N.Y. CPL Law § 420.40

§ 420.40 Deferral of a mandatory surcharge; financial hardship hearings.\n 1. Applicability. The procedure specified in this section governs the\ndeferral of the obligation to pay all or part of a mandatory surcharge,\nsex offender registration fee or DNA databank fee imposed pursuant to\nsubdivision one of section 60.35 of the penal law and financial hardship\nhearings relating to mandatory surcharges.\n 2. On an appearance date set forth in a summons issued pursuant to\nsubdivision three of section 60.35 of the penal law, section eighteen\nhundred nine of the vehicle and traffic law or section 27.12 of the\nparks, recreation and historic preservation law, a person upon whom a\nmandatory surcharge, sex offender registration fee or DNA databank fee\nwas levied shall have an opportunity to present on the record credible\nand verifiable information establishing that the mandatory surcharge,\nsex offender registration fee or DNA databank fee should be deferred, in\nwhole or in part, because, due to the indigence of such person the\npayment of said surcharge, sex offender registration fee or DNA databank\nfee would work an unreasonable hardship on the person or his or her\nimmediate family.\n 3. In assessing such information the superior court shall be mindful\nof the mandatory nature of the surcharge, sex offender registration fee\nand DNA databank fee, and the important criminal justice and victim\nservices sustained by such fees.\n 4. Where a court determines that it will defer part or all of a\nmandatory surcharge, sex offender registration fee or DNA databank fee\nimposed pursuant to subdivision one of section 60.35 of the penal law, a\nstatement of such finding and of the facts upon which it is based shall\nbe made part of the record.\n 5. A court which defers a person's obligation to pay a mandatory\nsurcharge, sex offender registration fee or DNA databank fee imposed\npursuant to subdivision one of section 60.35 of the penal law shall do\nso in a written order. Such order shall not excuse the person from the\nobligation to pay the surcharge, sex offender registration fee or DNA\ndatabank fee. Rather, the court's order shall direct the filing of a\ncertified copy of the order with the county clerk of the county in which\nthe court is situate except where the court which issues such order is\nthe supreme court in which case the order itself shall be filed by the\nclerk of the court acting in his or her capacity as the county clerk of\nthe county in which the court is situate. Such order shall be entered by\nthe county clerk in the same manner as a judgment in a civil action in\naccordance with subdivision (a) of rule five thousand sixteen of the\ncivil practice law and rules. The order shall direct that any unpaid\nbalance of the mandatory surcharge, sex offender registration fee or DNA\ndatabank fee may be collected in the same manner as a civil judgment.\nThe entered order shall be deemed to constitute a judgment-roll as\ndefined in section five thousand seventeen of the civil practice law and\nrules and immediately after entry of the order, the county clerk shall\ndocket the entered order as a money judgment pursuant to section five\nthousand eighteen of such law and rules.\n