AL HB281

Amends Section 14-6-22 of the Alabama Code to require courts to order defendants convicted of misdemeanors to pay up to the actual expenses incurred for housing and maintenance costs associated with jail incarceration, removing the previous $20 per day cap.

Allows defendants to petition the court at sentencing for remission or reduction of payment costs if payment would impose manifest hardship on the defendant or immediate family, with courts able to modify payment methods.

Permits courts to allow payment in installments or to make payment a condition of probation or suspended sentence when a defendant is ordered to pay housing, maintenance, and medical costs.

Requires collected costs to be paid to the county or city jail where the defendant was incarcerated, with collection handled by the clerk of the sentencing court using any legal enforcement means.

Becomes effective on the first day of the third month following passage and gubernatorial approval.