(A)
The County Prosecutor may establish a Bad Check Collection Program through the office of the Prosecutor whereby any person who is the payee or holder of a bad check, and who intends to prosecute the issuer of the bad check under state statute if such check is not made good, may:
(1) Authorize the Prosecutor to contact the issuer of the bad check to determine if such person wishes, and intends, to make the check good in accordance with state statute in lieu of suffering prosecution;
(2) Authorize the Prosecutor to collect, on behalf of the payee or holder of the bad check, a protest and service fee in such amount as the Prosecutor may stipulate and fix on a uniform bases (which may be a fixed dollar amount or a percentage of the value of the bad check), but which may not exceed the amount permitted under state statute;
(3) Authorize the Prosecutor to retain all protest and services collected by the Prosecutor pursuant to division (A)(2) above in consideration of the services provided to the payee or holder by the Prosecutor; and/or
(4) The Prosecutor may waive the collection of the fee if the Prosecutor finds that probable cause for prosecution no longer exists.
(B) Upon implementation of the Bad Check Collection Program, as authorized by division (A) above, the Prosecutor may establish, and maintain, a trust checking account into which shall be deposited the principal amount of any bad check, along with all other fees collected from the issuer thereof. Checks from such account may be written to the payee or holder of the bad check to whom the money is lawfully due without appropriation. All fees collected pursuant to division (A) above shall be regularly delivered to the County Treasurer, not less than monthly, in the manner of fees collected by county officers, for deposit in the Prosecutor’s Special Fee Fund established hereinafter in division (C) below.
(C) The Prosecutor’s Special Fee Fund is hereby established. The purpose of the Fund is for deposits of monies received under divisions (A) and (B) above. The County Council may only appropriate monies on deposit in the Prosecutor’s Special Fee Fund for purposes of the Prosecutor’s Office at the discretion of the Prosecutor, although such appropriations may be made for any purpose. County monies may lawfully be appropriated to the Prosecutor’s Office, and need not be necessary by limiting to attributable costs of the functions and services from which the fees derive.
(Ord. 1995-4, passed 3-20-1995)