SB203 Alabama 2022 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Arthur OrrSenator

Republican

Co-Sponsors

Donnie ChesteenKirk HatcherJimmy HolleyAndrew JonesDan RobertsDavid SessionsBobby D. SingletonJ.T. WaggonerApril WeaverJack W. Williams

Session

Regular Session 2022

Title

Municipal courts, fines and fees, Administrative Office of Courts to annually collect data on revenue, budgets, etc., municipal courts to utilize the Ala. state judicial information system or information system integrated with state system, penalties, Finance Dept to provide report forms, Examiners of Public Accounts or CPA authorized to audit

Summary

SB203 requires Alabama municipal courts to collect and report data on fines, fees, cases, and budgets, and to use a state reporting system with penalties for noncompliance and state-provided training.

What This Bill Does

The Administrative Office of Courts must annually gather data from each municipal court on total cases, revenue collected and dispersed, expenditures (including salaries), and operating budgets for the court and the municipality, with clerks certifying by December 1. The AOC must publish a summary report for the Legislature, Attorney General, and Governor within six months after each fiscal year and post individual court data on its website. The Department of Finance must create electronic monthly report forms and publish all monthly reports online, and penalties and audits apply if courts fail to submit data on time; all municipal courts must adopt a state or integrated reporting system by 2025, with training provided by the AOC.

Who It Affects

• Municipal courts and their clerks (and the municipalities they serve) – must collect, certify, and submit annual financial/case data; must transition to the state or integrated reporting system; face potential fee forfeitures and audits for late data submissions.
• Administrative Office of Courts, Department of Finance, and auditing bodies (Examiners of Public Accounts or CPAs) – responsible for data collection, data publishing, training, electronic reporting, and conducting audits when required; may recover audit costs; oversee system implementation and reporting.

Key Provisions

• Annual collection from each municipal court of total cases, revenue collected and dispersed, expenditures (including judge(s), clerk, and magistrates' salaries), and total operating budgets for the court and the municipality.
• Municipal court clerks must certify and submit the required data by December 1 each year.
• AOC must, within six months after the end of each fiscal year, publish a written summary report to the Legislature, Attorney General, and Governor, including aggregated data and a list of non-responding courts, with data also posted on its website.
• By January 1, 2023, the Department of Finance must create an electronic version of the monthly report form and allow electronic filing; DoF must publish all reports on its website.
• If a municipal court fails to submit data within 60 days of the due date, it forfeits fees and costs that would otherwise stay with the court/municipality until submission; courts may be audited for revenue-related records by Examiners of Public Accounts or an independent CPA, with audit costs recoverable.
• By January 1, 2025, all municipal courts must use the state judicial information system or a properly integrated court information system for reporting; data reporting must be at no cost to the municipality, with certain costs potentially paid from correction fund monies; the AOC must provide training and resources for using the system.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 22, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.

Subjects

Administrative Office of Courts