REPRESENTATIVES Stapleton, Carey, Hagan, Kearns, Schaffer, Carmichael, Latta, Schmidt, Fessler, Sullivan, Distel, Allen, Redfern, Womer Benjamin, Willamowski, Seitz, Faber, Hoops, R. Miller, Flowers, Salerno, Lendrum, Schneider, Metzger, Setzer, Calvert, Coates, Niehaus, G. Smith, Hughes, Gilb, Wilson, Otterman, Patton, Latell, Cirelli, DeBose, Key, Hartnett, Barrett, Roman, D. Miller, Sferra, Webster, Manning

To amend section 2947.23 of the Revised Code to

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authorize courts to impose periods of community

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service upon offenders who fail to pay judgments

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for court costs relating to the criminal action

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with a credit upon the judgment at the minimum wage

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rate per hour of service.

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BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:

Section 1. That section 2947.23 of the Revised Code be	7
amended to read as follows:	8

Sec. 2947.23. (A)(1) In all criminal cases, including	9
violations of ordinances, the judge or magistrate shall include in	10
the sentence the costs of prosecution and render a judgment	11
against the defendant for such costs. IfAt the time the judge or	12
magistrate imposes sentence, the judge or magistrate shall notify	13
the defendant of both of the following:	14

(a) If the defendant fails to pay that judgment or fails to	15
timely make payments towards that judgment under a payment	16
schedule approved by the court, the court may order the defendant	17
to perform community service in an amount of not more than forty	18
hours per month until the judgment is paid or until the court is	19
satisfied that the defendant is in compliance with the approved	20
payment schedule.	21

(b) If the court orders the defendant to perform the	22
community service, the defendant will receive credit upon the	23
judgment at the specified hourly credit rate per hour of community	24
service performed, and each hour of community service performed	25
will reduce the judgment by that amount.	26

(2) If a jury has been sworn at the trial of a case, the	27
fees of the jurors shall be included in the costs, which shall be	28
paid to the public treasury from which the jurors were paid.	29

(B) If a judge or magistrate has reason to believe that a	30
defendant has failed to pay the judgment described in division (A)	31
of this section or has failed to timely make payments towards that	32
judgment under a payment schedule approved by the judge or	33
magistrate, the judge or magistrate shall hold a hearing to	34
determine whether to order the offender to perform community	35
service for that failure. The judge or magistrate shall notify	36
both the defendant and the prosecuting attorney of the place,	37
time, and date of the hearing and shall give each an opportunity	38
to present evidence. If, after the hearing, the judge or	39
magistrate determines that the defendant has failed to pay the	40
judgment or to timely make payments under the payment schedule and	41
that imposition of community service for the failure is	42
appropriate, the judge or magistrate may order the offender to	43
perform community service in an amount of not more than forty	44
hours per month until the judgment is paid or until the judge or	45
magistrate is satisfied that the offender is in compliance with	46
the approved payment schedule. If the judge or magistrate orders	47
the defendant to perform community service under this division,	48
the defendant shall receive credit upon the judgment at the	49
specified hourly credit rate per hour of community service	50
performed, and each hour of community service performed shall	51
reduce the judgment by that amount. Except for the credit and	52
reduction provided in this division, ordering an offender to	53
perform community service under this division does not lessen the	54
amount of the judgment and does not preclude the state from taking	55
any other action to execute the judgment.	56

(C) As used in this section, "specified hourly credit rate"	57
means the wage rate that is specified in 26 U.S.C.A. 206(a)(1)	58
under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, that then is	59
in effect, and that an employer subject to that provision must pay	60
per hour to each of the employer's employees who is subject to	61
that provision.	62

Section 2.  That existing section 2947.23 of the Revised	63
Code is hereby repealed.	64