Money Collected for Fees, Fines, Costs & Restitution
The Magisterial District Courts are unique as they not only are responsible for ensuring that justice is delivered efficiently and effectively to all who come before them, but they are also responsible for the collection and disbursement of large amounts of various moneys. While other levels of the judiciary have seperate offices to handle these fiscal and administrative responsibilities, each Magisterial District Court is its own prothonotary, clerk of court, treasurer, etc. Because of these additional responibilities, the district courts are bonded and audited by the State Auditor General, AOPC, the County Controller, and other state and county entities.
You can hover your cursor over each annual column to see the amount rounded to the nearest hundreth of a million. It should be noted that amounts decreased due to reduced case filings from 2020 through 2022 due to:
- COVID-19 Pandemic:
- Supreme Court and County Emergency Court Orders and Closures for Public Health Concerns
- Moratoriums of the Filing of Landlord-Tenant Cases and Stay of Evictions
- Law Enforcement Shortages
- Mandatory Business Closures
- Social Issues and Unrest Experienced Across the Nation
Annual Disbursement of Court Collections by Recipient
Most fees, fines and costs (like those assessed on traffic tickets) are shared by the state and local governments. Restitution is collected from defendants by the courts and disbursed to victims of crimes or offenses.
Above data compiled from AOPC statistics available
For more information on state audits of the Magisterial District Courts, please contact the Pennsylvania Auditor General’s Office