by: Joanna Weiss and Tanisha Pierrette
Throughout March, we celebrate the history and achievements of women. Too often, the remarkable strength and tenacity required for women’ s everyday survival is absent from these stories, overlooking the experiences of millions of women across the United States who are caregivers, support systems, and often the very bedrock of safe, healthy communities. Also absent in these stories are the systemic challenges women face while supporting their families and communities—impediments put in place by every state and local government in this country.
Despite this, women are often the heroes in the story of fighting fines and fees imposed through the criminal justice system.
Every encounter with the justice system today comes with a bill. In addition to any fine imposed as a punishment for breaking the law, every state and local government tacks on a range of fees: fees for court costs, fees to prosecute and fees for diversion programs to avoid prosecution.
Most states charge fees for a public defense attorney for people who are too poor to hire a private attorney, for parole, probation, and even room and board charges for every day of incarceration—some of which can be imposed even without any finding of guilt. These fees, which can total hundreds or even thousands of dollars, should be called what they are — a tax on women—because most often, that’s who is footing the bill.
Women involved in the justice system are more likely to be charged with lower level offenses that are punished through fines and taxed by fees. Because women are over-represented among Americans living in poverty, earning less than their male counterparts particularly after incarceration, and have more caregiving responsibilities than men, women are less able to afford the fines and fees imposed.
Thus, women are more vulnerable to the draconian punishments for non-payment, from additional fines and fees to driver’s license suspensions for non-payment to arrest warrants. In addition, in nearly two thirds of cases where fines and fees are imposed on men or women encountering the justice system, it is family members who are paying the bill. Of those family members, 83% are women, disproportionately women of color.
Data from the first nationally representative survey of the impacts of fines and fees, conducted in collaboration with The Fines and Fees Justice Center and the Wilson Center for Science and Justice, further reveals the excessive burdens placed on women. Of the one in three Americans impacted by fines and fees in the last decade, more than half had to cut back on 2 or more basic needs. More than one third of impacted people had trouble simply obtaining food. More than one in four faced housing hardships.
And of parents impacted by fines and fees, 99% had to cut back on or forgo at least one basic necessity, which translates to at least 17 million households with children likely experiencing shortfalls in housing, food, healthcare or other basic necessities. When we disaggregated the survey data by gender, we confirmed that each negative impact of fines and fees we measured is disproportionately experienced by women.
In the spirit of uplifting efforts and triumphs this women’s history month, we would like to celebrate the women who are tirelessly working to end the disproportionate impacts of fines and fees on women. We celebrate Mona Serna, who helped successfully advocate to end debt-based drivers’ license suspensions and all post conviction fees in New Mexico. And Jodi Hocking, who leads Return Strong! In Nevada and helped lead the effort to eliminate a range of fees imposed on incarcerated people in Nevada, fees that destabilized families.
Women are often leading the charge to end the destabilizing and counterproductive harms of fines and fees and supporting safer stronger communities. And, in the midst of an American affordability crisis that is hitting women the hardest, it is past time for governments to stop taxing women through the justice system.