Source: https://ebclc.org/reentry-legal-services/
Timestamp: 2019-04-25 16:13:24+00:00

Document:
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Financial Hardship? Complete the Ability-to-Pay form, Document Checklist, and the Request to Vacate Civil Assessment Fee. Submit this form(s) in person or mail it to the courthouse.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? Appear in walk-in court and ask to see the judge. All FTA holds will be removed after a person makes a court appearance before a judge.
Financial Hardship? The defendant can write a letter to the judge or court making a request for an Ability to Pay process.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? The defendant must pay off the fine.
Financial Hardship? Complete the Ability-to-Pay form and the Request to Vacate Civil Assessment Fee.
Financial Hardship? Write a letter to the Commissioner (can use Petition to Modify Penalties). OR get added on to the court calendar (FTAs and FTPs). If it is a Chico case, walk-in court occurs on Thursdays at 8am. It it is an Oroville case, walk-in court occurs on Friday at 12:45pm.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? Appear in walk-in court and ask to see the judge. Or, set up a payment plan with the court.
Financial Hardship? The defendant gets the form from the clerk by calling the clerk.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? Appear on that citation to clear the FTA. DMV hold will be released once you appear in court. If you have an FTP, when the fine is paid in full, the hold will be released in 5 days.
Financial Hardship? Complete the Ability-to-Pay form and the Request to Vacate Civil Assessment Fee. Can do walk-in court to request a reduction or community service after an FTA.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? Appear in court.
Financial Hardship? Defendant can mail or submit in person a form for an ability-to-pay determination. Judge will make a decision on the papers. Defendant can appeal her decision by asking for a court appearance.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? Fine must be paid in full.
Financial Hardship? Complete the Ability-to-Pay form and the Request to Vacate Civil Assessment Fee. Can be mailed to the courthouse. It can take up to 60 days on the answer for application/order.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? (1) Pay the fine in full, or (2) set up a $50/month payment plan with 10% of the fine down. There is a $35 payment plan fee. Must be put on a payment plan before asking to see the judge. 14601.1 and 12500 cases are filed in misdemeanor court and person must make an appearance in criminal court.
Financial Hardship? Complete the Ability-to-Pay form and the Request to Vacate Civil Assessment Fee to the collections agency.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? 10% down on the payment will release the driver’s license.
Financial Hardship? Complete the Ability-to-Pay form and the Request to Vacate Civil Assessment Fee. Call the court for instructions on how to submit the form.
Financial Hardship? You can write a letter declaring your financial hardship to the judge, if your fine is in collections.
Financial Hardship? If there has not been a court appearance yet (“pre-adjudicated case”), the defendant can make the request to the judge or see the clerk with a completed Ability-to-Pay form. Walk-in court: Independence: Tues 1pm (call about dark days); Bishop: Wed 10am (call about dark days). If the case has already been adjudicated, the Ability-to-Pay form (TR015RC) can be mailed to the court where the citation was filed.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? There are no Failures to Appear. Cases are all adjudicated via a trial in absentia (as a result, court only issues FTPs).
Financial Hardship? ATP form will go live first week in October (available online and only available for cases that have been adjudicated). Individual gets the form online from Revenue Recovery Services. Submit the form to the court by mail or in-person. A judicial officer looks at it, and determines whether the fine can be waived or balance reduced. Individuals then go back to Revenue Recovery and go on a payment plan. If you default on the payment plan, a civil assessment fee will be added. Will need to attach financial documentation or proof that financial status has changed.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? The hold is removed once the defendant appears in court. If a person cannot physically appear in court, they can write a letter to the judge and the written communication counts as an appearance.
Civil Assessment Fee: Revenue Recovery staff will waive or reduce on a case-by-case basis after reviewing circumstances for FTA or FTP.
Financial Hardship? ATP process is being created. For now, any person with an FTA that meets the following criteria can get back into court to see the judge and request a driver’s license hold be released: Victim of identity theft, incarcerated, in the hospital, deployed for military duty.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? ATP process is being created. For now, any person with an FTA that meets the following criteria can get back into court to see the judge and request a driver’s license hold be released: Victim of identity theft, incarcerated, in the hospital, deployed for military duty.
