish, by court rule, a program providing for the suspension and nonrenewal of a business and professional license if the holder of the license has unpaid fees, fines, forfeitures, penalties, and assessments imposed upon them under a court order. The Judicial Council may provide that some or all of the superior courts or counties participate in the program. Any program established by the Judicial Council shall ensure that the licensee receives adequate and appropriate notice of the proposed suspension or nonrenewal of his or her license and has an opportunity to contest the suspension or nonrenewal. The opportunity to contest may not require a court hearing. (f) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Judicial Council, after consultation with the Franchise Tax Board with respect to collections under Section 19280 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, may provide for an amnesty program involving the collection of outstanding fees, fines, forfeitures, penalties, and assessments, applicable either statewide or within one or more counties. The amnesty program shall provide that some or all of the interest or collections costs imposed on outstanding fees, fines, forfeitures, penalties, and assessments may be waived if the remaining amounts due are paid within the amnesty period.

Obligation to collect or record State courts
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California Cal. Pen. Code § 1463.02 Proceedings in Misdemeanor and Infraction Cases: Establishment of task force; Task force responsibilities and duties; Chairperson; Membership; Report

(a) On or before June 30, 2011, the Judicial Council shall establish a task force to evaluate criminal and traffic-related court-ordered debts imposed against adult and juvenile offenders. The task

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force shall be comprised of the following members:(1) Two members appointed by the California State Association of Counties. (2) Two members appointed by the League of California Cities. (3) Two court executives, two judges, and two Administrative Office of the Courts employees appointed by the Judicial Council. (4) One member appointed by the Controller. (5) One member appointed by the Franchise Tax Board. (6) One member appointed by the California Victim Compensation Board. (7) One member appointed by the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. (8) One member appointed by the Department of Finance. (9) One member appointed by each house of the Legislature. (10) A county public defender and a city attorney appointed by the Speaker of the Assembly. (11) A defense attorney in private practice and a district attorney appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules. (b) The Judicial Council shall designate a chairperson for the task force. The task force shall, among other duties, do all of the following: (1) Identify all criminal and traffic-related court-ordered fees, fines, forfeitures, penalties, and assessments imposed under law. (2) Identify the distribution of revenue derived from those debts and the expenditures made by those entities that benefit from the revenues. (3) Consult with state and local entities that would be affected by a simplification and consolidation of criminal and traffic-related court-ordered debts. (4) Evaluate and make recommendations to the Judicial Council and the Legislature for consolidating and simplifying the imposition of criminal and traffic-related court-ordered debts and the distribution of the revenue derived from those debts with the goal of improving the process for those entities that benefit from the revenues, and recommendations, if any, for adjustment to the court-ordered debts. (c) The task force also shall document recent annual revenues from the various penalty assessments and surcharges and, to the extent feasible, evaluate the extent to which the amount of each penalty assessment and surcharge impacts total annual revenues, imposition of criminal sentences, and the actual amounts assessed. (d) The task force also shall evaluate and make recommendations to the Judicial Council and the Legislature on or before June 30, 2011, regarding the priority in which court-ordered debts should be satisfied and the use of comprehensive collection programs authorized pursuant to Section 1463.007, including associated cost-recovery practices.

Obligation to collect or record Other
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California Cal. Gov. Code § 6253(a)-(b) Inspection of Public Records: Time for inspection of public records; “Unusual circumstances”; Posting of public record on Web site

(a) Public records are open to inspection at all times during the office hours of the state or local agency and every person has a right to inspect any public

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record, except as hereafter provided. Any reasonably segregable portion of a record shall be available for inspection by any person requesting the record after deletion of the portions that are exempted by law.(b) Except with respect to public records exempt from disclosure by express provisions of law, each state or local agency, upon a request for a copy of records that reasonably describes an identifiable record or records, shall make the records promptly available to any person upon payment of fees covering direct costs of duplication, or a statutory fee if applicable. Upon request, an exact copy shall be provided unless impracticable to do so.

