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Iowans eligible for court debt forgiveness
Iowans who owe the state court costs can have up to half of their debt forgiven. If the debtor pays 50 percent of his overdue fines he can have the other 50 percent waived and considered paid in full. The Iowa Department of Revenue said in a press release that 217,000 people in the state will be sent an application this month offering them partial amnesty. The program was approved by the Iowa Legislature this year
Andy Hallman
Sep. 30, 2018 7:30 pm
Iowans who owe the state court costs can have up to half of their debt forgiven. If the debtor pays 50 percent of his overdue fines he can have the other 50 percent waived and considered paid in full. The Iowa Department of Revenue said in a press release that 217,000 people in the state will be sent an application this month offering them partial amnesty. The program was approved by the Iowa Legislature this year and ends Nov. 30.
The debt forgiveness program applies only to certain kinds of court costs accrued before Dec. 1, 2006. Most fines, penalties, court costs, and fees are eligible, except those payable to cities or counties.
The Department of Revenue?s director Mark Schuling said individuals who owe debt will benefit in several ways.
?In addition to saving money, this is a chance to clear up court debt without legal action,? he said. ?Iowa also benefits by collecting state debt that has been owed for many years.?
Other costs that are ineligible for the program are victim restitution payments, child support, alimony, jail fees, sheriff fees and civil penalties assessed by the Department of Transportation.
Individuals who are incarcerated or under the supervision of the Courts or Department of Corrections are not eligible, regardless of the age of the court debt. Debtors who are already making payments through the state centralized collection unit (CCU) of the Department of Revenue or through their county attorney are not eligible.
Washington County Attorney Barbara Edmondson said those persons who are on probation have a probation officer who makes sure the person pays a portion of their fine every month.
Edmondson said a lot of debt goes unpaid because the debtors don?t have the ability to pay.
?Fines for operating while intoxicated for repeat offenses can get pretty high,? said Edmondson. ?It can take awhile to pay off that fine with an average income.?
For the full story, see the Sept. 9 edition of The Washington Evening Journal
