Kansas court seeks new collections agency

People who owe past-due court fines to the Topeka, Kansas, Municipal Court are being granted a short grace period from collections fees, the Topeka Capital-Journal reports. According to administrative judge Vic Miller, the court had previously received help from collections from two separate firms, and decided recently not to renew contracts with either of them. Instead, Miller hopes to change the court's collection approach and consolidate to one agency. In the meantime, debtors will have a chance to pay off fines without incurring any additional collection costs. "Now is the perfect time for those who owe money to the court to make arrangements for payment directly to the court," said Miller, as quoted by the news source. "Once those accounts go back out to collection, the cost of collection is added and that adds an additional fee - as high as 33 percent - to what is owed." Miller predicts the court will have a new agency in place within the next 60 to 90 days. It received proposals from six firms, and five have already been interviewed. Elsewhere in the city, KSNT-TV reports that a scammer has been calling citizens claiming to be a police officer following up on unpaid fines and asking for bank account numbers.