Financial Hardship? There is not an Ability to Pay form, so the defendant must make the request before the judge.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? It depends on the charge on the ticket.
Financial Hardship? No formal ability-to-pay process but there is a payment plan option, community service option, and the judge is willing to convert traffic fines to jail time. When fines do not get paid on time, cases go to collections agency (Shasta Court handles all collections). If there is an FTA, must post the funds in full to get court date. Exceptions will be made for people who are overseas in the military, incarcerated, medically incapacitated. Letter must be written to the judge.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? You can set a court appearance for any ticket with an FTA. In most courts, upon appearance in court, you can get the FTA hold removed as soon as you appear before a judicial officer.
Financial Hardship? Modification Request can be made to the judge (submitted in writing with backup documentation).
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? No holds placed on driver’s licenses.
Financial Hardship? The court does not reduce fines/fees in Marin. Payment plans (must complete 12 months, minimum $50/month) and $35 administrative fee which is incorporated into the total. Can complete community service with a $50 community service fee. If the person qualifies, the community service fee will be deducted from the bail amount.
Financial Hardship? The defendant can make the request to the judge.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? The defendant must come by 8:30 a.m., Friday, to discuss DL suspension or request for the hold to be lifted.
Financial Hardship? Complete the Ability-to-Pay form and the Request to Vacate Civil Assessment Fee. Call the court for instructions on how to submit the form. The default payment plan structure is: $50/month if 0-$300; $100/month for $300-$2000; $150/month if owe more than $2000-$5000. A person can submit a Financial Declaration to request a lower payment amount.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? Appear in court or pay in full; contact court office to write letter to be reviewed by a judge requesting reduction/payment plans. Releasing a FTP hold requires full payment or an appearance where a request is made of the judge.
Financial Hardship? No ability-to-pay process. If first appearance, can request a payment plan in person, by mail or by fax. Judge can reduce fees for walk-ins, can request reduction by mail or fax.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? FTA hold will be removed only when a person makes a full payment. If there is a FTA, or client wishes to remove case from collections, or having civil assessment fee removed, you need to speak to judge at walk-in court M-Thurs 7:30am or write the judge. The court will waive the civil assessment fee in cases of incarceration at the time it went to collections, the person was out of the country due to military leave, or hospitalization.
Financial Hardship? If they live in Modoc, can do community service, which is set up through the probation office ($10/hour). Payment plans are always an option. Reduction/waiver requests can be put on calendar (Traffic Fridays – walk-in court every other Friday starting at 2:00pm). Petitions to vacate civil assessment fee is accepted by mail.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? Appear in court or the defendant must pay the fine in full.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? Contact collections. You can go on a payment plan and the hold will be removed once you make your first payment.
Financial Hardship? If you cannot pay your ticket in full it is immediately referred to collections. The collections agency (CA Services Bureau) decides the amount that monthly payments will be set at. You do not have to ask the judge in order to get placed on a payment plan. You cannot get your fines reduced, but you can ask to do community service or get on a payment plan by filling out a financial statement (1214 petition) and submitting it to collections You can request to vacate a civil assessment fee due to hospitalization, military duty, or another good reason — you will need to fill out a form for this which you can get from the clerks. The judge decides whether to grant your request and you get an answer by mail.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? Appear before the judge, who can remove the hold at her/his discretion, or pay the ticket in full.
Financial Hardship? If your ticket is not yet in collections, you can go to the clerk’s office and schedule an appearance before the judge regarding your financial hardship (you can also raise ability to pay concerns when you are before the judge for a guilty plea or if you are convicted after trial). You can ask for a payment plan regardless of financial circumstances. If your ticket is in collections, you can submit a financial declaration to request a payment plan that fits your financial circumstances. Attach any proof that you have. The minimum monthly payments will depend on the information you provide in your financial declaration. There is a $35 fee to get on a payment plan. If you have a civil assessment fee, collections supervisors have the authority to vacate these fees if you show good cause for your failure to appear or pay (good cause may be defined as serving in the military overseas, hospitalized, incarcerated, or other extraordinary reason). You can come in person to make this request (bring any proof you have) or mail or fax a request.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? Appear before the judge and the hold will be removed, or set up a payment plan (the hold will be removed once you make your first payment of an initial 10% of the ticket plus a $35 fee).
