Southern Berkshire Division of the District Court Department-Review of Probation Supervision Fees: Transactions and Monitoring of Fulfillment by Probationers

This is a state audit of how the Southern Berkshire District Court handled probation supervision fees from July 1, 2012 through December 31, 2013.

“This report presents the results of our audit testing at SBDC specifically.”

The auditor checked whether the court properly recorded, monitored, and enforced probation fee requirements.

“The objective of our work at each court location was limited to determining the extent to which the court was complying with the responsibilities established by Section 87A of Chapter 276 of the General Laws, as well as guidance issued by the Trial Court; the Office of the Commissioner of Probation (OCP); and the court location itself, if it had issued any.”

These fees are required by law, and if they are waived, the court must properly document why and require community service instead.

“The PSF can be waived (in which case community service must be performed) upon order of the court after a finding of fact establishing that the probationer cannot pay the fee.”

For the public, this matters because the court may have missed fee revenue and may not have tracked community service clearly.

“As a result, the Commonwealth may be forgoing PSFs that probationers would have been able to pay.”

The audit found two main problems: fee waivers were not always handled correctly, and some fees were charged in the wrong way or to the wrong people.

“Some judges assess PSFs in incorrect amounts or against non-probationers.”

The court said judges would be told to stop the practices the auditor questioned, including one-time probation fee charges and fees for people not on probation.

“Once again, I have now asked all judges assigned to the Southern Berkshire District Court to discontinue this practice.”

The audit was significant because it showed the court needed clearer records and better compliance with state law for probation fees and community service.

“The Probation Office should promptly report all hours of community service performed by each probationer, regularly throughout the probation term, to the Clerk-Magistrate’s Office for recording in MassCourts so that both offices can readily determine the status of probationers’ accounts.”

A probation supervision fee is a monthly charge people usually have to pay while they are on probation; the amount depends on the type of probation.

“When an individual is placed on probation, Section 87A of Chapter 276 of the Massachusetts General Laws requires courts to assess the individual a $50 (administrative) or $65 (supervised) monthly probation supervision fee (PSF).”