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An Act Regarding the Transportation of Prisoners to County Jails
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. 4 MRSA §1057, sub-§3-A, as amended by PL 2015, c. 335, §2, is further amended to read:
 
3-A. Reimbursement to counties.   Monthly, the Treasurer of State shall transfer funds from the Government Operations Surcharge Fund to the County Jail Operations Fund program, established in Title 34-A, section 1210-D, for the purpose of supporting the operation of the jails in an amount equal to 2% of the total fines, forfeitures and penalties, including the surcharge imposed pursuant to subsection 2-A, received by the Treasurer of State for deposit in the Government Operations Surcharge Fund. Monthly, the Treasurer of State shall transfer funds from the Government Operations Surcharge Fund to the County Jail Transportation Reimbursement Fund, established in Title 34-A, section 1210-E, for the purpose of reimbursing a county for costs incurred in the transportation of a person in accordance with Title 30-A, section 1557-C in an amount equal to 0.5% of the total fines, forfeitures and penalties, including the surcharge imposed pursuant to subsection 2-A, received by the Treasurer of State for deposit in the Government Operations Surcharge Fund. The balance remaining in the Government Operations Surcharge Fund at the end of each month must accrue to the General Fund. Funds collected and deposited each month to the Government Operations Surcharge Fund must be transferred on the last day of the month in which the collections are made to the County Jail Operations Fund programand to the County Jail Transportation Reimbursement Fund.
 
At the close of each month, the State Controller shall calculate the amount to be transferred to the County Jail Operations Fund programand to the County Jail Transportation Reimbursement Fund based on the collections made during the month. The State Controller shall transfer by journal entry the amount due to the County Jail Operations Fund programand to the County Jail Transportation Reimbursement Fund.
Sec. 2.  30-A MRSA §1557-C  is enacted to read:
§ 1557-C. Transportation to county jail
 
1.  Request for transportation.     A municipal law enforcement agency having custody over a person pursuant to an arrest may request that the sheriff of the county jail to which the person is to be transported assume custody over the person and transport the person to the county jail. Upon receipt of a request for transportation under this subsection, the sheriff shall assume custody over the person and ensure that the person is transported to the county jail in a timely manner.
 
2.  Costs of transportation.     A county shall pay the costs of the transportation of a person to a county jail under subsection 1 and may seek reimbursement for the costs in accordance with subsection 3.
 
3.  Reimbursement for costs.     A county that incurs costs in the transportation of a person to a county jail in accordance with this section may obtain reimbursement of the costs in the following manner.
 
A.  If the person transported under this section is convicted of the crime for which the person was arrested by the municipal law enforcement agency or for a crime arising out of the circumstances that led to that arrest, the county may seek reimbursement from that person for the actual costs incurred in transporting the person to the county jail, including the per diem compensation of the accompanying officers.
 
B.  If the convicted person fails to reimburse the county for its costs in accordance with paragraph A, the county may apply for reimbursement of costs from the County Jail Transportation Reimbursement Fund established under Title 34-A, section 1210-E.
Sec. 3.  34-A MRSA §1210-E  is enacted to read:
§ 1210-E. County Jail Transportation Reimbursement Fund
The County Jail Transportation Reimbursement Fund, referred to in this section as "the fund," is established as a nonlapsing, dedicated fund within the department. The department shall administer the fund and distribute funds to the counties in accordance with this section. Funds within the fund may be used only to reimburse a county for costs the county incurred in transporting a person to a county jail in accordance with Title 30-A, section 1557-C, except that the department may use funds from the fund to cover the department's expenses relating to the administration of the fund.
 
1.  Application for reimbursement.     To be eligible to receive a disbursement from the fund, a county must apply to the fund for reimbursement under Title 30-A, section 1557-C. An application for reimbursement must include a detailed breakdown of the actual costs incurred by the county in transporting a person in accordance with Title 30-A, section 1557-C and must, if applicable, describe prior efforts by the county to seek reimbursement from the person transported under Title 30-A, section 1557-C, subsection 3, paragraph A.
 
2.  Reimbursement criteria.     Subject to the availability of funds within the fund, the department shall approve and disburse funds from the fund to a county that has filed an application for reimbursement in accordance with subsection 1 if the department determines that:
 
A.  The costs for which reimbursement is sought by the county are reasonable based upon the circumstances of the transportation; and
 
B.  The county has made reasonable efforts to secure reimbursement for its costs from the person transported as authorized under Title 30-A, section 1557-C, subsection 3, paragraph A and that person has failed to fully reimburse the county, or the county demonstrates to the satisfaction of the department that the person transported was not convicted of a crime relating to the arrest for which the person was transported.
 
SUMMARY
This bill authorizes a municipal law enforcement agency with custody over a person pursuant to an arrest to request that the sheriff of the county jail to which the person is to be transported assume custody over the person and transport the person to the county jail. Upon receipt of such request, the sheriff is required to assume custody over the person and ensure that the person is transported to the county jail in a timely manner. The costs of transporting a person under this provision are to be paid by the county, which may seek reimbursement for such costs from the person transported under certain circumstances or apply for reimbursement from the County Jail Transportation Reimbursement Fund, which is established in this bill. The County Jail Transportation Reimbursement Fund is funded from a percentage of the total fines, forfeitures and penalties received monthly for deposit into the Government Operations Surcharge Fund.