AB 2428: Criminal fees.
<p>The bill amends several sections of California's government, health and safety, penal, and vehicle codes. It primarily addresses the collection of fees associated with criminal arrests, prosecutions, or convictions by repealing authority to collect many such fees. The bill makes unpaid court-imposed costs unenforceable and uncollectible, vacating any judgment imposed due to these costs. Additionally, it relieves individuals sentenced to state prison or confined in a county jail from paying trial court filing fees related to their criminal conviction.</p> <p>The legislation also allows public entities to accept personal checks for payment of court-ordered debt without specific conditions and prohibits charging recovery processing and collection costs for returned checks concerning such debts. The bill includes findings and declarations supporting these changes and makes conforming ame…
| Sep. 20, 2026 | Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 398, Statutes of 2026. |
| Sep. 20, 2026 | Approved by the Governor. |
| Sep. 03, 2026 | Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 4 p.m. |
| Aug. 27, 2026 | In Assembly. Ordered to Engrossing and Enrolling. |
| Aug. 26, 2026 | Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 28. Noes 11.). |
| Enrolled August 30, 2026 |
| Passed IN Senate August 26, 2026 |
| Passed IN Assembly May 26, 2026 |
| Amended IN Assembly May 18, 2026 |
| Amended IN Assembly April 20, 2026 |
| Introduced by Assembly Member Celeste Rodriguez (Coauthors: Assembly Members Rogers and Schultz) |
February 20, 2026 |
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:SEC. 2.
It is the intent of the Legislature to eliminate the assessment of certain fees on low-income Californians who cannot afford to pay court-ordered debt.SEC. 3.
Section 68635 of the Government Code is repealed.SEC. 4.
Section 68635 is added to the Government Code, to read:68635.
(a) This section applies only to waivers of trial court fees.SEC. 5.
Section 11374.5 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read:11374.5.
(a) Any manufacturer of a controlled substance who disposes of any hazardous substance that is a controlled substance or a chemical used in, or is a byproduct of, the manufacture of a controlled substance in violation of any law regulating the disposal of hazardous substances or hazardous waste is guilty of a public offense punishable by imprisonment pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170 of the Penal Code for two, three, or four years or in the county jail not exceeding one year.SEC. 6.
Section 11470.5 is added to the Health and Safety Code, to read:11470.5.
Beginning January 1, 2027, the unpaid balance of any court-imposed costs pursuant to Section 11374.5 as that section read on December 31, 2026, is unenforceable and uncollectible and any portion of a judgment imposing those costs shall be vacated.SEC. 7.
Section 597.3 of the Penal Code is amended to read:597.3.
(a) Every person who operates a live animal market shall do all of the following:SEC. 8.
Section 1203.1a of the Penal Code is amended to read:1203.1a.
(a) The probation officer of the county may authorize the temporary removal under custody or temporary release without custody of any person confined in a county jail, honor farm, or other detention facility, who is confined or committed as a condition of probation, after suspension of imposition of sentence or suspension of execution of sentence, for purposes preparatory to their return to the community, within 30 days prior to their release date, if the probation officer concludes that the person confined or committed is a fit subject for return.SEC. 9.
Section 1203.1i of the Penal Code is amended to read:1203.1i.
(a) When a person is convicted of a violation of any building standards adopted by a local entity by ordinance or resolution, including, but not limited to, local health, fire, building, or safety ordinances or resolutions, or any other ordinance or resolution relating to the health and safety of occupants of buildings, by maintaining a substandard building, as specified in Section 17920.3 of the Health and Safety Code, the court, or judge thereof, in making an order granting probation, in addition to any other orders, may order the person placed under house confinement, or may order the person convicted to serve both a term of imprisonment in the county jail and to be placed under house confinement.SEC. 10.
Section 1205.3 of the Penal Code is amended to read:1205.3.
(a) When a defendant is convicted of an offense and granted probation, and the court orders the defendant either to pay a fine or to perform specified community service work as a condition of probation, the court shall specify that if community service work is performed, it shall be performed in place of the payment of all fines and restitution fines on a proportional basis, and the court shall specify in its order the amount of the fine and restitution fine and the number of hours of community service work that shall be performed as an alternative to payment of the fine.SEC. 11.
Section 1209.5 of the Penal Code is amended to read:1209.5.
(a) Notwithstanding any other law, the court shall permit a person convicted of an infraction, upon a showing that payment of the total fine would pose a hardship on the defendant or the defendant’s family, to elect to perform community service in lieu of the total fine that would otherwise be imposed.SEC. 12.
Section 1210.2 is added to the Penal Code, to read:1210.2.
A county, municipality, or contracted entity shall not charge an administrative fee for participation in community service work for either of the following circumstances:SEC. 13.
Section 4011.1 of the Penal Code is amended to read:4011.1.
(a) Notwithstanding Section 29602 of the Government Code and any other provisions of this chapter, a county, city or the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Division of Juvenile Justice, is authorized to make claim for and recovery of the costs of necessary hospital, medical, surgical, dental, or optometric care rendered to any prisoner confined in a county or city jail or any juvenile confined in a detention facility, who would otherwise be entitled to that care under the Medi-Cal Act (Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 14000) Part 3, Division 9, of the Welfare and Institutions Code), and who is eligible for that care on the first day of confinement or detention, to the extent that federal financial participation is available, or under the provisions of any private program or policy for that care, and the county, city or the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Division of Juvenile Justice, shall be liable only for the costs of that care as cannot be recovered pursuant to this section. A person who is eligible for Medi-Cal shall not be eligible for benefits under the provisions of this section, and a county or city or the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Division of Juvenile Justice, is not authorized to make a claim for any recovery of costs for services for that person, unless federal financial participation is available for all or part of the costs of providing services to that person under the Medi-Cal Act.SEC. 14.
Section 4018.6 of the Penal Code is amended to read:4018.6.
(a) The sheriff of the county may authorize the temporary removal under custody or temporary release without custody of any person confined to the county jail, honor farm, or other detention facility for family emergencies or for purposes preparatory to their return to the community, if the sheriff concludes that the person confined is a fit subject therefor. Temporary removal shall not be for a period of more than three days. When a person confined is released for purposes preparatory to their return to the community, the sheriff shall not require the person detained to reimburse the county, in whole or in part, for expenses incurred by the county in connection with the release.SEC. 15.
Section 42007 of the Vehicle Code is amended to read:42007.
(a) (1) The clerk of the court shall collect a fee from every person who is ordered or permitted to attend a traffic violator school pursuant to Section 41501 or 42005 in an amount equal to the total bail set forth for the eligible offense on the uniform countywide bail schedule. As used in this subdivision, “total bail” means the amount established pursuant to Section 1269b of the Penal Code in accordance with the Uniform Bail and Penalty Schedule adopted by the Judicial Council, including all assessments, surcharges, and penalty amounts. Where multiple offenses are charged in a single notice to appear, the “total bail” is the amount applicable for the greater of the qualifying offenses. However, the court may determine a lesser fee under this subdivision upon a showing that the defendant is unable to pay the full amount. The fee shall not include the cost, or any part thereof, of traffic safety instruction offered by a traffic violator school.SEC. 16.
Section 42008.8 of the Vehicle Code is amended to read:42008.8.
(a) The Legislature finds and declares that a one-time infraction amnesty program would do all of the following:SEC. 17.
Section 730.5 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is repealed.