In 2012, Tennessee counties only collected a quarter of all court-assessed criminal fees and fines.
Tennessee has a complex system of fees and fines, and its decentralized court structure and inconsistent reporting exacerbate difficulties in tracking its full impact. This Sycamore Institute report aims to address the deficiencies in Tennessee’s current system for collecting and analyzing data related to legal financial obligations (LFOs). Although the state continues to add new fees and fines, adding at least 50 new fees and fines since 2005, there is no comprehensive public dataset on how much money is assessed, collected, or allocated from fees and fines. This lack of transparency makes it challenging to evaluate whether these financial penalties are an efficient source of revenue or the magnitude of their impact on people who owe them. This report provides practices from other states and recommendations for policymakers to understand the implications of criminal fees and fines.
You can read the full text here.
4 Strategies to Gain More Insight into Fees and Fines
- Expand Court Reporting Requirements: Mandate comprehensive data collection and reporting by courts to capture detailed information on fees and fines, including amounts assessed, collected, and outstanding. This would provide a clearer picture of LFOs across jurisdictions.
- Leverage Existing Financial Data: Utilize current accounting systems related to state and local budgets to gain insights into criminal fee and fine revenues and their allocation. Clear reporting on how each dollar collected is distributed would help evaluate the role of fees and fines as a revenue source and assess potential impacts of reforms.
- Connect Data Across Systems: Integrate information from various agencies and systems involved in the criminal justice process to track the flow of individuals and funds more effectively. This holistic approach can reveal patterns and outcomes associated with LFOs.
- Establish a Centralized, Publicly Accessible Data Repository: Create a unified platform where collected data on fees and fines are stored and made available to the public, policymakers, and researchers. This transparency can inform policy decisions and promote accountability within the justice system.