Sex offenders helping pay for record keeping

8-15-17 Wyoming:

A statute passed by the 2017 Wyoming Legislature is aimed at helping pay to monitor sex offenders. Beginning July 1, 2017, additions or deletions to addresses, registrations of vehicles, phones, etc., will require a fee.

Goshen County Under Sheriff Jeremy Wardell said the fee is a new charge for recording most changes in addresses, occupations, and other aspects of the individual offender’s life.

“We collect the $31.25 fee for each update and send it to the Wyoming Department of Criminal Investigation where it will help recover some of the cost of the software system,” Wardell said Monday.

Habitual, mailing and temporary addresses (vacations, out of town, jobs, trips, etc.) qualify for the fee. Recording changes in employment, whether part-time or full time, is included, however, temporary jobs less than 14 days a year are exempt.

Volunteer jobs that may or may not have compensation, benefit or pay, qualify, but temporary volunteering less than 14 days a year does not need updated. Changes in any adult education facility subjects physically attend, excluding Internet only classes, must be updated.

Changes in all owned or operated vehicles, including cars, trucks, trailers, motorcycles, 4-wheelers, tractors, campers, RVs, farm or construction equipment, with or without registration must be reported and qualify for the new fee. Watercraft of any type, except a personal flotation device, meet the fee requirements. Any trailers used for the watercraft also need to be listed. ..Continued..

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New proposal forces sex offenders to pay to be on NC registry

6-2-17 North Carolina:

RALEIGH, N.C. - A bill going through the North Carolina Legislature would force sex offenders to pay to be on the state’s sex offender registry.

The House gave preliminary approval Wednesday to the proposal that would force sex offenders to pay $90 a year to be listed on the registry.

People convicted of sex-related offenses would still have to be listed on the registry even if they don’t pay, but it would allow the state to take civil action in order to recover the fees.

The money would be used to keep the sex offender registry up and running. A final vote is expected Thursday in the House on the legislation. ..Source..

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Sex offender registration fees increase with proposed legislation

2-28-17 Wyoming:

SHERIDAN — Sex offenders in Wyoming may face increased registration fees this July in preparation for the 2019 expiration of the grant supporting Wyoming’s sex offender registration program.

At the request of the Wyoming Attorney General’s office, legislators appointed to the Judiciary Committee from both the House and Senate worked together over the interim to propose a bill to create the sex offender registration account, which would house increased registration and reporting fees. The House Judiciary Committee passed the bill with no opposition and the Appropriations Committee passed it with a 5-2 vote. The bill survived through the second reading Monday and goes through the third reading for consent Tuesday.

Wyoming is currently home to 1,548 active sex offenders who are out of prison. Of those, 35 percent received convictions outside of Wyoming and moved to the state, according to a fact sheet from Chief Deputy Attorney General John Knepper. Knepper, previously from Sheridan, tallied up the total cost of running the sex offender registry program for the state.

Wyoming runs the registry program, which costs $248,958.50 each year, with grant funds from the U.S. Department of Justice.

“The software cost is paid through 2019, but there is not a funding stream in place to cover it any further,” Knepper said on the fact sheet. “The U.S. Department of Justice has already denied grant funding for costs after 2019.”

In order to continue the registry, revenues need to flow from somewhere other than the U.S. Department of Justice. All sex offenders who were either convicted of a sexual offense or choose to live in Wyoming must register for life.

The bill puts a registration account in place by July 1, 2017, and requires offenders to pay a state registration fee not to exceed $120 at initial registration. In addition, the offender must also pay a county registration fee that is 25 percent of the state fee. County fees for registration and reporting will stay in each county, with the state fees going into the sex offender registration account created by the bill. Those unable to afford the fees may submit an indigent application. Offenders who willfully fail to pay required fees will be found guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not more than $750 and six months of incarceration at the county jail, the bill proposes.

Although offenders register for life, Knepper said Wyoming law permits individuals to petition to be removed from the offender registry.

