¹34.191 Fines, forfeitures, and costs.--

1. (1) All fines and forfeitures arising from offenses tried in the county court shall be collected and accounted for by the clerk of the court and deposited in a special trust account. All fines and forfeitures received from violations of ordinances or misdemeanors committed within a county, or of municipal ordinances committed within a municipality within the territorial jurisdiction of the county court, shall be paid monthly to the county or municipality respectively except as provided in s. 318.21 or s. 943.25
2. (2) All court costs assessed in county court must be paid to and retained by the county, except as provided in s. 943.25 and subsection (3) of this section.
3. (3) If a municipality incurs any cost of operation of the county court, including any cost of prosecution, it may apply to the chief judge of the circuit for an order directing the county to distribute reasonable court costs to the municipality. If not satisfied with the order of the chief judge, the municipality may apply to the Supreme Court for an order apportioning the costs.

4. (4) The board of county commissioners may assign the collection of fines, court costs, and other costs imposed by the court that are past due for 90 days or more to a private attorney or collection agency that is licensed or registered in this state, if the board of county commissioners determines that the assignment is cost-effective and follows established bid practices. The board of county commissioners may authorize a fee to be added to the outstanding balance to offset any collection costs that will be incurred.

   ¹Note.--Section 56, ch. 2003-402, amended s. 34.191, effective July 1, 2004, to read:

   34.191 Fines and forfeitures.--All fines and forfeitures arising from offenses tried in the county court shall be collected and accounted for by the clerk of the court. All fines and forfeitures received from violations of municipal ordinances committed within a municipality within the territorial jurisdiction of the county court shall be paid monthly to the municipality except as provided in s. 318.21 or s. 943.25 All other fines and forfeitures collected by the clerk shall be considered income of the office of the clerk for use in performing court-related duties of the office.

History.--ss. 1, 2, ch. 72-70; s. 17, ch. 72-404; s. 3, ch. 80-179; s. 3, ch. 83-215; s. 1, ch. 85-250; s. 1, ch. 85-255; s. 2, ch. 86-154; s. 3, ch. 96-350; s. 2, ch. 98-258; s. 56, ch. 2003-402.