[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 154 (Tuesday, November 30, 2010)]
[Senate]
[Page S8299]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. WYDEN (for himself, Mr. Sessions, Mrs. McCaskill, and Mr. 
        Thune):
  S. 3989. 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; to the Committee on Finance.
  Mr. WYDEN. Mr. President, today, along with my colleagues Senators 
Sessions, McCaskill, and Thune, I am introducing a bill to help crime 
victims and state courts recover the restitution and fees that are owed 
to them. This bipartisan bill would accomplish this worthy goal by 
intercepting tax refunds of deadbeat debtors who've failed to pay 
restitution or court fees. If enacted, this bill would essentially 
allow state courts to cross-reference outstanding debts with the IRS 
and use existing procedures to withhold tax refunds in order to satisfy 
past due debts.
  This bill would not only deliver justice to crime victims who are 
owed restitution, but would also provide much-needed resources to help 
keep court rooms open and court programs operating. At a time when our 
State and local governments are struggling to find funding for vital 
programs--including keeping courthouse doors open--unpaid court fees 
represent an important source of revenue that should be captured. This 
bill would help close budget gaps and provide additional revenue 
without raising taxes or imposing any new costs or burdens. In fact, 
participation in the program would be optional for states, but I expect 
most states to participate and to benefit greatly from this bill.
  This bill would operate the same way as the very successful child 
support debt collection system. The bill will allow states to share 
information on outstanding restitution owed and court debts with the 
IRS, which would then be required to intercept any Federal tax refunds 
of debtors and send that money to the victim or court owed that debt.
  It has been estimated by the National Center for State Courts that 
outstanding court debts across the country total approximately $15 
billion. In my home State of Oregon alone, the outstanding restitution 
and court fee debt amount is $987 million. Only a portion of 
outstanding debts are owed by individuals who will receive Federal tax 
refunds, so a portion of court debts would not be collected 
immediately. Nonetheless, the State of Oregon estimates that passage of 
this bill would allow the state to collect $30 million per year.
  Without this straight-forward and efficient mechanism, the collection 
of victim restitution and court debts is a costly and time-consuming 
process. Enactment of this bill would reduce the fiscal cost and 
administrative burden that victims and courts bear in attempting to 
collect those debts. Again, in the midst of a challenging fiscal 
crisis, it only makes common sense to collect revenues that are already 
owed--through an efficient and convenient method.
  Because this bill would benefit both the court system, and those who 
rely upon it, the Court Fee Tax Intercept Act is endorsed by a broad 
array of court, government, law enforcement, and crime victims 
organizations. The bill is supported by the National Center for Victims 
of Crime, the National District Attorneys Association, the American 
Probation and Parole Association, the Conference of Chief Justices, the 
Conference of State Court Administrators, the National Association for 
Court Managers, the National Conference of State Legislatures, the 
National Association of Counties, and the Government Finance Officers 
Association.
  I urge all colleagues to support this bipartisan legislation.
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