Crime Victim Restitution and Court Fee Intercept Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to require the chief justice of the highest court of any state that wishes to collect past-due, legally enforceable state judicial debts to designate a single state entity to communicate judicial debt information to the Secretary of the Treasury.
Directs the Secretary, upon receiving notice from such an entity that a named person owes a past-due, legally enforceable state judicial debt, to pay such debt from any tax refund due to such person.
Defines "state judicial debt" to include court costs, fees, fines, assessments, restitution to victims of crime, and other monies resulting from a judgment or sentence rendered by any court or tribunal of competent jurisdiction handling criminal or traffic cases in the state.
[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5178 Introduced in House (IH)]
113th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 5178
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow an offset against
income tax refunds to pay for restitution and other State judicial
debts that are past-due.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
July 23, 2014
Mr. Paulsen (for himself, Mr. Blumenauer, and Mr. DeFazio) introduced
the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and
Means
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow an offset against
income tax refunds to pay for restitution and other State judicial
debts that are past-due.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Crime Victim Restitution and Court
Fee Intercept Act''.
SEC. 2. OFFSET OF RESTITUTION AND OTHER STATE JUDICIAL DEBTS AGAINST
INCOME TAX REFUND.
(a) In General.--Section 6402 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986
is amended by redesignating subsections (f) through (l) as subsections
(g) through (m), respectively, and by inserting after subsection (f)
the following:
``(g) Collection of Past-Due, Legally Enforceable Restitution and
Other State Judicial Debts.--
``(1) In general.--In any State which wishes to collect
past-due, legally enforceable State judicial debts, the chief
justice of the State's highest court shall designate a single
State entity to communicate judicial debt information to the
Secretary. In making such designation, the chief justice of the
State's highest court shall select, whenever practicable, a
relevant State official or agency responsible under State law
for collecting the State's income tax or other statewide excise
at the time of the designation. Upon receiving notice from a
State designated entity that a named person owes a past-due,
legally enforceable State judicial debt to or in such State,
the Secretary shall, under such conditions as may be prescribed
by the Secretary--
``(A) reduce the amount of any overpayment payable
to such person by the amount of such State judicial
debt;
``(B) pay the amount by which such overpayment is
reduced under subparagraph (A) to such State designated
entity and notify such State designated entity of such
person's name, taxpayer identification number, address,
and the amount collected; and
``(C) notify the person making such overpayment
that the overpayment has been reduced by an amount
necessary to satisfy a past-due, legally enforceable
State judicial debt.
If an offset is made pursuant to a joint return, the notice
under subparagraph (B) shall include the names, taxpayer
identification numbers, and addresses of each person filing
such return.
``(2) Priorities for offset.--Any overpayment by a person
shall be reduced pursuant to this subsection--
``(A) after such overpayment is reduced pursuant
to--
``(i) subsection (a) with respect to any
liability for any internal revenue tax on the
part of the person who made the overpayment;
``(ii) subsection (c) with respect to past-
due support;
``(iii) subsection (d) with respect to any
past-due, legally enforceable debt owed to a
Federal agency; and
``(iv) subsection (e) with respect to any
past-due, legally enforceable State income tax
obligations; and
``(B) before such overpayment is credited to the
future liability for any Federal internal revenue tax
of such person pursuant to subsection (b).
If the Secretary receives notice from 1 or more State
designated entities of more than 1 debt subject to paragraph
(1) that is owed by such person to such State agency or State
judicial branch, any overpayment by such person shall be
applied against such debts in the order in which such debts
accrued.
``(3) Notice; consideration of evidence.--Rules similar to
the rules of subsection (e)(4) shall apply with respect to
debts under this subsection.
``(4) Past-due, legally enforceable state judicial debt.--
``(A) In general.--For purposes of this subsection,
the term `past-due, legally enforceable State judicial
debt' means a debt--
``(i) which resulted from a judgment or
sentence rendered by any court or tribunal of
competent jurisdiction which--
``(I) handles criminal or traffic
cases in the State; and
``(II) has determined an amount of
State judicial debt to be due; and
``(ii) which resulted from a State judicial
debt which has been assessed and is past-due
but not collected.
``(B) State judicial debt.--For purposes of this
paragraph, the term `State judicial debt' includes
court costs, fees, fines, assessments, restitution to
victims of crime, and other monies resulting from a
judgment or sentence rendered by any court or tribunal
of competent jurisdiction handling criminal or traffic
cases in the State.
``(5) Regulations.--The Secretary shall issue regulations
prescribing the time and manner in which State designated
entities must submit notices of past-due, legally enforceable
State judicial debts and the necessary information that must be
contained in or accompany such notices. The regulations shall
specify the types of State judicial monies and the minimum
amount of debt to which the reduction procedure established by
paragraph (1) may be applied. The regulations shall require
State designated entities to pay a fee to reimburse the
Secretary for the cost of applying such procedure. Any fee paid
to the Secretary pursuant to the preceding sentence shall be
used to reimburse appropriations which bore all or part of the
cost of applying such procedure.
``(6) Erroneous payment to state.--Any State designated
entity receiving notice from the Secretary that an erroneous
payment has been made to such State designated entity under
paragraph (1) shall pay promptly to the Secretary, in
accordance with such regulations as the Secretary may
prescribe, an amount equal to the amount of such erroneous
payment (without regard to whether any other amounts payable to
such State designated entity under such paragraph have been
paid to such State designated entity).''.
(b) Disclosure of Return Information.--Section 6103(l)(10) of such
Code is amended by striking ``or (f)'' each place it appears in the
text and heading and inserting ``(f), or (g)''.
(c) Conforming Amendments.--
(1) Section 6402(a) of such Code is amended by striking
``and (f)'' and inserting ``(f), and (g)''.
(2) Section 6402(d)(2) of such Code is amended by striking
``subsections (e) and (f)'' and inserting ``subsections (e),
(f), and (g)''.
(3) Section 6402(e)(3)(B) of such Code is amended to read
as follows:
``(B) before such overpayment is--
``(i) reduced pursuant to subsection (g)
with respect to past-due, legally enforceable
State judicial debts, and
``(ii) credited to the future liability for
any Federal internal revenue tax of such person
pursuant to subsection (b).''.
(4) Section 6402(h) of such Code, as so redesignated, is
amended by striking ``or (f)'' and inserting ``(f), or (g)''.
(5) Section 6402(j) of such Code, as so redesignated, is
amended by striking ``or (f)'' and inserting ``, (f), or (g)''.
(d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall
apply to refunds payable for taxable years beginning after December 31,
2013.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.
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