WARREN - Faced with unfunded mandates from state lawmakers, Trumbull County officials have increased the cost of filing foreclosure actions in court.

The cost of filing the complaints here jumped from $165 to $565 Thursday - the first day House Bill 138 went into effect.

Like several other counties raising the costs, Trumbull court officials and department heads held a series of meetings to design a plan to expedite the time it takes from judges granting the foreclosures to transferring the property to new owners.

The new law was created to speed up the process and standardize procedures among common pleas courts across the state. Lawmakers cited Ohio Supreme Court figures that showed a five percent increase in foreclosures, or 83,230 filings, last year, and a 280 percent increase over the last 10 years.

Trumbull County's foreclosures totaled 1,526 last year, compared to 443 filed in 1997.

And some 1,021 foreclosures have been filed this year through Aug. 31, according to Common Pleas Clerk of Courts Karen Infante Allen.

''The law now shortens the waiting periods we've seen and gets the deed to the new owners faster,'' said Allen, whose department is in line to get $100 of the $400 increase.

''I don't intend to hire any additional personnel. The money will go to supplies and running the general operations of the department,'' she said.

Another $100 will go into a court special projects fund, which administrative Judge Andrew Logan said has been used for Courthouse upgrades, like security improvements, along with equipment and other emergencies.

''The point here is we're doing this with user fees and not taxpayer's money,'' Logan said.

In more than nine out of 10 cases, Logan said, the increased filing fees are a burden to the banks, mortgage companies and other financial institutions, that are expected to recoup any increases when the property is turned over. Attorneys say the fee increase is actually a court cost that banks will recoup out of proceeds from the sale of the property.

He said in some cases, banks would foreclose and either vacate the action or fail to file a confirmation, which gets the property re-sold. ''During that time, the county wasn't getting property taxes on the parcels,'' he said.

Logan said he knows of one other Ohio county that has earmarked the extra filing fee money to create a drug court. He said Ashtabula increased it's filing fee by $400, to $520 almost two years ago. Cuyahoga charges $475; Lorain $500; and Lucas $550.

Attorney Jason Earnhart, a court magistrate, examined the new law and drafted new court rules to bring local rules in line with the state mandates.

''Basically, the state wants things done in 60 days. Our increased fee aleviates any draw on the county's general fund,'' Earnhart said.

''Of the foreclosures we get, the majority go to a sheriff's sale. Those that don't are due to bankruptcy or a settlement between the bank and a defendant,'' he said.

''With the help of Buckeye State Sheriff's Association and Trumbull County Auditor's Office, we've designed new forms that are on the county's Web site. And, we magistrates will be continuing to mediate these foreclosures at no charge,'' Earnhart said.

''Lately the foreclosures have become a strain on our court system,'' he said, citing statistics that show foreclosure cases have grown from 17 percent to 40 percent of the total civil cases filed.

Meanwhile, Sheriff Tom Altiere, whose department will realize $200 of the $400 increase, said he doesn't plan to add anyone to his civil department in charge of the sheriff sales.

''What money we get will stay earmarked for the civil division and whatever they need. The law places us in charge of following cases through the system. But we'll get help from other departments to estimate taxes, and recording the deeds,'' Altiere said.