HB362 Alabama 2024 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

David FaulknerRepresentative

Republican

Session

Regular Session 2024

Title

Municipal courts; reporting requirements of driving under the influence convictions established; penalties established

Summary

HB362 would require municipal courts to report DUI convictions to the Alabama State Law Enforcement Agency within five days and impose penalties, including forfeiture of certain fees, for failures to report on time.

What This Bill Does

It tightens the deadline for reporting DUI convictions by municipal courts to the state agency. It creates penalties where courts fail to report within the required time, including forfeiting fees and costs that would otherwise stay with the court and directing those funds to the state. It also adds a new requirement that all municipal courts report DUI convictions within five days by January 1, 2025. It includes audit provisions and sets an October 1, 2024 start date for the act.

Who It Affects

• Municipal courts and the municipalities they serve, because they must report DUI convictions on time and may lose collected fees if they do not.
• The Alabama State Law Enforcement Agency (and state offices like the Comptroller and Administrative Office of Courts), which will receive the reports and may receive forfeited fees.
• Individuals convicted of driving under the influence, whose convictions must be reported to the state agency within five days.
• Taxpayers/public with oversight expectations, due to potential financial audits of municipal records and use of fines/fees to pay audit costs.

Key Provisions

• Amends Section 12-14-113 to require municipal courts to forfeit fees and costs if they fail to submit required data within 60 days of the due date or fail to timely report DUI convictions; forfeited funds go to the state Comptroller for distribution to the Administrative Office of Courts.
• Adds Section 12-14-115 requiring by January 1, 2025 all municipal courts to report within five days the record of DUI convictions to the Secretary of the Alabama State Law Enforcement Agency.
• Establishes a financial audit process for noncompliant courts, allowing audits by the Department of Examiners of Public Accounts or an independent CPA, with costs recoverable from the municipality; revenue from fines/fees may be used to pay audit costs.
• Effective date is October 1, 2024.

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

Subjects

Courts & Judges