DWR; application; administrative completeness

Plain English Breakdown

The official status indicates this bill was vetoed by the governor on June 19, 2026. It has not become law unless lawmakers override that veto.

HB2028: Community Restitution for Indigent and Homeless Defendants

This bill allows courts to let defendants who cannot pay fines perform community service instead, with special rules allowing mandatory community restitution for those experiencing homelessness.

What This Bill Does

• Allows a court to order community restitution if a defendant requests it and the court finds they are unable to pay all or part of their monetary obligation.
• Requires that credit for community restitution be calculated at the state minimum wage rate, rounded up to the nearest dollar.
• Permits courts to require mandatory community restitution in place of specific assessments under section 12-114.01 if the defendant is indigent and experiencing homelessness.
• Defines 'monetary obligation' to include fines, civil penalties, surcharges, fees, assessments, or incarceration costs.

Who It Names or Affects

• Defendants ordered by a court to pay monetary obligations they are unable to afford.
• Individuals who are indigent and experiencing homelessness facing specific court assessments under section 12-114.01.
• Courts that must determine if defendants qualify for community restitution options.

Terms To Know

Community Restitution

Work performed by a defendant to pay off fines or fees instead of paying money directly.

Indigent

A person who has very little money and cannot afford legal costs, as defined by the Arizona rules of criminal procedure.

Monetary Obligation

Any fine, civil penalty, surcharge, assessment, fee, or incarceration cost that a defendant must pay.

Limits and Unknowns

• The bill does not apply to assessments under sections 12-116.05 through 12-116.09.
• The bill does not apply to surcharges collected under section 16-954, subsection A.
• Mandatory community restitution for homeless defendants only applies if the court finds they are both indigent and experiencing homelessness.

Official Summary Text

HB2028 - (NOW: homelessness; indigence; community restitution)

Current Bill Text

HB2028 - 572R - S Ver

Senate Engrossed
House Bill

DWR;
application; administrative completeness

(now:� homelessness;
indigence; community restitution)

State of Arizona

House of Representatives

Fifty-seventh Legislature

Second Regular Session

2026

HOUSE BILL 2028

AN
ACT

Amending section 13-824, Arizona
Revised Statutes; relating to court assessments.

(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:

Section 1. Section 13-824, Arizona Revised
Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE
13-824.

Community restitution in lieu of monetary obligation; definition

A. Notwithstanding any other law
and
except as provided in subsection B of this section
, if a monetary
obligation is imposed on a defendant at sentencing and the court finds the
defendant is unable to pay all or part of the monetary obligation, on the
defendant's request the court may order the defendant to perform community
restitution in lieu of the payment for all or part of the monetary
obligation. The court shall credit community restitution performed
at a rate that is equal to the minimum wage prescribed by section 23-363,
subsections A and B, rounded up to the nearest dollar.

b. if the court finds that the
defendant is unable to pay all or part of an assessment imposed pursuant to section
12-114.01 and that the defendant is experiencing homelessness and is
indigent pursuant to the Arizona rules of criminal procedure, the court may
order the defendant to perform mandatory community restitution in lieu of the
payment of all of the assessment.

B.

C.
This
section does not apply to the assessment imposed pursuant to sections 12-116.05,
12-116.06, 12-116.07, 12-116.08 and 12-116.09 and to
the surcharge imposed and collected pursuant to section 16-954,
subsection A.

C.

d.
For
the purposes of this section, "monetary obligation" means a fine, a
civil penalty, a surcharge, an assessment, a fee or incarceration costs.
END_STATUTE