SB692: Bill Text

SB692,1,5 An Act to renumber and amend 973.045 (3) (a); to amend 20.455 (5) (g), 20.455 (5) (gc) and 973.045 (1) (intro.); to repeal and recreate 973.045 (1m); and to create 973.045 (1r) (b) and 973.045 (2m) of the statutes; relating to: crime victim and witness assistance surcharges imposed on persons committing civil offenses and making an appropriation.

Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau

Under current law, when a court imposes a sentence on a person who has committed a crime or places a person who has committed a crime on probation, the person is required to pay a crime victim and witness assistance surcharge of $60 for each misdemeanor and $85 for each felony. Most of the surcharge (part A) is allocated to fund county programs for crime victims and witnesses and to provide awards to crime victims. The rest of the surcharge (part B) is used for grants to fund services for victims of sexual assaults.

Current law also requires that the crime victim and witness assistance surcharge be imposed in certain cases in which a criminal prosecution is deferred or suspended. Specifically, if a person is charged with a crime for conduct that could also be prosecuted as a civil offense and the person agrees to pay a forfeiture as part of an agreement to have the prosecution deferred or suspended, the court must impose, in addition to the forfeiture, a crime victim and witness assistance surcharge of $60 (if the person was originally charged with a misdemeanor) or $85 (if the person was originally charged with a felony).

This bill revises the criteria for imposing crime victim and witness assistance surcharges in civil offense cases and changes how money collected from those surcharges is used. Under the bill, a court must impose the crime victim and witness assistance surcharge if: 1) a person is charged with one or more crimes in a complaint; 2) as a result of the complaint being amended, the person is charged with a civil offense in lieu of one of those crimes; and 3) the court finds that the person committed that civil offense. In addition, under the bill, all money collected in such cases from crime victim and witness surcharges is "part A money," which must be used to fund county programs for crime victims and witnesses and to provide awards to crime victims.

For further information see the state and local fiscal estimate, which will be printed as an appendix to this bill.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

SB692, s. 1 Section 1. 20.455 (5) (g) of the statutes is amended to read:

SB692,2,11 20.455 (5) (g) Crime victim and witness assistance surcharge, general services. The amounts in the schedule for purposes of ch. 950. All moneys received from part A of any crime victim and witness assistance surcharges surcharge authorized under s. 973.045 (1) that are allocated as part A of the surcharge under s. 973.045 (3) (1r) (a) 1., all moneys received from any crime victim and witness assistance surcharge authorized under s. 973.045 (1m), and all moneys received from any delinquency victim and witness assistance surcharges surcharge authorized under s. 938.34 (8d) (a) shall be credited to this appropriation account. The department of justice shall transfer from this appropriation account to the appropriation account under par. (kj) the amounts in the schedule under par. (kj).

SB692, s. 2 Section 2. 20.455 (5) (gc) of the statutes is amended to read:

SB692,3,2 20.455 (5) (gc) Crime victim and witness surcharge, sexual assault victim services. All moneys received from part B of any crime victim and witness assistance surcharges surcharge authorized under s. 973.045 (1) that are allocated as part B of the surcharge under s. 973.045 (3) (1r) (a) 2., to provide grants for sexual assault victim services under s. 165.93.

SB692, s. 3 Section 3. 973.045 (1) (intro.) of the statutes, as affected by 2005 Wisconsin Act 25, is amended to read:

SB692,3,7 973.045 (1) (intro.) Except as provided in sub. (1m), if If a court imposes a sentence or places a person on probation, the court shall impose a crime victim and witness assistance surcharge calculated as follows:

SB692, s. 4 Section 4. 973.045 (1m) of the statutes, as created by 2005 Wisconsin Act 25, is repealed and recreated to read:

SB692,3,11 973.045 (1m) (a) In this subsection, "civil offense" means an offense punishable by a forfeiture.

SB692,3,13 (b) If all of the following apply, the court shall impose a crime victim and witness assistance surcharge in addition to any forfeiture that it imposes:

SB692,3,14 1. The person is charged with one or more crimes in a complaint.

SB692,3,16 2. As a result of the complaint being amended, the person is charged with a civil offense in lieu of one of those crimes.

SB692,3,18 3. The court finds that the person committed that civil offense on or after the effective date of this subdivision .... [revisor inserts date].

SB692,3,21 (c) The amount of the surcharge imposed under par. (b) shall be the amount specified in sub. (1) (a) or (b), depending on whether the crime that was the subject of the amendment under par. (b) 2. was a misdemeanor or a felony.

SB692, s. 5 Section 5. 973.045 (1r) (b) of the statutes is created to read:

SB692,3,24 973.045 (1r) (b) The entire amount of any surcharge imposed under sub. (1m) shall be allocated to part A.

SB692, s. 6 Section 6. 973.045 (2m) of the statutes is created to read:

SB692,4,3 973.045 (2m) The secretary of administration shall credit part A of the crime victim and witness surcharge to the appropriation account under s. 20.455 (5) (g) and part B to the appropriation account under s. 20.455 (5) (gc).

SB692, s. 7 Section 7. 973.045 (3) (a) of the statutes, as affected by 2005 Wisconsin Act 25, is renumbered 973.045 (1r) (a), and 973.045 (1r) (a) (intro.), as renumbered, is amended to read:

SB692,4,11 973.045 (1r) (a) (intro.) The clerk shall record the any crime victim and witness surcharge imposed under sub. (1) in 2 parts. Part A is the portion that the secretary of administration shall credit to the appropriation account under s. 20.455 (5) (g) and part B is the portion that the secretary of administration shall credit to the appropriation account under s. 20.455 (5) (gc), as follows:

SB692,4,12 (End)