“In recent years, 406 individuals have left the registry, and 164 have come off after a petition,” Knepper said.

The registry itself remains beneficial for both the Sheridan County Sheriff’s Office and the community, SCSO’s administrative clerk Mike Smith said.

“It makes people aware of who’s out there and where they’re located,” Smith said of the registry’s impact to Sheridan County residents. “It helps us keep an eye on them.”

Smith, who maintains the sex offender registration at the SCSO along with other duties, said most of the Sheridan County registrants are compliant. Including juvenile registrants, Sheridan County hosts 74 sex offenders who are active in the system. Juvenile information is not publishable, but requirements for juvenile offenders remain the same for adult offenders and includes registering for life.

Smith works to keep all information up-to-date and accurate. For any citizen concerned about a possible offender or who needs a question answered about the registry, Smith said he can help.

“If anybody has any concerns about a sex offender and whether or not they’re compliant or what they can or can’t do, we’d be more than happy to answer as much as I can,” Smith said.

The Wyoming Sex Offender Registry is located on the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation website.

Visitors can search the registry by address, city, non-compliant offenders, Internet names or email addresses and by phone number.

Citizens may also register to receive email alerts notifying them when an offender registers in the area. ..Source.. by Ashleigh Fox

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Dornin: Pay $50 a Year Forever ... Or Maybe Not

6-19-15 New Hampshire:

HB 587 would have abolished the annual fee former sex offenders pay to be listed in the state's online database.

Lawmakers killed a good crime bill this year.

Citizens for Criminal Justice Reform wrote and recruited sponsors for HB 587, which would have abolished the $50 annual “fee” the state charges citizens to register as former sexual offenders, often for the rest of their lives. The charge buys them the privilege of being publicly shamed on the State Police website. Failure to pay can get them arrested and theoretically sent to prison.

Our bill died on the House floor based in part on misinformation by state Rep. Dick Marston, R-Manchester, who posted the following blurb in the House calendar before the vote:

“There is a provision in the law that would currently allow the fee to be waived if the offender was unable to afford it. The (House Criminal Justice) committee determined that repealing the fee would have resulted in virtually eliminating the registry, which would be a disservice to the citizens of NH.”

Marston misled lawmakers, perhaps intentionally. Yes, eliminating the fee would cost the state the $93,400 a year it squeezes from registrants to pay for their scarlet letter. But the registry costs state and local government far more than that. The State Police testified they employ seven people full time to keep the registry up to date. The Manchester Police say they assign two full-time officers to track their 440 registrants on the State Police website. If that is a best practice, the rest of New Hampshire needs another eight or 10 officers full time to handle the remaining 2100 registrants. The total cost easily exceeds ten times what the state collects from registrants. ..Continued.. by Chris Dornin, Founder, CCJR

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Investigation Finds Sex Offenders Are Not Paying Mass. Registration Fee

Amazing, registry (a name & address listing) annually costs 3.8 million, paying registrants (1.1 mil) and unable to pay registrants (1.2 mil), but there is NO MENTION of the ADDITIONAL grants they get to run the registry? States are not supposed to be making money off this, a cottage industry!

6-17-15 Massachusetts:

When convicted sex offenders register each year in Massachusetts, they are required to pay an annual $75 registration fee, but necn has found hundreds are failing to pay that fee and the state is doing little about it.

"It's completely unacceptable and it's a sign of a system that is dysfunctional and needs to change," began Sen. Bruce Tarr.

Since 2012, the Sex Offender Registry Board has collected $1.1 million in fees from men and women convicted of sex crimes, but the board has left even more money on the table- failing to collect another $1.2 million in fees.

"If we were in private industry and you were basically saying, 'hey, 40 percent of what you think your revenue should be is not being collected,' management would say, 'this isn't working right,'" Rep. Bradley Jones added.

The state already waives fees for sex offenders deemed too poor to pay. According to state data, last year the board waived the $75 fee for about a third of the more than 11,000 offenders in the system. That money is not counted in this 1.2 million in uncollected fees.