Obligation to respond to public records requests All
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California CA ST TR COURT Rule 2.503(c) Application and scope: Courthouse electronic access only

A court that maintains the following records in electronic form must provide electronic access to them at the courthouse, to the extent it is feasible to do so, but may

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provide remote electronic access only to the records governed by (b):(1) Records in a proceeding under the Family Code, including proceedings for dissolution, legal separation, and nullity of marriage; child and spousal support proceedings; child custody proceedings; and domestic violence prevention proceedings; . . . (5) Records in a criminal proceeding.

Obligation to collect or record All courts
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California CA ST TR COURT Rule 2.503(e) Application and scope: Remote access allowed in extraordinary criminal cases

Notwithstanding (c)(5), the presiding judge of the court, or a judge assigned by the presiding judge, may exercise discretion, subject to (e)(1), to permit electronic access by the public to

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all or a portion of the public court records in an individual criminal case if (1) the number of requests for access to documents in the case is extraordinarily high and (2) responding to those requests would significantly burden the operations of the court. An individualized determination must be made in each case in which such remote electronic access is provided.

Obligation to collect or record All courts
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New Hampshire NH R CT RECORDS ACCESS Guideline 2 Records Subject to Inspection

A presumption exists that all court records are subject to public inspection.

The public right of access to specific court records must be weighed and balanced against nondisclosure interests as established

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by the Federal and/or New Hampshire Constitution or by statutory provision granting or requiring confidentiality.

Unless otherwise ordered by the court, the following categories of cases shall not be open to public inspection: juvenile cases (delinquency, CHINS, abuse/neglect, termination of parental rights, adoption); pending or denied application for search or arrest warrants; grand jury records; applications for wire taps and orders thereon; and any other record to be kept confidential by statute, rule or order. Before a court record is ordered sealed, the court must determine if there is a reasonable alternative to sealing the record and must use the least restrictive means of accomplishing the purpose. Once a court record is sealed, it shall not be open to public inspection except by order of the court.

Any case records not subject to disclosure except upon order of the court shall be kept in a separate section of the court files, accessed only by the court and the clerk's staff.

Obligation to respond to public records requests State courts
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New Hampshire NH R CT RECORDS ACCESS Guideline 3 Right to Copy

The right to public access shall generally include the right to make notes and to obtain copies at normal rates.

Obligation to respond to public records requests State courts
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New Hampshire NH R CT RECORDS ACCESS Guideline 4 Timing of Access

The clerk of each court, in conjunction with the court's Administrative Justice, shall set reasonable administrative regulations governing the scheduling of access to records. All such regulations shall be designed

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to cause the least disruption to the clerk's office and shall be balanced against the need to provide timely access. The regulations may include the requirement of requesting access in writing, the scheduling of an appointment to inspect documents during off-peak hours, etc.

Obligation to respond to public records requests State courts
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New Hampshire NH R CT RECORDS ACCESS Guideline 6 Large Scale Access

Access to large numbers of records at any one time shall not be permitted. Individuals seeking such access shall be required to specifically identify by document number or case name

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the files to which they seek access and may be assessed a reasonable fee. Clerks are not required to allow access to more than ten files per day but may do so in the exercise of their discretion if it will not cause disruption to the clerk's primary function. No person shall be allowed direct access to the clerk's records or permitted to enter the inner office of the clerk's staff unless the court facility requires such entry and unless specific authorization for such entry is given by the clerk in conjunction with the presiding justice.

Obligation to respond to public records requests State courts
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New Hampshire NH R CT RECORDS ACCESS Guideline 7 Telephone Inquiries

Telephone access to court records shall be allowed only at such times and under such conditions as the clerk may establish.

Obligation to respond to public records requests State courts
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New Hampshire NH R CT RECORDS ACCESS Guideline 5 Supervision of Access

It is the duty of the clerk to insure the integrity of each file. At no time shall any file be given to any person to be examined outside the

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area allocated for file review. The file review area shall be within full view of court personnel whenever possible. Supervision over file use shall be direct whenever possible. At no time shall any person be allowed to leave the court facility until the file has been returned to be refiled and court personnel has examined the completeness of the file if that is part of the court's procedure.Administrative regulations designed to insure the integrity of all files may be established by the clerks in conjunction with the Administrative Justice. Such regulations may include, but need not be limited to, requiring the individual seeking access to provide identification and sign for all records and allowing only one file at a time to be released to each individual seeking access.

