HB2281 - 531R

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

Section 1. Section 13-2314.01, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE13-2314.01. Anti-racketeering revolving fund; use of fund; reports; annual audit

A. The anti‑racketeering revolving fund is established. The attorney general shall administer the fund under the conditions and for the purposes provided by this section. Monies in the fund are exempt from the lapsing provisions of section 35‑190.

B. Any prosecution and investigation costs, including attorney fees, recovered for the state by the attorney general as a result of enforcement of civil and criminal statutes pertaining to any offense included in the definition of racketeering in section 13‑2301, subsection D, paragraph 4 or section 13‑2312, whether by final judgment, settlement or otherwise, shall be deposited in the fund established by this section.

C. Any monies received by any department or agency of this state or any political subdivision of this state from any department or agency of the United States or another state as a result of participation in any investigation or prosecution, whether by final judgment, settlement or otherwise, shall be deposited in the fund established by this section or, if the recipient is a political subdivision of this state, may be deposited in the fund established by pursuant to section 13‑2314.03.

D. Any monies obtained as a result of a forfeiture by any department or agency of this state under this title or under federal law shall be deposited in the fund established by this section. Any monies or other property obtained as a result of a forfeiture by any political subdivision of this state or the federal government may be deposited in the fund established by this section. Monies deposited in the fund pursuant to this section or section 13‑4315 shall accrue interest and shall be held for the benefit of the agency or agencies responsible for the seizure or forfeiture to the extent of their contribution. Except as provided in subsections F and G of this section, the monies and interest shall be distributed within thirty days of application to the agency or agencies responsible for the seizure or forfeiture. Monies in the fund used by the attorney general for capital projects in excess of one million dollars are subject to review by the joint committee on capital review.

E. Monies in the fund:

1. May be used for the following:

1. (a) The funding of gang prevention programs, substance abuse prevention programs, substance abuse education programs, programs that provide assistance to victims of a criminal offense that is listed in section 13‑2301 and witness protection pursuant to section 41‑196 or for any purpose permitted by federal law relating to the disposition of any property that is transferred to a law enforcement agency.

2. (b) The investigation and prosecution of any offense included in the definition of racketeering in section 13‑2301, subsection D, paragraph 4 or section 13‑2312, including civil enforcement.

3. (c) The payment of the relocation expenses of any law enforcement officer and the officer's immediate family if the law enforcement officer is the victim of a bona fide threat that occurred because of the law enforcement officer's duties.

2. In addition to any other restriction on the use of public monies provided by law, may not be used for any of the following:

(a) Providing a gift to any individual or group.

(b) Any political or promotional purpose.

F. On or before January 15, April 15, July 15 and October 15 of each year, each department or agency of this state receiving monies pursuant to this section or section 13‑2314.03 or 13‑4315 or from any department or agency of the United States or another state as a result of participation in any investigation or prosecution shall file with the attorney general, the board of supervisors if the sheriff received the monies and the city or town council if the city city's or town's department received the monies a report for the previous calendar quarter. The report shall be in a form that is prescribed by the Arizona criminal justice commission and approved by the director of the joint legislative budget committee. The report shall set forth the sources of all monies and all expenditures. The report shall not include any identifying information about specific investigations. If a department or agency of this state fails to file a report within forty‑five days after the report is due and there is no good cause as determined by the Arizona criminal justice commission, the attorney general shall make no expenditures from the fund for the benefit of the department or agency until the report is filed. The attorney general is responsible for collecting all reports from departments and agencies of this state and transmitting the reports to the Arizona criminal justice commission at the time that the report required pursuant to subsection G of this section is submitted.

G. On or before January 25, April 25, July 25 and October 25 of each year, the attorney general shall file with the Arizona criminal justice commission a report for the previous calendar quarter. The report shall be in a form that is prescribed by the Arizona criminal justice commission and approved by the director of the joint legislative budget committee. The report shall set forth the sources of all monies and all expenditures. The report shall not include any identifying information about specific investigations. If the attorney general fails to file a report within sixty days after the report is due and there is no good cause as determined by the Arizona criminal justice commission, the attorney general shall make no expenditures from the fund for the benefit of the attorney general until the report is filed. If a political subdivision of this state fails to file a report with the county attorney pursuant to section 13‑2314.03 within forty‑five days after the report is due and there is no good cause as determined by the Arizona criminal justice commission, the attorney general shall make no expenditures from the fund for the benefit of the political subdivision until the report is filed.

H. On or before September 30 of each year, the Arizona criminal justice commission shall compile the attorney general report, all annual audits and the reports of all departments and agencies of this state into a single comprehensive report and shall submit a copy of the report to the governor, the director of the department of administration, the president of the senate, the speaker of the house of representatives, the director of the joint legislative budget committee and the secretary of state.

I. The attorney general shall investigate all allegations of unlawful use of monies. If the allegation involves the attorney general, the county attorney in the county where the alleged unlawful use occurred shall investigate the allegation.