Paul Craney heads the non-profit, non-partisan Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance. He points out that the money collected goes back into SORB's annual $3.8 million dollar budget- and ultimately taxpayers are left holding the bag. ..Continued.. by Ally Donnelly

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Hord case cited in state audit

This is one reason why registrants MUST get a signed receipt, or copy of, every document or transaction with authorities. File it forever...

5-29-15 Tennessee:

The office of Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury Justin Wilson has released its reports of cash shortages, caused by theft, fraud or other problems in local government.

One report covers county governments, while the other covers cities and towns, and other government-related agencies such as utility districts.

Hord case

The only finding related to Bedford County was the case of sheriff's deputy Rebecca Hord, who was indicted in 2013 after a cash shortage was found in accounts related to the Sexual Offender Registry. The case was retired earlier this year.

Hord held the rank of captain before she was terminated in 2012 for allegedly driving her county-issued patrol car to Nashville and Kentucky for non-work related reasons and "other non-specified violations of department policy."

According to an investigative audit by the Comptroller of the Treasury released in late 2013, a cash shortage of at least $31,460 was found in 2012 from the sheriff's department's sexual offender registry office (SOR). The investigation covered the period Jan. 1, 2006, through Dec. 31, 2011.

Poor or no records

After Hord was fired, the new SOR questioned a sexual offender regarding $150 in fees the database said he owed. The offender presented a generic, unofficial receipt documenting the payment, but the department had no record and could not trace it to a deposit.

Several receipts from sexual offenders also could not be traced to the accounting records of the department, or to the SOR, the audit reported, and an investigation was initiated.

From 2006 to 2011, at least $42,198 should have been collected, and due to the condition of the records, there could have been more sexual offenders who were required to report to the department that auditors could not determine.

Four documents submitted by Hord to the TBI indicated that the offenders were indigent and could not pay their required registration fee. However, all four had paid, and former sheriff Randall Boyce told auditors that his signature on those documents was forged, appearing to be photocopied.

No reports

The audit also indicated that sexual offenders were not required to report to the sheriff's department in person, in violation of state law, and that the sheriff's department did not inquire as to why a sexual offender either quit reporting or stopped paying the administrative fee.

At the same time the criminal case against Hord was retired, attorneys on both sides asked that a wage and hour and discrimination lawsuit by Hord against the county, the sheriff's department and Boyce be dismissed.

Statewide

The state's 95 counties began the last fiscal year with $775,221 in cash shortages that had not been recovered. During the year, $675,742 worth of new shortages were detected. Counties were able to recover $661,981 through restitution payments, insurance claims or other means. That left a net unrecovered shortage of $788,981 at the end of the fiscal year.

For the cities, town and agencies, fiscal year 2013 began with $1,640,277 in unrecovered cash shortages. During the year, $4,485,021 in new shortages were detected. A total of $4,932,640 was recovered during the fiscal year, leaving an unrecovered shortage of at least $1,154,633 as of June 30, 2013.

Thefts continue

"These reports show why Tennesseans should join our office in helping make government work better," Wilson said. "I am pleased to note the continuing efforts to recover substantial amounts of public money, but theft remains a problem. I encourage all government leaders to follow auditors' recommendations and take the necessary steps to prevent fraud, waste and abuse of public money."

Both reports provide explanations of how the shortages were discovered, methods used to steal the money, corrective steps taken to prevent future thefts and legal actions taken against those responsible. ..Source.. by T-G STAFF REPORT

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Fees offset cost of tracking sex offenders in Hamilton County

Did they apply for and get any GRANTS?

5-26-15 Tennessee:

The Hamilton County Sheriff's Office has spent $37,000 so far this fiscal year to monitor 368 of the county's registered sex offenders, but the office also has received $26,400 from offenders to offset that cost.

The sheriff's office is tasked with checking the addresses of registered sex offenders, ensuring they follow the rules of the registry and registering new offenders.