Financial Hardship? Request to go before the judge for a hearing on a request for a Fines and Fees Reduction by going in to the Clerk’s office or calling and requesting to be put on the judge’s calendar. Mon-Fri 8am – 3pm or call and set up a time (Traffic Court is only Monday and Tues, no walk-ins). If you would like to go on a payment plan, you can get the payment plan form from a court clerk. Submit the form to the city collections agency, Placer County Revenue Services If you do not appear in Court, the judge will waive your civil assessment if you come in and pay your fine within 2 weeks. After that, you have 20 more days to go to the clerks and request to be placed on a payment plan and get the civil assessment fee waived (you do not have to go before the judge for this). After that, you would need to appear before the judge or write a letter and the judge could, at her/his discretion, vacate the civil assessment fee.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? If your case is a misdemeanor, you will have to go before the judge and the judge can remove hold at their discretion. Placer County usually does not place holds on licenses for FTAs in infraction cases.
Financial Hardship? They are in the process of creating an Ability to Pay form. For now, you can go before the judge to ask for a reduction or modification in your payment. Contact the Clerk’s office in person or by phone to get on calendar. Hearings like this are held on the 4th Friday of each month. There is no walk-in court for this type of appearance. If you have a Failure to Appear, you will need to go to court on the 1st or 3rd Fridays of the month. Call the clerk to get on the court calendar or come at 8:00am. for walk-in court.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? If no civil assessment has been imposed, you can appear on the 1st or 3rd Friday of the month at 8:30am. If there is a civil assessment, appear on the 4th Friday. The judge can remove the FTA hold at her/his discretion.
Financial Hardship? You can request that the judge consider reducing your fine based on ability to pay at your initial hearing or after being convicted at trial. You can also ask the judge to place you on a payment plan or impose community service. You can also call the traffic collections office and ask to speak to a representative about requesting to be placed on a payment plan based on your ability to pay. You will need to fax or email your income information and proof of any financial obligations and a collections representative will review it and make a determination that same day. To get a civil assessment fee removed, submit a Request to Address Civil Assessment form.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? If you get on a payment plan, the hold will be removed within 48 hours after you make your initial $50 payment.
Financial Hardship? You can request to go before the judge if your ticket is not in collections. – generally clerks refer people who ask about Ability to Pay to Legal Services. If your ticket is in collections and your case was filed at the Carol Miller Justice Center, you can submit an Ex Parte Application for Modification of Sentence 90 days after your most recent hearing, sentencing, or submission of this application (if you have already submitted this application, your circumstances must have changed in order to file another application). Generally the court will impose community service if it approves your application. Community service will involve paying fees through the sheriff’s office.
Attach supporting documents and bring the form to the clerk’s office or mail it to: Sacramento Superior Court, Traffic Division 301 Bicentennial Circle, Room 100 Sacramento, CA 95826 Community Service is handled through the alternative sentencing division of the sheriff’s office, (916) 874-1400 option 6. You fill out an application with them, they run a background check, review your schedule and set you up with a non-profit organization who will track hours and report back. If you cannot pay community service fees ($80, plus $15-30/day), you can set up a payment plan with the finance office in the alternative sentencing unit. Not clear if there is an option for a waiver of fees, determined on a case by case basis.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? Generally you will need to come to court and talk to the judge who might lift the hold. You can also get the hold lifted by going on a payment plan (it will be lifted after your first payment). Clerks can put you on a payment plan and you can make this request by mail. To start a payment plan you will need to pay 10% of the fine immediately and $50 fee.
Financial Hardship? If your ticket is not yet in collections, you can ask the clerks in person or by mail to give you an Agreement to Pay and Forfeit Bail in Installments form. Fill out and submit the form and your first payment in person or by mail. Minimum payments are $75 per month, but you could go before the judge (by going to the clerk’s office or calling them and getting on the judge’s calendar) and request that the judge impose a reduced monthly payment plan. It is possible that the judge might set the fine below $75. Walk-in court is Friday 8:00 to 10:00 am. Get there at 8:00 or earlier.
