Houstonians who have delinquent charges pending in court might have to opportunity to wipe away those charges quicker than usual during the courts' “Spring Cleaning” amnesty program.

The Municipal Courts Amnesty program began Wednesday and ends Friday, March 31.

The program gives people with delinquent court matters a chance to resolve those cases at a discounted rate.

“This is a very limited time frame to save a lot of money, hundreds of dollars in some cases, so please don’t delay your decision to act on this great opportunity to resolve your court matters without fear of arrest. We are here to assist you and help eliminate your delinquent court cases. Citizens are urged to keep in mind that they may also come in and speak with a Judge during this amnesty period,” Director and Presiding Judge J. Elaine Marshall said.

This program is happening for a short time and doesn’t happen often. The goal of this discount program is to resolve cases that are lingering or outstanding with the court.

Are you eligible?

People with delinquent traffic and non-traffic citations that were delinquent before March 1, 2017, will be eligible for the amnesty discounts, and they can be paid by phone, mail, or in person.

You’re not eligible for the amnesty program if a judge had already made a decision on your criminal cases, parking citations, administrative violations and civil case violations. If you have any questions on why parking citations are not eligible for the discount program, call 713-837-0311

If you are wondering if you are eligible for the amnesty program, you can call 3-1-1, or visit www.houstontx.gov/courts

Do you have warrants?

If your warrant case qualifies, you could have the ability to pay your fines at a discounted rate under the amnesty program.

If you have a warrant, or if you are unsure if you have a warrant, you can call 3-1-1, visit the above website, or visit the court house.

If you have a current warrant out for an arrest and you want to visit the court house to ask about your case, you may do so without being arrested.

How does a person pay for outstanding cases?

To ask a question about the amnesty program, or to pay for an outstanding case, there are three options.

First, you can pay by phone by calling Houston's helpline at 3-1-1, or 713-837-0311.

Second, you can make a payment to the Municipal Courts mailing address: Municipal Courts Dept., P.O. Box 4996, Houston, TX 77210-4996

Third, you can pay by cash, check, money order, American Express, Discover, or MasterCard in person at any one of the six courts throughout Houston.