The revenue comes from an annual $150 fee that every registered offender in Tennessee is required to pay. Of that, $100 goes to a local agency that monitors the offender and $50 goes to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.

The money from the fees can be used only on registry-related expenses, said Don Gorman, director of administration at the sheriff's office.

Those expenses often include computer equipment, cameras and overtime for deputies who work special sex offender operations, Detective Mike Cox said. He is the one full-time officer who handles the sex offender registry at the sheriff's office.

The revenue from offenders is also used to replace Cox's car every four or five years, Gorman said. In the proposed budget for the 2015-16 fiscal year, the sheriff's office asks to increase the sex offender registry budget from about $46,000 to $68,000, and that's earmarked for a new vehicle, he said.

"It can only be used by the detective who works in sex offender," Gorman said. "We put 30,000 to 40,000 miles on those vehicles a year, so by five years they're pretty beat up."

Registered sex offenders are also required to check in either quarterly or annually with the sheriff's office. In 2014, deputies took out 93 warrants on sex offenders who violated the registry in some way, Cox said.

Offenders can violate the registry in myriad ways, from failing to pay the annual fee to stepping foot on public school property when children are present.

There are about 567 registered sex offenders in Hamilton County. The offenders who are not monitored by the sheriff's office are tracked by their probation and parole officers. ..Source.. by Shelly Bradbury

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City notification to include KPD fliers, newspaper ads, website

12-1-2014 Tennessee:

KINGSPORT — The city of Kingsport plans to establish a community notification system where residents, schools and child-care facilities would be informed of newly arrived sex offenders in the city. Notification could come through fliers posted at the Kingsport Police Department, notices listed in local newspapers or posted to an online website.

Though the law allows for local law enforcement agencies to mail letters to residents informing them of sex offenders newly arrived to the neighborhood, by a recent action of the Board of Mayor and Aldermen, that means of delivery will likely not be taking place.

The matter that went before the BMA earlier this month dealt with implementing the new notification system, in accordance with state law, and for the establishment of a new $50 fee to offset the cost of the notifications. The fee would be paid annually by the sex offender and be in addition to the $150 fee they already have to pay when moving to a new community.

"Currently, if someone wants to obtain information about sex offenders in Kingsport, what they have to do is go to the TBI website and navigate it, then go through the counties to find Sullivan," said Police Chief David Quillin. "This (new system) allows us to notify citizens in Kingsport in a couple of different manners and makes it easier to have the information. It allows (the department) to be a little more proactive."

One method discussed at a recent BMA work session is the creation of a website, specific to Kingsport, where the police department would post notifications of sex offenders moving into the region. Quillin said in the coming weeks, the department plans to push out a mobile app, where subscribers would have access to information about the police department, including a link to the sex offender listings.

The BMA, on a 6 to 1 vote, chose to remove the option of notifying residents about sex offenders via mailed letters from the ordinance governing the system.

Alderwoman Colette George, who made the push to remove the mailing option, said the written notifications could create liability issues for the property owner, the city and the police department.

"What we deal with on a day-to-day basis in real estate is sellers are required to disclose adverse facts about their home. Adverse facts are different in everybody's book," George said. "If I got written notice, threw it away and in six months decided to sell my house, it's probably not going to be something I remember. But I have received written notification. Someone could potentially come in and say your city has a policy, they notified you in writing, you didn't disclose it, therefore I'm suing you."

George said she would disclose such information to a buyer with small children, but with an older individual, the matter might not enter her mind as much.

"The disclosure form directs buyers to websites to research sex offenders. It's not the seller's job to do that," George said. "We tell them if this is important to you, you need to research it."

Alderman John Clark voted against removing the wording about mailed notifications, asking how someone like his mother, in her 80s with no access to the Internet, would know if a sex offender moves into the neighborhood.

"Is disclosure or notification more important? I think notification is what we're trying to do," Clark said.

Quillin said many of the sex offenders are transient in nature and if the department did mail notices to residents, the work would be time consuming and labor intensive.

