Illinois' court fees rising to cover special programs

(AP) — Court fees and fines in Illinois have become bloated over the years with surcharges to pay for programs and services, resulting in steep increases to what people pay in civil and criminal cases, according to a new report.

Sometimes the added surcharges fund things unrelated to a case, such as law libraries, zero-interest loans for fire departments to buy new trucks, and waiting rooms for children while their parents are in court.

Last year, as a freshman legislator, he sponsored legislation that passed to allow Kane County to impose up to $30 in civil and criminal matters for the construction of new judicial facilities.

The task force Andersson was a part of made several recommendations to lawmakers to overhaul what the report calls a "byzantine system" of fees that has expanded over more than a decade, codified in more than a dozen places in the state's law books.

Nekritz and Anderson are writing legislation to introduce next year based on the task force recommendations, including combining the fee and fines guidelines in one statute for consistency and clarity and allowing for more fee waivers in civil cases depending on someone's income.