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S3327 • 2026

Requires notice to be provided by municipal court to applicant for public defender of fee and process to waive fee for inability to pay.

Requires notice to be provided by municipal court to applicant for public defender of fee and process to waive fee for inability to pay.

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor
Turner, Shirley K.
Last action
2026-02-05
Official status
Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Judiciary Committee
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Using official source text because the generated explanation was unavailable or could not be confirmed against the official bill text.

Requires notice to be provided by municipal court to applicant for public defender of fee and process to waive fee for inability to pay.

Requires notice to be provided by municipal court to applicant for public defender of fee and process to waive fee for inability to pay.

What This Bill Does

  • Requires notice to be provided by municipal court to applicant for public defender of fee and process to waive fee for inability to pay.
  • Topic: Judiciary Fiscal note: This bill has not been certified by OLS for a fiscal note.

Limits and Unknowns

  • This entry is temporarily using official source text because the generated explanation could not be confirmed against the official bill text during the last sync.

Bill History

  1. 2026-02-05 New Jersey Legislature

    Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Judiciary Committee

Official Summary Text

Requires notice to be provided by municipal court to applicant for public defender of fee and process to waive fee for inability to pay.
Topic:
Judiciary
Fiscal note:
This bill has not been certified by OLS for a fiscal note.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
S3327

SENATE, No. 3327

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

INTRODUCED FEBRUARY 5, 2026

Sponsored by:

Senator� SHIRLEY K. TURNER

District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer)

SYNOPSIS

���� Requires notice to be provided by municipal court to
applicant for public defender of fee and process to waive fee for inability to
pay.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� As introduced.

��

An Act
concerning certain municipal court notice and
supplementing P.L.1997, c.256.�

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

����
1.��� In
any municipality that requires by ordinance a person applying for
representation by a municipal public defender to pay an application fee
pursuant to section 17 of P.L.1997, c.256 (C.2B:24-17), the municipal court
shall be required to provide notice to all applicants of the application fee
and the process to waive the
fee
in the
event the applicant is unable to pay.� No fee other than that permitted by
section 17 of P.L. 1997, c.256 (C.2B:24-17) shall be assessed for
representation by a municipal public defender.

���� 2.��� This act shall take
effect 60 days after enactment.�

STATEMENT

���� This bill provides that, if a
municipality requires by ordinance that a person applying for representation by
a municipal public defender pay an application fee, the municipal court would
be required to provide notice to the applicant of the fee and the process to
waive the fee in the event of any inability to pay.� No fee other than that
permitted by section 17 of P.L.1997, c.256 (C.2B:24-17) is to be assessed for
representation by a municipal public defender

���� Under the provisions of
section 17 of P.L.1997, c.256 (C.2B:24-17), a municipality may require that a
person applying for municipal public defender representation to pay an
application fee of not more than $200.� The statute provides that the fee must
be in an amount necessary to pay the costs of municipal public defender
services.� The municipal court may waive the application fee if the court
determines upon a clear and convincing showing by the applicant that the fee
represents an unreasonable burden on the person seeking representation.�

���� The bill would take effect 60
days after enactment.