RELATING TO COURTS AND CIVIL PROCEDURE--PROCEDURE GENERALLY -- FEES
H8046 amends Rhode Island General Laws governing fees for deputy sheriffs, town sergeants, and constables. The bill sets a uniform fee of $70 for serving all writs, citations, and subpoenas, while retaining separate fee provisions for other services such as writs of replevin, out-of-state papers, writ copies, returned writs when a defendant cannot be found, and writs of arrest or body attachment. The measure also clarifies the fee schedule structure by renumbering certain subsections to reflect the revised service fee provision.
The bill’s practical effect is to standardize the service rate for these court documents and make the $70 amount explicit in statute. The fees remain depositable as general revenue, and the act would take effect immediately upon passage, affecting court-related service providers and parties who must pay for service of process in civil and related proceedings.
H8046 would amend Section 9-29-9 of the Rhode Island General Laws, which sets maximum fees for sheriffs, sergeants, and constables. It would codify a flat $70 fee for serving writs, citations, and subpoenas, replacing the prior structure that listed those services among the fee items and clarifying the statutory fee schedule. The change would directly affect process servers, litigants, attorneys, and courts that rely on service of process, while the collected fees would continue to be deposited as general revenue.
Based on the bill text and the absence of recorded committee testimony or votes, the available context suggests a straightforward, administrative measure rather than a controversial policy change. The bill appears aimed at clarifying and standardizing fees in court procedure, which typically draws limited debate unless the amount is viewed as too high or too low by affected parties. No formal vote history or transcript indicates strong opposition or support in the available record.
No specific contention is documented in the provided materials. Potential points of concern, if raised, would likely involve the fairness of the $70 service fee, its impact on litigants who must pay for service of process, and whether the fee adequately compensates sheriffs, sergeants, and constables for their work. In the absence of committee transcripts or votes, however, no particular legislator, agency, or stakeholder is identified as opposing or supporting the measure.