Recommended Archives - Page 27 of 30 - Fines and Fees Justice Center

Mississippi Department of Public Safety declines to enforce statute that permits driver’s license suspension for failure to pay fines and fees

The Mississippi Department of Public Safety made a number of discretionary changes regarding driver’s license suspensions for unpaid fines and fees -- they stopped suspending licenses for nonpayment, restored licenses, and waived the $100 reinstatement fee for those drivers.

Making Families Pay: The Harmful, Unlawful, and Costly Practice of Charging Juvenile Administrative Fees in California

This report from the Berkeley Policy Advocacy Clinic details California counties’ practice of assessing and collecting fees from families with youth in the California juvenile justice system. California abolished juvenile fees in 2018.

California SB 185: Crimes: infractions.

This bill would have ended the practice of suspending licenses as a sanction for nonpayment of fines and fees. It also mandated that judges reduce fines and fees and provided guidelines for determining a defendant’s ability to pay fines and fees.

Oregon SB 691: Eliminates certain driving privilege suspensions.

This bill would limit a court's ability to suspend a defendant’s driver’s license, repeal a number of statutes that treat driver’s license suspension as an enforcement mechanism for unpaid fines and fees, and amend several other statutes.

Lawful Collection of Legal Financial Obligations: A Bench Card for Judges

This bench card, which can be modified for state and local jurisdictions, advises judges on how to sanction indigent defendants for nonpayment of fines and fees without resorting to incarceration, outlines procedural protections for defendants who are unable to pay, and outlines standards for determining indigence.

Washington House Bill 1783 – An act relating to legal financial obligations.

Effective June 7, 2018, this bill makes several changes to the imposition and collection of fines and fees in Washington State.

California SB 190: Juveniles.

On January 1, 2018, California became the first state to abolish all administrative fees in juvenile delinquency cases.

Graduating Economic Sanctions According to Ability to Pay

This article focuses on a potential reform with increasing bipartisan support: the graduation of economic sanctions according to a person’s financial circumstances, also known as "day fines" or "means-adjusted fines."

Past Due: Examining the Costs and Consequences of Charging for Justice in New Orleans

This report documents the amount New Orleans residents pay in bail, fines and fees, traces where the money goes, and calculates how much the city spends to jail people who cannot pay.

Advisory for Recipients of Financial Assistance from the U.S. Department of Justice on Levying Fines and Fees on Juveniles

The U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division and Office for Access to Justice issued a formal advisory to recipients of DOJ funds about the enforcement of fines and fees in juvenile courts.