Bucks County’s Delinquency Recovery Program (DRiP) just hit $2 million in revenue four years after starting the program.
Bucks County Clerk of Courts Eileen Hartnett Albillar provided an update on how well the program was running at the Bucks County Commissioners Meeting on Aug. 28.
The program was created by former Clerk of Courts Brian Munroe to recoup $250 million in owed court costs, fees, fines, and victim restitution.
“Most of which will not be recovered for various reasons, but that doesn’t mean we’re not going to try, which is why DRiP was created and implemented,” Hartnett Albillar said.
They’re going through old cases and sending out letters to people who money and setting them up on payment plans.
On June 29, 2020 the program received its first payment and on July 2, 2024, almost four years later to the day, hit $2 million in revenue.
“All of this is new money that otherwise would not have been recouped for the county or victims of crime who are owed restitution and the dedicated efforts to make the victims whole is the most satisfying part,” Hartnett Albillar said.
The revenue is distributed in three ways to the county, the commonwealth and the victims. The county received $1.1 million or 55% of the revenue while the victims received $425,000 (21%) of the revenue.
Some of the cases and owed restitution can be up to 35 years old. One victim started receiving his restitution for a burglary 34 years ago.
“I received a check from the Clerk of Courts and thought they made a mistake, so I called,” they said. “I thought I would never see that money.”
DRiP offers payment plans for defendants to manage their owed court fees and fines. Hartnett Albillar said the program “continues to be a triple win” and that defendants can clear up old debts and move forward.
“I’m proud that we’ve never given up on the pursuit of what is owed to the victims of crime, some of whom had never seen a dime,” Hartnett Albillar said.