If your ticket is in collections you will have to go through the Franchise Tax Board to request changes to your payment. When a case gets sent to collections you should get a 10 day notice which gives you an option to pay in full and file a petition to vacate the civil assessment fee. After that you generally cannot get that fee vacated.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? Come to walk-in court on Fridays between 8 AM and 10, AM. The hold will be removed once you appear (or you could pay in full instead of appearing).
Financial Hardship? Everything is at the discretion of the judge, including requests to reduce fines and fees or modify payment plans. You can come to the clerk’s window or call the clerk’s office to request to see the judge. The clerks set hearings 4 days out. Hearings can occur any day of the week at 8:30 A.M. or 1:30 P.M., except Wednesday and Friday mornings which are set aside for trials only.
Payment plans are a $35 one-time fee but if you fail to pay and need the plan reinstated then you have to pay an extra $30. To request to get the monthly payment amount reduced you can write to the judge or appear before the judge. If you write a letter, the judge will issue a written response that will be mailed to you.
If your ticket is in collections you generally have to go through collections to address difficulty with payments, not the judge (But it depends on the circumstance, and you can always go to the clerks and ask to go before the judge who, at her/his discretion might issue an order on the fees).
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? Appear before the judge and the hold will be removed (or you could pay in full instead of appearing).
Traffic Court Phone Number: (858) 634-1800 dial 3, then dial 7. Phone hours 8:30 -AM to 11:30 AM.
Financial Hardship? The Court accepts letters claiming financial hardship. You can ask for a reduction in fines, community service, or a payment plan. You can also request to vacate your civil assessment fee in a letter. There are no specific requirements in terms of documenting financial hardship but it is helpful to attach proof.
If you want to set up a payment plan you do not have to write the judge; you can do that online. There is a $35 fee to go on a payment plan.
Alternatively, you can appear in court instead of writing a letter and ask the commissioner to consider your financial circumstances. There are no walk-in appointments so you need to call the clerks or set up an appointment online. However, if your ticket is in collections you have to go to the courthouse in person to get a hearing date. It takes about a week generally to get before the judge. You can, however, still write a letter to the judge and get a written response if your ticket is in collections.
Financial Hardship? Fill out Ability to Pay form, attach bank statement and proof of benefits (if applicable), submit to the clerk’s office or mail it in (but send it certified mail because due to high mail volumes it can take a long time for the mail to be processed).
If your ticket is in collections you can still submit an Ability to Pay form but the judge will not put you on a payment plan — collections handles payment plans at that point.
If you have a civil assessment fee you can ask the clerks for the request form to ask the court to vacate that fee.
Financial Hardship? Call the clerk’s office to request a court date for a judge to consider your ability to pay. You can also go to walk-in court. You can request that the judge order community service, a payment plan, or a reduction in fines due to your ability to pay. You will have to complete a Financial Declaration. You can also ask the judge to vacate your civil assessment fee.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? Appear in court and the hold will be removed.
Financial Hardship? Call or go to the clerk’s office and ask to go before the judge to request a reduction in fines or a payment plan based on your ability to pay. Commissioner decides — request to appear before them. You can come in at 8:30 A.M. on Tuesday if your case is in South County. In North County, traffic court is every Wednesday at 12:30. In Central County you can come to traffic court on Thursdays at 8:30 A.M. You can bring in any financial forms you want to show the judge.
If you have a Failure to Appear, you can call or go to the clerk’s office and request to go before the judge, who decides whether you can do community service or go on a payment plan. You will need to complete a Petition to Appear on an FTA without Posting Bail.
If your ticket is in collections and you want to request a change in what you must pay, you will need to submit a GC Services Petition. The judge will issue a decision on your petition.
You can also request to vacate a civil assessment fee by submitting a Petition to Vacate Civil Assessment. You will have to appear before the judge for this.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? Submit a petition to appear on FTA without posting bail (or you can pay the ticket in full).
