The New Due Process: Fairness in a Fee-Driven State
Courts, prosecutors, and law enforcement work together to assess and collect fines, fees, and forfeitures that fund the justice system – a conflict of interest and a violation of due …
The High Cost of a Fresh Start: A State by State Analysis of Court Debt as a Bar to Record Clearing
A criminal record can make it hard to get a job, support a family, secure housing, vote, and ultimately pay off fines and fees. Despite efforts by states to provide …
Oklahoma SB 1458
Oklahoma introduced a bill that if passed would eliminate certain executive agency fees. Key Provisions: Eliminates the additional fee charged to any person convicted of an offense punishable by a …
Why We Need to Stop Suspending and Revoking Driver’s Licenses Due to Debt
The Prosperity Now Scorecard rates states on their progress toward racial economic justice in several policy areas. The 2022 policy update includes an assessment of which states have ended the …
AL HB 200
The Alabama legislature recently introduced a bill that would prohibit driver’s license suspensions for failure to pay a fine, fee, court cost or restitution imposed as a result of a …
Criminalizing Poverty: The Consequences of Court Fees in a Randomized Experiment
Using a randomized controlled trial of court related fee relief for misdemeanor defendants, the authors tested the hypothesis that financial obligations criminalize poverty and later court involvement results from an …
The High Cost of a Fresh Start: A State by State Analysis of Court Debt as a Bar to Record Clearing
A criminal record can make it hard to get a job, support a family, secure housing, vote, and ultimately pay off fines and fees. Despite efforts by states to provide …
Justice-Involved Individuals and the Consumer Financial Marketplace
Contact with the justice system can destabilize people’s financial situation. This report by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau outlines the challenges justice-involved individuals and their families face due to predatory …
Red-Light and Speed Cameras: Analyzing the Equity and Efficacy of Chicago’s Automated Camera Enforcement Program
This report analyzes Chicago’s automated red-light and speed camera program. Using data from red-light and speed camera tickets issued between 2016 and 2019, the authors evaluate the distribution of camera …
Dreams Deferred: The Impact of Juvenile Fees on Florida’s Children, Families, and Future
This report outlines the catastrophic consequences of juvenile fee debt for Florida’s children, families, and economy including: increased poverty, increased recidivism, and the exacerbation of racial disparities in the justice system.