George said there were other issues with the mailings: if there were rental properties would the letter go to the renter or the owner; and if the owners lived in other states, would it go to them or the residents.

"It's not the best way to notify people and it could put people in a bad situation without them realizing it," George said. "I just don't think the mail is the right method to tell people a sex offender has been released and moved into their area. I don't think it's the most effective, most realistic (method) and there's too many loopholes. It gives people a false sense of what's happening." ..Source.. by Matthew Lane

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Lincoln County begins sex offender notification program

This is the ultimate in stupidity. And, it is only for Sheriff's offices that choose to use it. I wonder, do they hire limos to bring folks who don't have transportation to view sex offenders on monitors/pics/etc. in public buildings? A Tennessee Rube Goldberg system..

10-15-2014 Tennessee:

FAYETTEVILLE, Tenn. (WHNT)– The Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office wants to make sure you get a good look at sex offenders who may live in your neighborhood.

You can always use the Tennesee Bureau of Investigations website to view them, but in a community meeting some rural residents told county leaders they don’t have access to that.

“Sex offenders were in the area and the people weren’t able to be notified because they didn’t have computers, or access to computers or the internet,” said Sandra Metcalf, Sex Offender Registrar at the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office.

Metcalf and Sheriff Murray Blackwelder brought this to the attention of state representatives, and helped craft House Bill 1860, which passed and was signed into law last June.

With that in place, cities and counties voluntarily establish a community notification system for sexual offenders, create a notification fee to be administered to sex offenders in order to pay for it, and define where to put the notifications so the public can see them.

“It gives people an awareness they didn’t [all] have before,” said Blackwelder.

In Lincoln County right now, notices about registered sex offenders including their names, addresses, offenses, and photos are distributed through LCD monitors placed in the courthouse and sheriff’s office.

Later, letters, mailers, newspaper postings, and other means will be used to get the word out.

“That gives us the ability to catch everyone at some point in time,” said Blackwelder. “It’s a slow process, but we’re going to get it out there.”

Metcalf said it took a lot of work to get this in place, including deputies traveling to each offender’s home to confirm where they live.

Right now, this notification system only distributes the information for offenders monitored by the sheriff’s office.

“[We are] educating the people, wanting them to know what’s going on around them,” said Metcalf.

The funding for the notifications comes from a yearly fee all sex offenders must pay. It may take a while to get all the means of notification in place while the money rolls in.

Sheriff Blackwelder said Lincoln County played a huge part in getting the law passed.

“It’s satisfying to see it from start to finish,” he said. ..Source.. by Kristen Conner

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Area Counties to Charge for Sex Offender Registration

5-5-2014 Missouri:

(ST. JOSEPH, Mo.) Sheriff's departments from nine counties across northwest Missouri will be taking advantage of a law allowing them to charge sex offenders for maintaining the Sex Offender Registry program.

Representatives from four of those counties met at the Buchanan County Sheriff's office Monday to talk about the charges.

Starting June 1, counties will begin charging $10 for a first time registry and $5 for each change to a sex offender's current registration.

In Buchanan, Andrew, Nodaway and Holt counties alone, that represents more than 400 offenders.

"I think what it does is it holds their feet to the fire and makes them understand that there are people watching and that it is their responsibility," said Nodaway County Sheriff Darrin White.

"I think all of us are share in the philosophy that they need to pay for the problem they're creating," added Buchanan County Sheriff Mike Strong.

Strong said the small fee will not come close to paying for the cost of maintaining the sex offender program. He says his office spends more than $80,000 per year to register and monitor sex offenders. ..Source.. by Alan Van Zandt

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Sex Offender Notification Bill Advances In Tennessee Legislature

In this bill is a $50.00 fee charged to every registrant every time they move. Supposedly the cost to notify the neighborhood where s/he moves to.. News article poorly written!

