Opinion ID: 734158
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Assessment Procedure

Text: 8 The key to the assessment procedure is the trust account. As the balance in the account can literally change on a daily basis, the first issue which must be addressed is what date controls for purposes of § 1915(b)(1). Because the trust account is so fluid, the date the complaint or the notice of appeal is filed with the clerk of the district court will be the controlling date for the computation of time under § 1915(b)(1). As both of these dates are certain and within the immediate knowledge of the district court; the date these documents are filed in the district court is thus the easiest and most logical date to use. See also 28 U.S.C.A. § 1915(a)(2) (prisoner must submit trust account statement for six (6) month period immediately preceding the filing of the complaint or notice of appeal). Although courts could use the date the prisoner mails the complaint or notice of appeal to the district court, see Houston, 487 U.S. at 270, 108 S.Ct. at 2382, this option would cause confusion and delay in the assessment process as many prisoners do not provide a written declaration as to when documents are given to prison officials for mailing. If courts accepted the date of mailing, the district courts would waste needless hours adjudicating disputes concerning when the documents were mailed. 9 The fluctuating nature of trust funds makes it difficult to keep the information in the trust account summaries current for mailing to the district courts. If a district court decides to make an assessment computation, prison officials should supply the district court with the necessary financial records so the district court may make the required assessment. If a district court chooses to calculate the assessment, inmates could constantly argue that the assessments were based on stale information. This process would create needless litigation over a few pennies. The solution to this problem is to have the custodian of the account do the computation and then send the money to the district court. To accomplish this goal, the district courts may issue an order containing language similar to the following: 10 Pursuant to 28 U.S.C.A. § 1915(b)(1), the custodian of [prisoner's name] inmate trust account at the institution where [he or she] now resides is directed to submit to the Clerk of the United States District Court for the [Eastern, Western, Northern, Southern, Middle] District of [State], as an initial partial payment, twenty percent (20%) of the greater of: 11 (a) the average monthly deposits to the inmate trust account; or 12 (b) the average monthly balance in the inmate trust account, for the six (6) months immediately preceding the filing of [the complaint or notice of appeal] on [date]. 13 After full payment of the initial partial filing fee, the custodian shall submit twenty percent (20%) of [prisoner's name] preceding monthly income credited to the account, but only when the amount in the account exceeds ten dollars ($10), until the full fees of one hundred and fifty dollars ($150) have been paid to the clerk of this court. 28 U.S.C.A. § 1915(b)(2). 14 A magistrate judge may issue a fee assessment order or grant an extension of time pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1)(A) as these are non-dispositive decisions. Even a voluntary dismissal of a complaint or an appeal does not eliminate a prisoner's obligation to pay the required filing fees. Section 1915(b)(1) compels the payment of the respective fees at the moment the complaint or notice of appeal is filed. Any subsequent dismissal of the case, even if voluntary, does not negate this financial responsibility. However, a case may not be dismissed when the payment of an assessment has been delayed by prison officials. A prisoner cannot be penalized when prison officials fail to promptly pay an assessment.