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National Fine Center: Progress Made but Challenges Remain for Criminal Debt System

AIMD-95-76 Published: May 25, 1995. Publicly Released: Jun 26, 1995.
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Highlights

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the National Fine Center (NFC), focusing on the: (1) Administrative Office of the United States Courts' (AOUSC) efforts to establish NFC and centralize criminal debt accounting and reporting within NFC; and (2) additional actions AOUSC needs to take to complete implementation of the NFC automated accounting system.

Recommendations

Recommendations for Executive Action

Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Administrative Office of the United States Courts The Director, AOUSC, should work with DOJ to finalize a reconciliation strategy to include time frames and resources for reconciling existing criminal debt accounts at judicial districts and entering the reconciled information into the NFC system.
Closed – Not Implemented
Because of congressional and DOJ concerns about the accomplishments and directions of NFC, Director of AOUSC had an independent contractor review NFC. In May 1996, the contractor issued its report and concluded that a national approach was not "feasible, economical, or efficient" and did not meet the needs of the people who manage and collect criminal debt. After consultation with congressional staff, Department of Justice officials and other stakeholders, AOUSC decided to transfer criminal debt processing and accounting back to the judicial districts and to initiate NFC shutdown procedures. As a result, this recommendation is no longer applicable.
Administrative Office of the United States Courts The Director, AOUSC, should fully define a strategy for addressing additional actions needed to enable the NFC system to: (1) provide a repository for national criminal debt statistical information; (2) produce reports to accommodate management information needs; (3) facilitate communication between NFC and its users; and (4) account for bail bond and collateral forfeiture actions.
Closed – Not Implemented
NFC is scheduled to cease operations in December 1996. As result, this recommendation is no longer applicable.
Executive Office for United States Attorneys The Director, AOUSC, and the Director of the Executive Office for United States Attorneys should work together to develop and implement a methodology for determining the collectibility of all criminal debt.
Closed – Implemented
EOUSA has expanded its suspense data field coding to include categories that identify when the criminal debtor has no ability to pay or has the ability to pay only a nominal amount. The coding also recognizes when the debtor is in bankruptcy and the debt collection cannot be enforced. Because of these codes, DOJ had reported that about 68 percent of the criminal debt balance is unlikely to be collected. Due to DOJ's enhanced ability to determine the collectibility of criminal debt, it should be better able to direct resources to those debts which possess the best likelihood of collection and to more accurately report on the composition of the outstanding criminal debt balance.
Administrative Office of the United States Courts The Director, AOUSC, and the Director of the Executive Office for United States Attorneys should work together to develop and implement a methodology for determining the collectibility of all criminal debt.
Closed – Not Implemented
NFC is scheduled to cease operations in December 1996. As result, this recommendation is no longer applicable.

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Topics

CriminalsData integrityDebt collectionFederal agency accounting systemsFines (penalties)Government collectionsEmployee trainingLaw enforcement information systemsAccounting systemsLaw courts