Financial Hardship? Appear before the judge to request a reduction in fines, payment plan, or community service based on financial hardship. To set a date for a hearing you can call the clerks’ office, go in person, or do it online. There is no walk-in court.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? You can get the hold removed by paying in full OR by setting up a payment plan (the hold is removed when you make your first payment which is usually half the total fine), OR if your ticket is still in “active” status, you can schedule a court date and appear before the judge and the hold will usually be removed (without you having to pay first).
Financial Hardship? Generally the court considers ATP petitions before the initial appearance/imposition of a fine. Submit the ATP paperwork to a clerk or mail it in and the judge will make a decision about your initial fine based on that. If your ticket has been ruled on by a judge already, you might be able to submit an ATP petition afterwards if you did not raise financial concerns at the initial appearance. You will not need to appear before the judge — you will receive an answer by mail. The financial affidavit portion of the ATP form constitutes a plea of guilt and request for a reduction so if you’re pleading not guilty at the initial appearance you wouldn’t submit the form. If you already asked the judge for a reduction at your initial appearance you can’t file the ATP form once the judge has ruled on that request already If your ticket is with the Franchise Tax Board (it is sent there if Enhanced Court Collections cannot collect the fine from you), then you can no longer ask for an ATP determination.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? If you get on a payment plan, the hold will be removed after you make your first payment.
Financial Hardship? *Note – Santa Clara County is currently formulating a new process to address Ability to Pay concerns. Currently, you can write a letter to the judge with as much detail as possible explaining your financial hardship. The judge will issue a written decision which will be mailed to you. It is up to the judge what kind of relief (payment plan, reduction, community service) you get based on financial hardship. If your ticket is in collections and you have a civil assessment fee, submit a Civil Assessment petition to the clerk in person or by mail. Attach as much proof as possible for the reason for failure to appear or pay. The judge will issue a written response which will be mailed to you.
Financial Hardship? If your ticket is not in collections, fill out and submit (via mail or fax or in person) Plea Form SUPTVM057 to request an Ability to Pay determination. If you have a Failure to Pay or are already on a payment plan, complete Form SUPTVM056 instead (this is a modification request). You can request a reduction in monthly payments, modification in payments, or community service. You do not have to appear in court, and you will get response in the mail. The court will freeze your payment deadlines while they are making a decision about your request.
You cannot directly ask the court for a reduction when your ticket is in collections. You will need to contact the collections agency. They have their own financial hardship forms which they will send you. You can then return the completed forms to the collections office which will review them and sends them to the judge to make the ultimate decision on a reduction/modification request.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? The collections agency handles the process. If you get on a payment plan the hold will be cleared after your first payment.
Financial Hardship? You can call the clerks’ office to schedule a date to go before the judge to request an Ability to Pay hearing. Alternatively, you can write to the judge to request a fine reduction or payment plan, and get a written response [this is contrary to the court’s website}. There is a $50 fee for payment plans. The minimum payment per month is $50. Clerks can approve community service requests. If your ticket is in collections, you will need to contact that office to address your ability to pay. They will also handle requests related to civil assessment fees.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? You can get the hold removed by paying the full bail amount OR by setting up a payment plan (the hold is removed when you sign the payment plan papers), OR you can appear before the judge and the hold will be removed. If you get the hold removed by paying or going on a payment plan but you do not appear before the judge, you will still have a misdemeanor for failing to appear on your record until you go before the judge to request an order to remove that from your record.
Financial Hardship? Complete Ability to Pay form and submit it to the clerks. You will need to appear in court for the judge to make an ability to pay determination. If you cannot come to court the judge will typically approve a phone-in hearing.
You can still submit the Ability to Pay form if your ticket is in collections. However, if you just want to get on a payment plan you can go through collections for that.
Financial Hardship? You must appear before a judge to request a reduction in fines and fees or to do community service. If your ticket is not in collections, call the clerks’ office and ask what the walk-in dates are (the court website also shows traffic court walk-in dates).
You do not have to appear in court to get on a payment plan as long as the ticket is not in collections. Call the clerks and they can send a payment plan contract if the ticket is not yet in collections.
