As Amended by Senate Committee
Session of 1998
SENATE BILL No. 599
By Committee on Judiciary
2-5
10
AN ACT concerning courts; relating to collection of
debts owed thereto;
11 attorney general;
amending K.S.A. 75-719 and repealing the existing
12 section.
13
14 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the
State of Kansas:
15 Section 1. K.S.A.
75-719 is hereby amended to read as follows: 75-
16 719. (a) The attorney general is authorized
to enter into contracts in
17 accordance with this section for collection
services for debts owed to
18 courts or restitution owed under an order
of restitution.
19 (b) As used in this
section:
20 (1) ``Beneficiary under
an order of restitution'' means the victim or
21 victims of a crime to whom a district court
has ordered restitution be
22 paid;
23 (2) ``contracting
agent'' means a person, firm, agency or other entity
24 who contracts hereunder to provide
collection services;
25 (3) ``cost of
collection'' means the fee specified in contracts hereunder
26 to be paid to or retained by a contracting
agent for collection services.
27 ``Cost of collection'' also includes any
filing fee required under K.S.A. 60-
28 4303 and amendments thereto or
administrative costs prescribed by the
29 attorney general pursuant to rules and
regulations; and
30 (4) ``debts owed to
courts'' means any assessment of court costs, fines,
31 fees, moneys expended by the state in
providing counsel and other de-
32 fense services to indigent defendants or
other charges which a district
33 court judgment has ordered to be paid to
the court, and which remain
34 unpaid in whole or in part, and includes
any interest or penalties on such
35 unpaid amounts as provided for in the
judgment or by law. Debts owed
36 to courts also includes the cost of
collection when collection services of
37 a contracting agent hereunder are
utilized.
38 (c) The cost of collection
shall be paid by the defendant as an
39 additional court cost in all
criminal, traffic and juvenile offender
40 cases where the defendant fails to
pay any amount ordered by the
41 court and the court utilizes the
services of a contracting agent pur-
42 suant to this section. The cost of
collection shall be deemed an ad-
43 ministrative fee to pay the actual
costs of collection made necessary
SB 599--Am.
2
1 by the defendant's failure to
pay court debt and restitution.
2 (c)
(d) (1) Contracts authorized by this
section may be entered into
3 with state or federal agencies or
political subdivisions of the state of Kan-
4 sas, including contracts for
participation in the collection program au-
5 thorized by K.S.A. 75-6201 et
seq. and amendments thereto. Such con-
6 tracts also may be entered into with
private firms or individuals selected
7 by a procurement negotiation
committee in accordance with K.S.A. 75-
8 37,102 and amendments thereto, except
that the attorney general shall
9 designate a representative to serve
as the chief administrative officer
10 member of such committee and that the other
two members of such
11 committee shall be designated by the
director of purchases and the ju-
12 dicial administrator.
13 (2) Prior to negotiating
any contract for collection services, this pro-
14 curement negotiation committee shall
advertise for proposals, negotiate
15 with firms and individuals submitting
proposals and select among those
16 submitting such proposals the party or
parties to contract with for the
17 purpose of collection services.
18 (3) The attorney general
may adopt rules and regulations as deemed
19 appropriate for the administration of this
section, including procedures
20 to be used in the negotiation and execution
of contracts pursuant to this
21 section and procedures to be followed by
those who utilize collection
22 services under such contracts.
23 (4) For purposes of this
section, the agencies, firms or individuals
24 with whom contracts are entered under this
section shall be known as
25 contracting agents. The attorney general
shall publish a list of the con-
26 tracting agents for use by courts or
beneficiaries under orders of resti-
27 tution who desire to utilize the collection
services of such agents.
28 (5) Each contract
entered pursuant to this section shall provide for a
29 fee to be paid to or retained by the
contracting agent for collection serv-
30 ices. Such fee shall be designated as the
cost of collection hereunder, and
31 shall not be
expressed as a percentage not to exceed 33% of the
amount
32 of the debt to be
actually collected. The cost of collection shall be
de-
33 ducted paid
from the amount or retained from all
amounts collected
34 and,
but and shall not be in addition
to deducted from the any
other
35 debts owed to courts or restitution.
36 (d)
(e) Judicial districts of the state of Kansas
are authorized to utilize
37 the collection services of contracting
agents pursuant to this section for
38 the purpose of collecting all outstanding
debts owed to courts. Subject to
39 rules and orders of the Kansas supreme
court, each judicial district may
40 establish by local rule guidelines for the
compromise of court costs, fines,
41 attorney fees and other charges assessed in
district court cases.
42 (e)
(f) Any beneficiary under an order of
restitution entered by a
43 court after this section takes effect is
authorized to utilize the collection
SB 599--Am.
3
1 services of contracting agents
pursuant to this section for the purpose of
2 collecting all outstanding amounts
owed under such order of restitution.
3 (f)
(g) Contracts entered hereunder shall provide
for the payment of
4 that any amounts
collected and received by a contracting agent
shall
5 be paid to the clerk of
the district court for the court in which the debt
6 being collected originated,
after the contracting agent first retains the
7 cost of collection. In
accounting for amounts collected from any person
8 pursuant to this section, the
district court clerk shall credit the person's
9 amount owed in the amount of the
gross net proceeds collected,
after
10 first deducting the
collection fee cost of the
collection, and shall not
11 otherwise reduce the amount
owed by any person by that portion of any
12 payment which constitutes the cost of
collection pursuant to this section.
13 (g)
(h) With the appropriate cost of collection paid
to the contracting
14 agent as agreed upon in the contract
hereunder, the clerk shall then
15 distribute amounts collected hereunder as
follows:
16 (1) When collection
services are utilized pursuant to subsection
(d)
17 (e), all amounts shall be
applied against the debts owed to the court as
18 specified in the original judgment creating
the debt;
19 (2) when collection
services are utilized pursuant to subsection
(e)
20 (f), all amounts shall be
paid to the beneficiary under the order of resti-
21 tution designated to receive such
restitution, except where that benefi-
22 ciary has received recovery from the Kansas
crime victims compensation
23 board and such board has subrogation rights
pursuant to K.S.A. 74-7312
24 and amendments thereto, in which case all
amounts shall be paid to the
25 board until its subrogation lien is
satisfied.
26 (h)
(i) Whenever collection services are being
utilized against the
27 same debtor pursuant to both subsections
(d) (e) and (e)
(f), any amounts
28 collected by a contracting agent shall be
first applied to satisfy subsection
29 (e) (f)
debts, debts pursuant to an order of restitution. Upon
satisfaction
30 of all such debts, amounts received from
the same debtor shall then be
31 applied to satisfy subsection
(d) (e) debts, debts owed to
courts.
32 Sec. 2. K.S.A.
75-719 is hereby repealed.
33 Sec. 3. This act
shall take effect and be in force from and after its
34 publication in the statute
book Kansas register.
35