HB478 Alabama 2013 Session

Updated Feb 27, 2026

Notable

Summary

Primary Sponsor: Richard J. Laird
Independent
Session: Regular Session 2013
Title: Clay Co., court costs, Clay Co. Commission no longer authorized to impose fee on municipal court cases, municipality authorized to assess and retain fee on cases filed in municipal court, distrib. to municipality's general fund, Sec. 45-14-80.03 am'd.
Summary: HB478 shifts the authority to impose a $50 court fee from the Clay County Commission to municipalities in Clay County, with collected fees going to the municipality's general fund.
What This Bill Does
The bill removes the Clay County Commission’s authority to impose the $50 fee on municipal court cases and grants municipalities the power to impose the same fee on each civil and criminal case in their municipal court. The collected fees go to the appropriate general fund: municipal court fees go to the municipality's general fund, while county collection remains for non-municipal cases. The fee cannot be waived except when all other fees and charges are waived. The act becomes effective on the first day of the third month after approval.

Who It Affects
Municipalities in Clay County: gain authority to impose the $50 fee on each civil and criminal case in their municipal court, with revenue going to the municipality's general fund.
Clay County Government (Clay County Commission): loses the authority to impose this municipal court fee; future municipal court fees go to municipalities instead of the county.

Key Provisions
Amends Section 45-14-80.03 to allow a municipality in Clay County to impose by resolution an additional fee up to $50 on each civil and each criminal case filed in the municipal court.
Fees collected by the municipal court are paid to the municipality's general fund; fees collected by district or circuit court are paid to Clay County's general fund.
The Clay County Commission’s authorization to impose this fee on municipal court cases is removed; municipalities may impose the fee instead.
The fee is not waived by any court unless all other fees, assessments, costs, fines, and charges related to the case are waived.
Effective date: the act takes effect on the first day of the third month following passage and approval by the Governor.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 24, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.
Subjects: Clay County