Correction, the bill as worded is far worse: HB-1860 As introduced, allows county, metropolitan form of government or municipality to establish a community notification system to notify certain residences, schools and child care centers that a sexual offender or violent sexual offender is residing within a certain distance of such residences, schools and child care centers and authorizes a fee of up to $50 for each offender in the jurisdiction to defray the notification costs. And which is in addition to $150.00 they already get (see bill).

This may result in overlapping jurisdictions causing certain registrants MULTIPLE fees...

3-20-2014 Tennessee:

A push for tougher sex offender notification laws in Tennessee came one step closer to reality Tuesday, part of an ongoing effort that originated in Lincoln County several months ago.

A committee in the Tennessee Legislature approved HB 1860, a bill that would allow municipal and county governments to mail written notices and post flyers in communities that convicted sex offenders move to.

Tennessee lists all of its registered sex offenders on a state website the only legal method of notification the Volunteer State currently has. But Lincoln County Sheriff Murray Blackwelder said residents who don’t know about the site, or those who don’t have internet access, are vulnerable to potential danger. Blackwelder said issues with the current system came to a head at a community meeting in a rural part of the county last year.

“They [residents] were concerned because they weren’t notified that sex offenders were living in their communities,” said Blackwelder. “When we discussed the TBI website, it became evident that a lot of these people did not have access to the TBI website nor access to the internet.”

Sheriff Blackwelder decided to contact state legislators about the dilemma, a brainstorming session that gave birth to the Tennessee Community Notification Act. Blackwelder said it guarantees awareness for parents, and is cost-effective.

“This gives parents the knowledge of who is in their community,” said Blackwelder. “It doesn’t cost taxpayers a dime… In this bill there is an additional 50 dollar fee assessed to the sex offender. That 50 dollars will be earmarked for community notification.”

Alabama and several other neighboring states already have similar laws in place. Lincoln County officials said it’s one reason why several sex offenders have recently moved north of the state line.

Both bodies of the Tennessee Legislature are expected to formally vote on HB 1860 in the next few weeks. ..Source.. by Nick Banaszak

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Megan's Law Gets New Teeth Under Bill Sponsored By Mercer/Middlesex Lawmakers

These Lawmakers are insane with this fee. Hopefully the ACLU is poised to take this case on.

1-22-2014 New Jersey:

Under the new law, sponsored by Assemblymen Wayne DeAngelo and Daniel R. Benson, both D-Mercer/Middlesex, newly convicted sex offenders will have to pay a $30 monthly fee

Penalties under Megan’s Law got a little stiffer under new law signed Tuesday by Gov. Chris Christie that makes sex offenders pay for part of their monitoring costs.

Under the new law, sponsored by Assemblymen Wayne DeAngelo and Daniel R. Benson, both D-Mercer/Middlesex, newly convicted sex offenders will have to pay a $30 monthly fee – money that would go into a state fund to pay for offenders’ supervision. Some of the money also would pay for authorities to track offenders’ online activity.

The law also upgrades penalties for sexual assault if the victim is physically or mentally incapacitated. The crime is now a second degree offense, up from the former third degree offense. It carries a sentence of 5 to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $150,000.

It also increases the penalty for failure to register a new address with authorities from a fourth-degree to a third-degree crime and clarifies that a juvenile caught "sexting" with a cell phone would not have to register as a sex offender.

Under the new law low-level offenders whose conduct has been deemed "repetitive" and "compulsive" can be seen in publicly accessible online databases. Formerly, only mid-level offenders were included.

The law provides money from the supervision fund to upgrade authorities’ computer equipment to monitor sex offenders’ online moves, and it prohibits parole officers from handling more than 40 sex offender cases.

“This tweaks Megan’s Law to help prevent innocent children from becoming victims,” DeAngelo said in a release. “Measures like ensuring that parole officers are not overwhelmed by large case loads and creating penalties that can help fund initiatives to aid in the surveillance of these offenders will all help ensure that these perpetrators do not become repeat offenders at the expense of our children.” ..Source.. by Keith Brown

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Bramnick Bill Strengthening Megan’s Law Approved by Assembly

1-14-2014 New Jersey:

Legislation sponsored by Assembly Republican Leader Jon Bramnick that strengthens certain provisions of “Megan’s Law,” which requires the registration of sex offenders and notification to the community of their whereabouts, was approved by the General Assembly today.