Obligation to respond to public records requests State courts
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New Hampshire NH R CT RECORDS ACCESS Guideline 8 Denial of Access

The clerk, after consultation with the presiding justice and Administrative Justice, may, for good cause shown, deny access to court records to any individual. Good cause shall include, but not

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be limited to, previous theft, destruction, defacement or tampering of records and refusal to comply with administrative regulations established in accordance with these guidelines.

Obligation to respond to public records requests State courts
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New Hampshire N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 499:11 Deposited Records.

All records, files and papers required to be deposited in the office of the clerk by any law shall be and remain records, files and papers of the office, unless

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otherwise provided, and the clerk shall be the proper officer to attest copies thereof.

Obligation to collect or record Clerk
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Texas Tex. Code Crim. Proc. Art. 103.010 Receipt book

(a) Each county shall provide a receipt book to each officer collecting fines and fees in criminal cases for the county. The book must contain duplicate official receipts. Each receipt

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must bear a distinct number and a facsimile of the official seal of the county.

(b) An officer who collects fines or fees in a criminal case shall give the person paying the money a receipt from the receipt book. The receipt must show: (1) the amount of money paid;(2) the date the money was paid;(3) the style and number of the case in which the costs were accrued;(4) the item of costs; (5) the name of the person paying the money; and (6) the official signature of the officer receiving the money. (c) Instead of a receipt book, each officer collecting fines or fees in criminal cases for the county may maintain the information listed in Subsections (b)(1)-(5) in a computer database.The officer shall provide a receipt to each person paying a fine or fee.

Obligation to collect or record Clerk, County, Law enforcement
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Texas Tex. Loc. Gov't Code Sec. 133.054 General record of fees collected - officer/clerk

(a) An officer or clerk collecting a fee shall keep a record of the money collected.

(b) The treasurer shall keep a record of the money collected and on deposit in

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the treasury.

Obligation to collect or record Clerk, Law enforcement
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Texas Tex. Code Crim. Proc. Art. 103.009(a)(c) Fee Records

(a) Each clerk of a court, county judge, justice of the peace, sheriff, constable, and marshal shall keep a fee record. The record must contain: (1) a statement of each

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fee or item of cost charged for a service rendered in a criminal action or proceeding;(2) the number and style of the action or proceeding; and (3) the name of the officer or person who is entitled to receive the fee.

(b) Any person may inspect a fee record described by Subsection (a).

(c) A statement of an item of cost in a fee record is prima facie evidence of the correctness of the statement.

(d) The county shall provide to officers required to keep a fee record by this article equipment and supplies necessary to keep the record.

Obligation to collect or record, Obligation to report/conduct analysis, Obligation to respond to public records requests Clerk, State courts
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Texas Tex. Code Crim. Proc. Art. 102.0185(d)-(e)(1) Fine for Intoxication Convictions: Emergency Medical Services, Trauma Facilities, and Trauma Care Systems

(d) The officer collecting the fines under this article shall keep separate records of the money collected and shall pay the money to the custodian of the municipal or county treasury.

(e) The

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custodian of the municipal or county treasury shall: (1) keep records of the amount of money collected under this article that is deposited with the treasury under this article

Obligation to collect or record County, Municipality/municipal agency
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Texas Tex. Code Crim. Proc. Art. 102.0178(c)-(d),(f),(h) Costs Attendant to Certain Intoxication and Drug Convictions

(c) Court costs under this article are collected in the same manner as other fines or costs. An officer collecting the costs shall keep separate records of the funds collected

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as costs under this article and shall deposit the funds in the county treasury, as appropriate.

(d) The custodian of a county treasury shall: (1) keep records of the amount of funds on deposit collected under this article; and (2) except as provided by Subsection (e), send to the comptroller before the last day of the first month following each calendar quarter the funds collected under this article during the preceding quarter.

(f) If no funds due as costs under this article are deposited in a county treasury in a calendar quarter, the custodian of the treasury shall file the report required for the quarter in the regular manner and must state that no funds were collected.

(h) Funds collected under this article are subject to audit by the comptroller.

Obligation to collect or record, Obligation to report/conduct analysis County