An Act to amend and reenact §§ 19.2-340, 19.2-341, 19.2-349, and 19.2-354 of the Code of Virginia, relating to fines and costs; period of limitations on collection.
HB17 amends Virginia law governing the collection of criminal and traffic fines, court costs, penalties, and related restitution. The bill changes the time limits for bringing collection actions by shortening the limitations period for monetary penalties other than fines from 60 years to 10 years for circuit court judgments and from 30 years to 10 years for general district court judgments. It also clarifies that once the limitations period expires, the debt cannot be collected, revived, or restarted by partial payment, acknowledgment, or a change in collection method.
The bill also updates reporting and collection procedures for delinquent fines and costs. Clerks of circuit and district courts must report delinquent fines, costs, forfeitures, penalties, and certain restitution that are more than 180 days delinquent, instead of 90 days, to specified state and local officials. The measure retains the existing framework for how fines and penalties are treated as judgments and how they are recovered, while aligning collection practices with the new limitations rules.
HB17 directly amends §§ 19.2-340, 19.2-341, and 19.2-349 of the Code of Virginia, changing the statute of limitations for collecting certain court-imposed monetary obligations and revising delinquency reporting thresholds. It affects the Commonwealth, localities, clerks of court, attorneys for the Commonwealth, the Department of Taxation, and defendants who owe fines, costs, penalties, or certain restitution. The bill limits the duration of collection efforts and bars revival of expired debts, which may reduce long-term collections and require agencies to adjust their collection and reporting practices.
The available record shows no committee transcript or vote breakdown, so there is no documented debate or recorded opposition in the provided materials. Based on the enacted text, the bill appears to be a technical but meaningful update to collection rules rather than a highly controversial policy change. Its final enactment suggests it received sufficient legislative support to become law.
The main policy issue embedded in the bill is the reduction of the collection window from decades to 10 years, which could be viewed as relieving debt burdens for defendants but limiting the Commonwealth’s and localities’ ability to collect older obligations. Another potential point of contention is the change in delinquency reporting from 90 days to 180 days, which may delay referral of unpaid obligations for collection. Because no discussion transcripts or votes are provided, no specific legislators or stakeholder groups are identified as having raised these concerns.