---
title: HB 1548. Clarkesville, City of; Municipal Court; authorize assessment and collection of a technology fee
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/hb1548
cite_as: HB 1548, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1548
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1548.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1548/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/74089
date: 2026-05-11
status: passed
corpus_version: bills-2026-09-13
license: Public record of the Georgia General Assembly, via LegiScan; see about.md
publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice.
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omitted: votes and history
omitted_chars: 887
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1548.md?full=1
bill_number: HB 1548
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: House
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2026-05-11
last_action: Effective Date 2026-05-11
sponsors:
  - Victor Anderson
text_version: Enrolled
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB1548/2025
upstream_id: 2134582
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
  - municipal court fees
  - Clarkesville Georgia
  - court technology funding
  - local government fees
---

# HB 1548. Clarkesville, City of; Municipal Court; authorize assessment and collection of a technology fee

## Text

House Bill 1548 (AS PASSED HOUSE AND SENATE)
By: Representative Anderson of the 10th
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To authorize the assessment and collection of a technology fee by the Municipal Court of the
City of Clarkesville; to identify the authorized uses of such technology fee; to provide for
related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
(a) The clerk of the Municipal Court of the City of Clarkesville is hereby authorized to
charge and collect a technology fee to be set by the judge of the municipal court in an amount
not to exceed $10.00 as a surcharge to each criminal and quasi-criminal fine paid to the court.
Such technology fees shall be used exclusively to provide for technological needs of the
Municipal Court of the City of Clarkesville and the city's police department. Such uses shall
include only the following:
(1) The purchase, lease, maintenance, and installation of computer hardware and software;
and
(2) The purchase, lease, maintenance, and installation of equipment and software used for
case management, data storage, imaging, scanning, facsimile, communications, projections,
and printing.
(b) Funds collected pursuant to this section shall be maintained in a segregated account by
the clerk of the municipal court and the chief financial officer of the city, subject to audit by
an auditor approved by the governing authority of the City of Clarkesville, and shall be used
only for the purposes authorized in this section. Such funds may be used to reimburse the
city's information technology department for services provided to the court or police
department.
SECTION 2.
All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.

## Summaries written by Georgia Commons

The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the bill. Quote the text, not the summary.

House Bill 1548 would let the Municipal Court of the City of Clarkesville charge a technology fee of up to $10 on criminal and quasi-criminal fines to pay for court and police technology.

### Plain-language summary

This bill authorizes the clerk of the Municipal Court of the City of Clarkesville to add a technology fee, capped at $10, as a surcharge on top of criminal and quasi-criminal fines that people pay to the court. The judge of the municipal court sets the exact amount within that limit.
The money collected can only be used for specific technology needs of the municipal court and the city's police department, such as buying, leasing, or maintaining computer hardware and software, and equipment for case management, data storage, imaging, scanning, communications, and printing. The funds must be kept in a separate account managed by the court clerk and the city's chief financial officer, and are subject to audit by an approved city auditor. The city's information technology department can be reimbursed from these funds for services it provides to the court or police.

### What it does

- Authorizes the Municipal Court of the City of Clarkesville to charge a technology fee of up to $10.00 on each criminal and quasi-criminal fine paid to the court.
- Restricts use of the fee revenue to specific technology purposes for the municipal court and city police department, such as computer hardware, software, and case management or communications equipment.
- Requires the fee money to be kept in a segregated account managed by the court clerk and the city's chief financial officer.
- Subjects the segregated technology fee account to audit by an auditor approved by the City of Clarkesville's governing authority.
- Allows the funds to be used to reimburse the city's information technology department for services it provides to the court or police department.
- Repeals any existing laws that conflict with this new fee authorization.

### Who it affects

People who are fined by the Municipal Court of the City of Clarkesville for criminal or quasi-criminal offenses would pay the new fee. The city's municipal court clerk, chief financial officer, police department, and information technology department are also directly involved in collecting, managing, and using the funds.

### Why it matters

Anyone paying a fine in Clarkesville's municipal court would owe up to $10 more per fine, funding specific technology upgrades for the court and police department. The requirement to segregate and audit the funds is meant to ensure the money is spent only on the technology purposes the bill lists.

### Key provisions

- Section 1(a) authorizes the court clerk to charge and collect a technology fee, set by the judge, not exceeding $10.00 per criminal and quasi-criminal fine.
- Section 1(a) limits fee use to two categories: computer hardware and software purchases, leases, maintenance, and installation, and equipment or software for case management, data storage, imaging, scanning, communications, and printing.
- Section 1(b) requires the funds be kept in a segregated account managed jointly by the court clerk and the city's chief financial officer, subject to audit by a city-approved auditor.
- Section 1(b) permits using the funds to reimburse the city's information technology department for services to the court or police department.
- Section 2 repeals any conflicting laws.

## Status

- Status: Passed (2026-05-11)
- Last action: Effective Date 2026-05-11 (2026-05-11)
- Sponsors: Victor Anderson
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/74089

> The history, votes, and amendments (887 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1548.md?full=1