J. The attorney general shall cause an annual audit to be made of the fund and each entity that receives monies from the fund. A certified public accountant shall conduct the audit within one hundred fifty days after the close of the fiscal year. The audit must include a detailed accounting for each forfeiture, an explanation for the forfeiture and a current disposition of all assets and monies in the entity's possession. The attorney general shall immediately file a certified copy of the audit with the auditor general. The auditor general may make further audits and examinations that the auditor general considers to be necessary and take appropriate action relating to the audit or examination pursuant to title 41, chapter 7, article 10.1. If the auditor general takes no official action within twenty days after the annual audit is filed, the audit is considered to be sufficient. The attorney general and each entity that is audited shall pay any fees and costs of the certified public accountant and auditor general under this subsection. END_STATUTE

Sec. 2. Section 13-2314.03, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE13-2314.03. County anti-racketeering revolving fund; use of fund; reports; annual audit

A. The board of supervisors of a county shall establish a county anti‑racketeering revolving fund administered by the county attorney under the conditions and for the purposes provided by this section.

B. Any prosecution and investigation costs, including attorney fees, recovered for the county as a result of enforcement of civil and criminal statutes pertaining to any offense included in the definition of racketeering in section 13‑2301, subsection D, paragraph 4 or section 13‑2312, whether by final judgment, settlement or otherwise, shall be deposited in the fund established by the board of supervisors.

C. Any monies received by any department or agency of this state or any political subdivision of this state from any department or agency of the United States or another state as a result of participation in any investigation or prosecution, whether by final judgment, settlement or otherwise, shall be deposited in the fund established by pursuant to this section or in the fund established by section 13‑2314.01.

D. Any monies obtained as a result of a forfeiture by the county attorney under this title or under federal law shall be deposited in the fund established by pursuant to this section. Any monies or other property obtained as a result of a forfeiture by any political subdivision of this state or the federal government may be deposited in the fund established by pursuant to this section or in the fund established by section 13‑2314.01. Monies deposited in the fund pursuant to this section or section 13‑4315 shall accrue interest and shall be held for the benefit of the agency or agencies responsible for the seizure or forfeiture to the extent of their contribution. Except as provided in subsections F and G of this section, the monies and interest shall be distributed to the agency or agencies responsible for the seizure or forfeiture within thirty days of application.

E. Monies in the fund:

1. May be used for the following:

(a) The funding of gang prevention programs, substance abuse prevention programs, substance abuse education programs, programs that provide assistance to victims of a criminal offense that is listed in section 13‑2301 and witness protection pursuant to section 11‑536 or for any purpose permitted by federal law relating to the disposition of any property that is transferred to a law enforcement agency. Monies in the fund may be used for

(b) The investigation and prosecution of any offense included in the definition of racketeering in section 13‑2301, subsection D, paragraph 4 or section 13‑2312, including civil enforcement.

2. In addition to any other restriction on the use of public monies provided by law, may not be used for any of the following:

(a) Providing a gift to any individual or group.

(b) Any political or promotional purpose.

F. On or before January 25, April 25, July 25 and October 25 of each year, the county attorney shall cause to be filed file with the Arizona criminal justice commission a report for the previous calendar quarter. The report shall be in a form that is prescribed by the Arizona criminal justice commission and approved by the director of the joint legislative budget committee. The report shall set forth the sources of all monies and all expenditures. The report shall not include any identifying information about specific investigations. If the county attorney fails to file a report within sixty days after it is due and there is no good cause as determined by the Arizona criminal justice commission, the county attorney shall make no expenditures from the fund for the benefit of the county attorney until the report is filed.

G. On or before January 15, April 15, July 15 and October 15 of each year, each political subdivision of this state receiving monies pursuant to this section or section 13‑2314.01 or 13‑4315 or from any department or agency of the United States or another state as a result of participating in any investigation or prosecution shall cause to be filed file with the board of supervisors of the county in which the political subdivision is located, each city or town council in which the political subdivision is located and the county attorney of the county in which the political subdivision is located a report for the previous calendar quarter. The report shall be in a form that is prescribed by the Arizona criminal justice commission and approved by the director of the joint legislative budget committee. The report shall set forth the sources of all monies and all expenditures. The report shall not include any identifying information about specific investigations. If a political subdivision of this state fails to file a report within forty‑five days after the report is due and there is no good cause as determined by the Arizona criminal justice commission, the county attorney shall make no expenditures from the fund for the benefit of the political subdivision until the report is filed. The county attorney shall be responsible for collecting all reports from political subdivisions within that county and transmitting the reports to the Arizona criminal justice commission at the time that the county report required pursuant to subsection F of this section is submitted.

H. On or before September 30 of each year, the Arizona criminal justice commission shall compile all county attorney reports into a single comprehensive report and all political subdivision reports into a single comprehensive report and submit a copy of each comprehensive report and each annual audit to the governor, the president of the senate, the speaker of the house of representatives, the director of the joint legislative budget committee and the secretary of state.