The bill, S-2636--/--A-3886, upgrades the penalty for a sexual assault committed against a person who is physically or intellectually incapacitated to aggravated sexual assault, increasing the charge from a third degree crime to one of the second degree. It also requires the offender to register under Megan’s Law.

“Sexual predators will now pay a more severe penalty for committing this heinous act,” said Bramnick, R-Union, Morris and Somerset. “We must always protect our most vulnerable citizens. Those who violate Megan’s Law will pay a steep price to keep them from harming anyone else.”

Bramnick’s bill also increases the penalty when a sex offender fails to notify law enforcement of a change in address or they have access to the Internet from a fourth degree crime to a third degree offense.

Additionally, the bill also imposes a requirement on the State Parole Board to improve the board’s supervision and monitoring of sex offenders. A monthly penalty of $30 would be imposed on every person convicted of a sex offense to fund these initiatives. Monies deposited into the “Sex Offender Fund” are to be used for operational expenses incurred by the board in this effort. ..Source.. by ARep

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Kinder officials agree to raise sex offender fees

11-10-2013 Louisiana:

KINDER — Officials here agreed Monday to raise the registration fees for sex offenders and child predators living or moving into the town.

An ordinance unanimously adopted by the council increases a one-time initial registration fee from $60 to $400 for newly convicted offenders and those moving into the town. The annual renewal fee will also increase from $60 to $100 for all offenders.

The fees are the same set by the Allen Parish Police Jury last month and similar to recent increases imposed by Lake Charles, Sulphur, Westlake and other municipalities. Reeves is considering adopting a similar fee structure, according to town attorney Michael Holmes.

State law sets the annual fee at $60, but allows municipalities to increase the costs for monitoring, tracking and other services.

“The goal of the ordinance is to actually collect enough registration fees and renewal fees to cover the anticipated costs of registering and monitoring these individuals,” Holmes said.

If the Police Department reports that it is costing more to track and monitor the offenders in the future, the council may consider increasing the fees again, he said.

About 40 registered sex offenders live in Allen Parish. Of those fewer than a dozen live in Kinder.

Under the measure, offenders would face misdemeanor charges and a $500 fine for failure to pay the fee. Additional penalties ranging from $1,000 to $3,000 could also be charged for those providing false information, failing to notify officials of an address change and failing to notify the community of their residence.

The state requires sex offenders to register with the Louisiana Sex Offender and Child Predator Registry, update their information more often and provide officials with new details of their whereabouts.

The offenders have three levels of registration periods — 15 years, 25 years and lifetime — depending on the severity of the offense committed. ..Source.. by Doris Maricle

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Sex Offenders Assessed New $50 Fee

ACLU time for court action. Folks on the registry for life will be paying thousands of dollars which is totally unreasonable. If the public wants the registry, then the public should pay for it. The state does not charge other felons for keeping track of their criminal records; this is unequal application of the law issue.

11-5-2013 Michigan:

LANSING - Sex Offenders will have to pay a fee to maintain the sex offender registry in Michigan. On Tuesday Governor Snyder signed into a law a measure that charges registered sex offenders $50 a year for as long as they are required to be on the sex offender registry. The law was sponsored by Senator Rick Jones of Grand Ledge.

"This law will help reduce taxpayer costs to maintain Michigan's sex offender registry," Gov. Rick Snyder said in a statement sent to the media. "By requiring registered sex offenders to pay an annual fee to fund the registry website, law enforcement will be able to direct more of its resources to public safety."

