S. 939.185, Florida Statutes
Assessment of Additional Court Costs
Report Instructions
Description – Pursuant to Section 939.185, F.S., if a county’s Board of County Commissioners adopts
the optional $65 additional court cost, the county will report the revenues and expenditures collected by
the clerk under this statute. Upon adoption, the additional cost is to be imposed by the court when a
person pleads guilty or nolo contendere to, or is found guilty of, any felony, misdemeanor, or criminal
traffic offense under the laws of this state. It is requested that all counties submit these forms, even if
they have not currently adopted the ordinance.
Quarterly Report – The quarterly report template, list of approved programs, and the reporting
instructions are available from the Department of Financial Services (DFS) Local Government section’s
web site at:
(http://www.myfloridacfo.com/aadir/localgov/courtreporting_forms_reports.htm). The report worksheet
template is comprised of four sheets representing the four program areas specified by statute (Court
Innovations, Legal Aid Program, Law Library, and Juvenile Alternative Program) and a self-populating
summary sheet. Information and data should only be input in the four program area sheets. The
summary sheet will be automatically populate.
Revenue - Counties are to allocate the total revenue collected with the $65 additional court cost between
these four areas (25% to each). The carry-forward amount should come directly from the previous
quarter. This carry forward amount can be a positive balance or negative deficit in quarters 2, 3 and 4.
It’s assumed that the county will use another funding source to supplement any quarterly deficits in any
of the program areas. Only positive balances in all four program areas should be transferred to the Court
Innovations program as its carry forward / beginning balance of the next year’s first quarter. Only
positive balances should be transferred and they should not be netted against any negative deficits in the
other areas.
Expenditures - For each tab / program area, counties also need to list the total amount of all funds
expended toward the applicable programs in that area even if it exceeds the revenue allocated. The
expenditures posted should be detailed at the level provided by the list of applicable programs available
from the DFS website. Examples include Drug Court, Teen Court, Pre-Trial Services, etc. The
expenditure line items should also be broken down to object code level (Personnel, Operating, Capital
and Unspecified). Any balance remaining in any of the four program areas should not be used to
supplement any deficits in the other three. If dollars are allocated to a program or activity that the county
believes would be appropriate but not listed on the official list, the county should notify the DFS Local
Government section localgov@myfloridacfo.com. Once approved by DFS, the program will be added to
the list and uploaded to the website
Due Date - The quarterly report must be submitted electronically (as an e-mail attachment) to the
Department of Financial Services, localgov@myfloridacfo.com one month the end of each quarter.