If your ticket is in collections, you will need to go before the judge to request a change to your fines and fees, but you cannot do it via walk-in court. You will have to call the clerk’s office in advance and request a calendared date (this can take a few months).
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? Appear and request that the judge remove the hold — removal is at the judge’s discretion.
Financial Hardship? Fill out Ability to Pay form. Attach proof of your income. Turn the form in to the clerks or mail it in. You will get an answer in the mail or by phone. If the ticket is non-delinquent you could also appear in court and ask the judge for community service or a reduction in the fine.
If your ticket is in collections you will need to go through their office to address ability to pay concerns. Collections (GC Services) has a separate ATP/Civil Assessment Vacate Request Declaration form. Collections will screen your application and let you know if you qualify for your request to be submitted to the judge.
Financial Hardship? For the initial hearing you have a minimum of 60 days to come in to walk-in court (which is held daily). At that hearing you can request community service or raise ability to pay concerns. If you don’t appear, there will be a trial in absentia and the judge can find you guilty and impose a fine.
You can then go to court and ask for community service or submit an Ability to Pay form to the clerks. You can get the form in person or call the clerk’s office and they will mail or fax it to you. If the judge has questions about your request they will set a hearing, otherwise they will issue a written decision that will be mailed to you. If you just want to modify your payment plan, you can write a letter to the judge who will issue a written response.
You can still submit the Ability to Pay form if your ticket is in collections, but if you have a Failure to Appear you will need to come to court and then you can submit the form.
There is no form to request to vacate a civil assessment fee but you can write a letter to the judge explaining why you failed to appear or pay and the judge will issue a written response.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? Appear in court to get the hold removed. Call the clerks to get on the judge’s calendar. If your ticket is in collections they will place you on the calendar on a Thursday (that is when collections cases are heard). If you schedule a hearing and you appear, the license hold is released. They will also release the hold if you don’t appear but you pay the fine in full.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? Appear in court on FTA walk-in day. (Wednesdays, 8:00am to 9:30am). Ask the judge to remove the hold.
Financial Hardship? Request (via Ability to Pay form) to go before judge to ask for a modification in payment or reduction in fines. Turn the form in to the clerks or mail it in (you cannot email or fax it because they need the original signature).
You will be seen by the judge during weekly traffic court which is held on Monday afternoons.
If you have a civil assessment fee but you have good cause for not appearing or paying, you can fill out a petition to vacate your civil assessment fee. You will not need to go before the judge for this — you will get an answer by mail.
Financial Hardship? You can get on a payment plan by submitting a letter pleading guilty and requesting to go on a payment plan. The clerks will mail you a payment plan agreement. Clerks can only authorize 3 month payment plans, and there is a $35 fee to get on a plan. If you need more than 3 months to pay, call the clerks to get your case placed on calendar and request a longer-term payment plan from the judge. If the judge grants your request then you will not have to pay a fee to get on the payment plan and there is no minimum amount you have to pay per month as long as you pay the full ticket amount by the date the judge sets. You can also request to satisfy your ticket by doing community service. To do this you will need to go before the judge. There is no fee to do community service.
If your case is in collections you cannot get on a payment plan — the court cannot make an order on the case anymore. If you are already on a payment plan and are in collections and you cannot make the minimum monthly payments because your financial circumstances changed (e.g. you lost job/got sick.etc.), first contact collections by calling them and see if you can work out a modified payment plan. However, they generally will not put people on payment plans lower than $50 per month (and the minimum could be higher if your fine is larger). If the minimum amount is too high for you to afford, you can ask collections to mail you a financial declaration to request to get your monthly payment amount lowered below the minimum.
If your case is in collections you will not be able to ask the judge to vacate the civil assessment fee.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? Contact the Collections office and get a Promise to Pay form from them, and make a down payment (the down payment is usually half the fine but collections might lower that initial payment it if you agree to pay a higher amount each month). The hold will be removed once you make your down payment.
