HB 24-1099

House Bill 24-1099, which has been approved by the Governor and will take effect on November 1, 2024, removes filing fees for defendants in eviction cases. This means that people facing eviction won't have to pay any fees when they file their responses or other documents with the court. The bill also requires courts to serve these documents to landlords without charging a fee if the defendant files them physically instead of electronically. Additionally, it allocates funding to help cover the costs for the judicial department related to this change.

Official Summary

Current law establishes a schedule of filing fees for litigants in civil actions in county courts. The act eliminates the fee for a defendant filing an answer in an eviction proceeding. Current law permits a party to submit and a county court to grant a motion to waive filing fees in a residential eviction action. The act removes the process for securing a waiver of these filing fees. Current law prohibits a county court from assessing fees when indigent parties e-file motions, answers, or documents in connection with evictions. The act removes the reference to indigent parties and instead prohibits a county court from charging defendants fees for filing motions, answers, or other documents in evictions. If a pro se defendant files an answer or other document physically instead of electronically, the act requires a county court, on a defendant's behalf, to timely serve the document on a plaintiff. The act prohibits the court from charging a fee related to the service. For the 2024-25 state fiscal year, the act appropriates $122,743 to the judicial department from the general fund. The judicial department may use $3,623 for general courts administration and $119,120 for information technology infrastructure. APPROVED by Governor June 4, 2024 EFFECTIVE November 1, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

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