HB 1116

ADDITIONAL FINE OF $10 FOR CONVICTED OFFENDERS This bill provides that, i n addition to a ny fine prescribed by law for a criminal offense, an offender convicted of a felony or misdemeanor offense must be assessed an additional fine of $10, which must be imposed by all courts with criminal jurisdiction and collected by the court clerks. Each c ourt clerk must collect and forward, on a monthly basis, all such fines assessed, less $3 per assessment as a service charge to be retained by the clerk, to the state treasury for deposit in the crime stoppers trust fund, to be used as provided below. CRI ME STOPPERS TRUST FUND This bill create s in the state treasury a fund known as the crime stoppers trust fund , which is subject to examination and audit by the comptroller of the treasury. Moneys in the fund must be used for the purpose of grant administ ration to fund crime stoppers programs within political subdivisions of this state. The fund must be administered as follows:  The money may be invested but must be accounted for separately with separate accounting for the fund's principal and income .  The crime stoppers trust fund must contain state-appropriated moneys and fees and fines assessed pursuant to this bill as described above.  Moneys in the fund must not revert to the general fund of the state but must remain available to be used as provided for in this bill.  The state treasurer is authorized to expend moneys from the fund to fund costs and expenses incurred by the department of the treasury for the administration of the fund and for the review and approval of contract service providers that provide supervision of offenders using an electronic monitoring device . This bill requires t he proceeds of the fine imposed by this bill to be deposited in a separate account in the trust fund, and within that account the funds must be designated accordin g to the judicial district in which they were collected. GRANT PROGRAM This bill provides that t he state treasurer is the disbursing authority for distribution of funding to crime stoppers organizations, upon their application to the department of safety for funding assistance. As used in this bill, a "c rime stoppers organization"" means a 501(c)(3) organizatio n with an overseeing board of directors and an executive director or coordinator, that collects and expends donations for rewards to persons who report to the organization information concerning criminal activity, and forwards that information to appropriate law enforcement agencies . This bill authorizes a crime stoppers organization to apply to the department for a grant from the funds colle cted in the county in which the organization is located. A grant may be used only to support crime stoppers. Only one program is eligible for support within a county. In order to aid the state treasurer in determining eligibility, the department of saf e ty must furnish the treasurer with a schedule of authorized crime stoppers organizations and must update the schedule as necessary. The state treasurer must award grants to crime stoppers organizations from available funds and must distribute funds as equ itably as possible, based on amounts collected within each county, when more than one county is contained within a judicial district. This bill authorizes a crime stoppers organization that is awarded a grant to use such funds for any of the following pu rposes:  To purchase and distribute promotional items to increase public awareness of and to educate the public about crime stoppers .  To pay rewards for tips that result in a n arrest; t he recovery of stolen property; t he recovery of illegal narcotics; t he recovery of the body of a homicide victim; t he recovery of a human trafficking victim or a missing person connected to criminal activity; t he recovery of an illegal firearm or an illegal weapon on a K-12 school campus; t he prevention of a terrorist act; o r t he solving and closing of a criminal case involving a homicide or other violent felony offense that remains unsolved for one year or more after being reported to a law enforcement agency and that has no viable and unexplored investigatory leads .  For the administrative or operating expenses of the crime stoppers organization; provided, however, that no more than 25% of the funds awarded may be used for administrative or operating expenses. ANNUAL REPORT This bill requires each crime stoppers organizat ion that receives a grant under this bill to report annually to the chief clerks of the senate and the house of representatives, the legislative librarian, and the office of legislative budget analysis on the use of grant funds in the preceding fiscal year . The first report is due no later than February 1, 2027, and by each February 1 thereafter. RULEMAKING This bill authorizes the state treasurer to promulgate rules relative to the following:  The investment of money in the fund .  The administration, processing, and payment of funds to local governments .  Criteria for organizations to apply for funding from the crime stoppers trust fund in order to aid local law enforcement as provided in this bill.  The limits of funding to be distributed to local government units based on a pro rata share of grants made available through the fund, and criteria for the equitable distribution of funds available .  Provisions for the coordination with appropriate governmental agencies to support and enhance efforts to train the public in crime prevention methods and in personal safety principles, especially for citizens who live in, work at, or frequent locations with high crime rates."