HB 1549: Cornelia, City of; Municipal Court; authorize assessment and collection of a technology fee

This bill applies only to the Municipal Court of the City of Cornelia. It authorizes the court clerk to add a technology fee, set by the municipal court judge, of up to $10.00 on top of each fine paid for a criminal or quasi-criminal offense. The money raised must be spent only on technology needs for the municipal court and the city's police department, such as computers, software, imaging and communications equipment, and police equipment like body cameras, drones, and 9-1-1 dispatch systems. The funds must be kept in a separate account managed by the court clerk and the city's chief financial officer, and that account is subject to audit by an auditor the Cornelia city government approves. The bill repeals any conflicting laws.

• Authorizes the Cornelia Municipal Court clerk to charge a technology fee of up to $10.00 on each criminal and quasi-criminal fine.
• Lets the municipal court judge set the exact fee amount within that $10.00 cap.
• Restricts use of the fee revenue to specific technology purchases for the court and city police department, including computer and communications equipment.
• Allows police technology purchases such as body-worn and vehicle cameras, drones, and 9-1-1 dispatch system operations to be funded from the fee.
• Requires the fee money to be kept in a segregated account managed by the court clerk and the city's chief financial officer, subject to outside audit.
• Permits the funds to reimburse Cornelia's information technology department for services it provides to the court or police department.

People who pay criminal or quasi-criminal fines in the Municipal Court of the City of Cornelia, the court's clerk and judge, the city's chief financial officer and information technology department, and the Cornelia police department, which can receive technology funded by the fee.

Anyone fined in Cornelia's municipal court would pay up to $10 more per fine, generating dedicated funding for court and police technology like body cameras and 9-1-1 systems, without drawing on the city's general budget for those purchases.

• Section 1(a) sets the technology fee cap at $10.00 per criminal or quasi-criminal fine, with the exact amount set by the municipal court judge.
• Section 1(a) lists three permitted uses: computer hardware and software, imaging and communications equipment, and police department equipment including cameras, drones, and 9-1-1 dispatch operations.
• Section 1(b) requires the fee revenue be kept in a segregated account overseen by the court clerk and city chief financial officer and subject to audit.
• Section 1(b) allows using the funds to reimburse the city's information technology department for services to the court or police.
• Section 2 repeals any conflicting laws.

1. 2026-05-11Effective Date 2026-05-11
2. 2026-05-11Act 589
3. 2026-05-11House Date Signed by Governor (House)
4. 2026-04-10House Sent to Governor (House)
5. 2026-03-31Senate Passed/Adopted (Senate)
6. 2026-03-31Senate Committee Favorably Reported (Senate)
7. 2026-03-25Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
8. 2026-03-23House Passed/Adopted (House)

• Victor Anderson (R, HD-010)Primary sponsor
• Chris Erwin (R, HD-032)

1. PassedHouse voteMarch 23, 2026

   158 yea, 0 nay (12 not voting, 6 absent)

   Local Calendar : House Vote #739

2. PassedSenate voteMarch 31, 2026

   45 yea, 0 nay (5 not voting, 4 absent)

   Local Consent Calendar: Senate Vote #873

• municipal courts
• local government fees
• police technology
• Cornelia Georgia
• court fines