J. The county attorney shall cause an annual audit to be made of the fund and each entity that receives monies from the fund unless the entity is audited for the same monies pursuant to section 13‑2314.01. A certified public accountant shall conduct the audit within one hundred fifty days after the close of the fiscal year. The audit must include a detailed accounting for each forfeiture, an explanation for the forfeiture and a current disposition of all assets and monies in the entity's possession. The county attorney shall immediately file a certified copy of the audit with the auditor general. The auditor general may make further audits and examinations that the auditor general considers to be necessary and take appropriate action relating to the audit or examination pursuant to title 41, chapter 7, article 10.1. If the auditor general takes no official action within twenty days after the annual audit is filed, the audit is considered to be sufficient. The county attorney and each entity that is audited shall pay any fees and costs of the certified public accountant and auditor general under this subsection. END_STATUTE

Sec. 3. Section 13-4315, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE13-4315. Allocation of forfeited property

A. Any property, including all interests in property, forfeited to the state under this title shall be transferred as requested by the attorney for the state to the seizing agency or to the agency or political subdivision employing the attorney for the state, which may do any of the following:

1. Sell, lease, lend or transfer the property to any local or state government entity or agency or political subdivision, any law enforcement agency or prosecutorial agency or any federal law enforcement agency which that operates within this state for official federal, state or political subdivision use within this state, with expenses for keeping and transferring such property to be paid by the recipient. Property may not be allocated for official use if the fair market value of the property substantially exceeds the agency's probable cost of purchasing other property equally suited for the intended official use. Property that is allocated for official use may not be assigned for use by any person who supervised or exercised discretion in its forfeiture unless the use is approved in writing by the head of the agency.

2. Sell forfeited property by public or otherwise commercially reasonable sale with expenses of keeping and selling the property and the amount of all valid interests established by claimants paid out of the proceeds of the sale with the balance paid into the anti‑racketeering revolving fund of the state or of the county in which the political subdivision seizing the property or prosecuting the action is located. A sale of forfeited property may not be made to any employee of the seizing agency, any person who participated in the forfeiture, any employee of a contractor selling the property on behalf of the seizing agency or any member of the immediate family of any of these employees or persons.

3. Destroy or use for investigative purposes any illegal or controlled substances or other contraband at any time more than twenty days after seizure, on written approval of the attorney for the state, preserving only such material as may be necessary for evidence.

4. Sell, use or destroy all raw materials, products and equipment of any kind used or intended for use in manufacturing, compounding or processing a controlled substance.

5. Compromise and pay claims against property forfeited pursuant to any provision of this section.

6. Make any other disposition of forfeited property authorized by law for the disposition of property of the state, government entity, agency or political subdivision.

B. Notwithstanding subsection A of this section or any other provision of law to the contrary:

1. If the property forfeited is money, and a law enforcement agency can specifically identify monies as being from its investigative funds or as being exchanged for property from its investigative property, the monies shall be remitted to the investigative fund. If there are additional forfeited monies or monies tendered on satisfaction by an interest holder which that cannot be specifically identified, the court shall order the monies returned to each law enforcement agency that makes a showing of costs or expenses which that it incurred in connection with the investigation and prosecution of the matter and shall order all excess monies remaining after such returns deposited in the anti‑racketeering revolving fund of this state or of the county in which the political subdivision seizing the monies or prosecuting the action is located, established pursuant to section 13‑2314.01 or 13‑2314.03.

2. If the property declared forfeited is an interest in a vehicle, the court shall order it forfeited to the local, state or other law enforcement agency seizing the vehicle for forfeiture or to the seizing agency.

C. Monies in any anti‑racketeering REVOLVING fund established pursuant to this title:

1. May be used, in addition to any other lawful use, for:

1. (a) The payment of any expenses necessary to seize, detain, appraise, inventory, protect, maintain, preserve the availability of, advertise or sell property that is subject to forfeiture and that is seized, detained or forfeited pursuant to this title or of any other necessary expenses incident to the seizure, detention, preservation or forfeiture of the property. The payments may include payments for contract services and payments to reimburse any federal, state or local agency for any expenditures made to perform the functions of the seizing agency.

2. (b) The payment of awards for information or assistance leading to a civil or criminal proceeding under this title.

3. (c) The payment of compensation from forfeited property to injured persons as provided in section 13‑4311, subsection N, paragraph 3.

2. In addition to any other restriction on the use of public monies provided by law, may not be used for any of the following:

(a) Providing a gift to any individual or group.

(b) Any political or promotional purpose.

D. Each attorney for the state shall submit a copy of each forfeiture judgment, including each order of forfeiture, to the Arizona criminal justice commission within sixty days after the forfeiture judgment becomes final or after the conclusion of appellate review, if any.

E. The attorney general shall investigate all allegations of unlawful use of monies. If the allegation involves the attorney general, the county attorney in the county where the alleged unlawful use occurred shall investigate the allegation. END_STATUTE