Previously, registered sex offenders only had to pay a one-time fee, which only provided enough revenue to cover about 10 percent of the cost to maintain the state's sex offender registry, according to the Governor's office. ..Source.. by WILX10.com

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UPDATE: Allen Parish to raise sex offender fees

10-9-2013 Louisiana:

OBERLIN — The Allen Parish Police Jury has agreed to increase registration fees for convicted sex offenders living in the parish.

An ordinance adopted by the Police Jury on Monday will boost sex offenders’ registration fees from $60 to $100 annually. A one-time initial fee of $400 will be charged for newly convicted offenders and those moving into the parish for the first time.

“I realize places in Calcasieu Parish like Lake Charles and Sulphur are charging $200 to $400, but there is some talk whether civil action will be brought (against them),” Sheriff Doug Hebert III said.

Allen Parish will begin collecting the increased renewal fees on the next date of renewal for each registered offender or when a new offender registers for the first-time, Hebert said.

Offenders will face a $500 penalty for failure to pay the fees. Additional penalties of $1,000 to $3,000 could be charged for providing false information, including failing to provide a change of address or failure to notify the community of their residence.

Allen Parish currently has nearly 40 registered sex offenders, most of them living in the Oakdale and Kinder areas. ..Source.. by Town Talk

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Allen Parish considers raising sex offender registration rates

10-8-2013 Louisiana:

ALLEN PARISH, LA (KPLC) - "I don't like seeing people leaving an adjacent parish to come here as a sex offender because it's more affordable, which is what I'm trying to say," said Allen Parish Chief Deputy Ricky Johnson.

It happened first in Lake Charles, then in Sulphur, a raise in sex offender registration rates.

And now, Allen Parish officials say they are feeling the effects of those decisions.

"It's not a mass exodus from Calcasieu Parish, but we've had a few sex offenders that came to Allen Parish and they basically voiced to our sex offender registry people who keep up with that, Lieutenant Turner, that the reason they're leaving Calcasieu Parish is that the fees are too high," Johnson said.

Johnson said Allen Parish has roughly 44 sex offenders. And while it's hard to say if they all came from those areas who have recently upped their costs, he said there has been a recent influx.

"I'm sure Calcasieu and Jeff Davis and Beauregard wouldn't want us to raise ours to where sex offenders started to move to their parishes. So, there probably needs to be some standardized fees," Johnson said.

But there is a standardized fee. Louisiana state law regulates sex offender registration rates at $60 a year, but as Calcasieu Parish District Attorney John DeRosier told KPLC in July, jurisdictions have the right to raise that cost if it's comparable to the services rendered.

"I think it's entirely reasonable for a municipality to charge an amount that is reasonable particularly when it is in direct relation to the amount that it costs, DeRosier said.

And Johnson said that's the case in Allen Parish.

"It costs the taxpayers for the sex offenders to be tracked by the Sheriff's Office so I think they should pay a portion of it," he said.

There is no word yet on how much Allen Parish wants to raise their fee.

There will be a public hearing at 6:30 p.m. Monday at the Allen Parish Police Jury administrative office in Oberlin to discuss the fees. ..Source.. by Gerron Jordan

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Annual sex offender fee approved by Michigan Senate

Its time for Michigan RSO's to contact their Representatives to get this bill killed. Note: If a RSO is not working, and has no personal income being supported only by other family income, the family has no responsibility to pay these fees; no matter how hard the state tries to get families to pay these fees!

5-2-2013 Michigan:

Registered sex offenders living in Michigan would have to pay an annual fee under a measure that has passed the Republican-led Senate.

The bill passed on a 33 to 2 vote Thursday. Registered sex offenders must currently pay a one-time $50 fee, but this bill would require that they pay $50 annually.

Republican Sen. Rick Jones of Grand Ledge is the bill’s sponsor. He says $20 of each fee would go to local law enforcement and $30 to the state.

The bill only applies to registered sex offenders who are out of prison. People that prove that they are indigent can get a fee waiver.

He says neighboring states like Indiana and Illinois already charge annual fees.

The bill now heads to the House. ..Source.. by LSJ.com

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