HB478 Alabama 2024 Session

Updated Feb 23, 2026

Notable

Summary

Primary Sponsor: Matthew HammettRepresentative
Republican
Session: Regular Session 2024
Title: Covington Co., sheriff, booking fee distributed to sheriff's law enforcement fund.
Summary: HB478 creates a $30 booking fee for Covington County inmates convicted of a crime, with the money going to the Sheriff’s Department for jail and law enforcement needs.
What This Bill Does
The bill imposes a $30 booking fee on each person booked or incarcerated in the Covington County Detention Center who is later convicted, in addition to fines and other charges; it does not apply to defendants housed for municipalities. The fee is assessed upon conviction and collected like court costs, with monthly notices to the sheriff. Revenues from the fee go to the Covington County Sheriff’s Department Law Enforcement Fund to be used for jail operations, training, salaries, equipment, and other sheriff-approved uses. If the fee isn’t paid, the district attorney may assist in collection, and the sheriff may contract for collection and pay a portion of the collected amount as a cost for collection; the sheriff may withhold funds from the person’s incarceration funds to satisfy the fee, with monthly reporting to the court clerk.

Who It Affects
People booked into the Covington County Detention Center who are later convicted (the fee applies in addition to other costs and excludes municipal-inmate housing).
The Covington County Sheriff's Department and Detention Center, which will receive the fee revenues and use them for jail operations and related law enforcement needs, with collection and reporting roles for the clerk and sheriff.

Key Provisions
Section 1: A $30 booking fee is assessed against each person booked or incarcerated in the Covington County Detention Center who is subsequently convicted; the fee does not apply to municipal detainees.
Section 2: The fee is assessed upon conviction and collected like court costs; the clerk records the fee and the sheriff may collect it; the clerk must notify the sheriff monthly of fees assessed in the prior month.
Section 3: Revenues from the fee go to the Covington County Sheriff’s Department Law Enforcement Fund to be used for jail operations and related needs as determined by the sheriff.
Section 4: If the fee is not paid, the district attorney may assist in collection; the sheriff may contract for collection and pay a portion as a collection cost.
Section 5: The sheriff may withhold funds equal to the booking fee from funds held for an incarcerated person to apply toward the fee, with monthly notice to the clerk of the court.
Section 6: Revenues from the act are in addition to other funding and will not replace or reduce existing funding sources.
Section 7: The act becomes effective on the first day of the first month after ratification of a constitutional amendment proposed in 2024 to authorize additional court costs in Covington County and their distribution.

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