Amends TCA Title 39; Title 40; Title 55 and Title 69.

Under present law, there is a fund known as the electronic monitoring indigency fund, which is composed of two accounts, each of which is used for one of the following purposes: (1) The eligible costs associated with the lease, purchase, installation, removal, and maintenance of ignition interlock devices or with any other cost or fee associated with a required functioning ignition interlock device for persons determined by the court to be indigent; and (2) The eligible costs associated with the use of a transdermal monitoring device, other alternative alcohol or drug monitoring device, or global positioning monitoring device, if required by the court pursuant to present law, or any other statute specifically authorizing payment, for persons determined by the court to be indigent. This bill creates a DUI monitoring indigency fund that is separate from the electronic monitoring indigency fund. The fund will be used for the eligible costs as described above in item (1). Under present law, the treasurer administers the electronic monitoring indigency fund. Under this bill, the treasurer will administer the DUI monitoring indigency fund, and the director of the office of criminal justice programs within the department of finance and administration will administer the electronic monitoring indigency fund. Present law provides for transfers between the two accounts of the fund under present law; under this bill, there will be no transfer between the two funds. Under present law, the fees assessed for DUI and BUI violations are allocated to the fund and to various departments. The allocation to the fund is as follows: $30.50 to the electronic monitoring indigency fund for the purpose of paying for the following for persons found to be indigent by the court: all the costs associated with the lease, purchase, installation, removal, and maintenance of a functioning ignition interlock device or with any other cost or fee associated with a functioning ignition interlock device; all the costs associated with the use of a transdermal monitoring device, other alternative alcohol or drug monitoring device, or global positioning monitoring device, if required by the court; and all the administrative costs incurred by the department of the treasury in administering the fund. Under this bill, the allocation of the $30.50 would only be to the DUI monitoring indigency fund for costs associated with interlock devices. The electronic monitoring indigency fund would continue to receive allocations of the other fees that are allocated to the fund under present law, which are: the $10.00 fee that a defendant convicted of aggravated assault must pay if the victim is a domestic abuse victim; and the $10.00 fee a person convicted of domestic assault must pay. This bill also provides for allocation to the DUI monitoring fund the following funds that now are currently being allocated to the electronic monitoring fund: the $12.00 initial use fee a person who is under the supervision of the department of correction and is enrolled in an electronic monitoring and tracking supervision program must pay if the person has not previously been ordered by a court of this state to use an electronic monitoring or ignition interlock device; and the $12.00 initial use fee that a person ordered to use an interlock device must pay if the person has not been previously ordered to use an ignition interlock or other electronic monitoring device. Present law requires the treasurer to conduct an annual analysis to determine the solvency of the electronic monitoring indigency fund. The treasurer may declare a surplus if the analysis determines that there is a balance in excess of the amount necessary to maintain the solvency of the fund, and must report the amount of any surplus to the commissioner of finance and administration. Present law establishes the manner in which surplus in the electronic monitoring fund is to be allocated. This bill makes the surplus allocation provisions applicable only to the DUI monitoring indigency fund, and requires the director of the office of criminal justice programs to conduct an annual analysis to determine the solvency of the electronic monitoring indigency fund. Present law authorizes local governments to participate in the non-interlock monitoring device account by having the costs for eligible devices paid from the fund for each local government's indigent defendants. This bill adds to the present law provisions governing such participation that the director of the office of criminal justice programs must develop a formula, based in part on each participating city or county's total population versus the respective city or county's pretrial detention population, to determine the maximum amount of money each city or county is entitled to access from the electronic monitoring indigency fund. This bill also requires the director of the office of criminal justice programs to develop a model request for proposals (RFP) for use by a participating city or county in determining with which providers of transdermal monitoring devices, other alternative drug and alcohol monitoring devices, and global positioning monitoring devices to contract. Each provider of transdermal monitoring devices, other alternative drug and alcohol monitoring devices, and global positioning monitoring devices must contract with a participating city or county through an RFP process in order to submit a claim for payment from the electronic monitoring fund to the director of the office of criminal justice programs. This bill sets out in detail other requirements in regard to the RFP process. ON APRIL 11, 2022, THE SENATE ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1 AND PASSED SENATE BILL 887, AS AMENDED. AMENDMENT #1 rewrites this bill to create the electronic monitoring indigency fund task force to study and make recommendations on the future of the electronic monitoring indigency fund. The commissioner of safety or the commissioner's designee will call the first meeting of the task force, which must occur no later than June 15, 2022. The task force will be composed of nine members as follows: (1) The chair of the house criminal justice committee; (2) The chairs of the house and senate finance, ways and means committees; (3) The chair of the senate judiciary committee; (4) The commissioner of safety or the commissioner's designee, who will serve as chair of the task force; (5) The state treasurer or the state treasurer's designee; (6) One member representing the Tennessee County Services Association or the County Officials Association of Tennessee, appointed by the governor; (7) One member representing the Tennessee general sessions judges conference, appointed by the Tennessee general sessions judges conference; and (8) One member of the governor's administration, appointed by the governor. Task force members will not receive compensation or travel reimbursement for serving on the task force. The task force will study, at a minimum: (1) The current definition of indigency and proposed changes to the definition in state law; (2) The number of ignition interlock devices and electronic monitoring devices currently covered by the electronic monitoring indigency fund and any future projections; (3) The current volume of monthly claims and any future projections of monthly claims; (4) The number of claims being denied and the reasons for denial; (5) The average payments per claim; (6) The length of time for which a device may be covered by the electronic monitoring indigency fund; and (7) Options for sustainable funding. This amendment requires the task force to report its findings and recommendations to the governor and the speakers no later than September 30, 2022, at which time the task force will cease to exist.