Financial Hardship? Go before the judge to request a reduction. Come to walk-in traffic court between 8:00am and 9:00am on one of three Thursdays each month (walk-in court is always three Thursdays per month but which Thursdays it is varies). You can also get on a payment plan by filling out a Promise to Pay form. There is a $35 fee.
If you have a civil assessment fee, you can also request to go before the judge to ask that the fee be vacated.
Financial Hardship? If your ticket is not yet in collections, you can request to go before the judge to ask for a reduction due to financial hardship.
If your ticket is in collections, you can submit a Fines and Fees reduction request form to the collections unit. The traffic clerks and the collections unit will fax the form upon request. The collections unit will determine if you qualify for a payment plan modification (which they can place you on without referring your case to the judge) and/or if your case should be referred to the judge regarding a fine or fee reduction.
If you have a civil assessment fee you can write a letter explaining your circumstances and requesting that the fee be vacated. You may need to appear in court to get the fee removed.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? If you have a mandatory appearance, you will need to appear in court and the judge might remove the hold. If you do not have a mandatory appearance, you can get the hold removed by setting up a payment plan with collections and making your first payment (if your ticket is with court collections and has not been sent to an outside collections agency, monthly payments are usually set at $150 per month).
Financial Hardship? You have 4 weeks to send in the full payment or to come before the judge for a payment plan or community service request. You can also contact the clerks’ office and request to go on a payment plan. They will mail you an Agreement to Pay, which you will need to return to them (along with an administrative fee) before the due date on your ticket. There is an 18 month payment plan option or community service option in lieu of the payment plan. There is a one-time extension allowable by the clerk. If you need more time, go to the clerks’ office and ask to go before the judge to request a modified payment plan due to financial hardship.
After that, there is a 2 week warning notice period during which you can still come before the judge for the same requests. After that, the ticket is sent to collections. You then have 20 days to contact the court to request to get your Civil Assessment fee removed or set up a payment plan with the revenue recovery office.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? You will need to pay your fines and fees in full.
Financial Hardship? You can ask for a reduction in fines by going to the clerk’s office and getting on the calendar to see a judge about your financial hardship. (if you get there before 12:30pm you can generally see the judge that same day).
If your ticket is in collections, you can request to go on a payment plan by calling the Superior Court Collection Unit at (805) 639-5010. Their telephone hours are Monday through Friday from 8:00am to 7:00pm Monday through Friday, and from 8:00am to 4:30pm on Saturday. You can also contact the Collection Unit at court-collections@ventura.courts.ca.gov.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? Arrange with collections to come in and apply for a payment plan with them so that the hold can be removed. The hold will be removed within 5 days after you make your first payment. You will have to fill out a written payment agreement in person if you’re in collections — the collections unit can mail you the form if you live far away. You can also appear in court and the Judge might agree to remove the hold.
Financial Hardship? If your ticket is not in collections, you can go to the clerk’s office and set up an ability to pay hearing. If you have already had a fine imposed by the judge but the ticket is not yet with an outside collections agency. You can also call the clerks to get on a payment plan (the clerks can make this decision without you needing to go before the judge).
If the ticket has been referred to an outside collections agency, you will need to submit a letter to the judge explaining your inability to pay and attach any supporting documents that you have. The judge can then set a hearing or issue a written decision that will be mailed to you.
If you have a civil assessment fee, you can file a Motion to Vacate Civil Assessment. There is a $60 filing fee. The judge reviews your motion and responds in writing.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? If you have an infraction case, to remove the hold you can appear in court, OR pay in full OR go see the clerks in person and get on a payment plan. When the first payment is made the hold is lifted.
If it’s a misdemeanor case you will need to appear to get the FTA hold lifted.
Financial Hardship? You can call the clerks’s office to schedule a hearing before the judge about your ability to pay. Bring written proof of your financial hardship. You can also mail in a request to get on the walk-in calendar (which is held on Wednesdays) for a financial hardship hearing.
If your ticket has been sent to outside collections, then you will need to contact the collections agency first before you can go before the judge regarding your financial hardship.
Driver’s License Hold/Suspension for Failure to Appear? Pay at least half of your ticket and set up a payment plan for the remainder of the ticket.
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