Kansas Archives - Fines and Fees Justice Center

Making Children Pay The Hidden Cost to Kansas of Juvenile Fees and Fines

Kansas imposes a wide range of fines and fees on youth at nearly every point in the legal process. Using data from court records, state and county financial reports, previous …

Seizing the Safety Net: Collecting Criminal Justice Debt with Tax Refund Offsets

Focusing on Kansas as a case study, this report examines how federal and state governments seize income tax refunds to collect and pay off (“offset”) criminal justice debt. These tax …

Low-Income Kansans Are Going Into Debt Because Unpaid Traffic Tickets Rack up Interest

In Kansas, low-income individuals fall deeper into debt due to unpaid traffic tickets that accrue interest over time. When these fines remain unpaid, they are often transferred to private collection …

Court Fines and Fees Hurt Kansas Children and their Families

When Kansans interact with the criminal justice system, even for minor offenses, they often face substantial fines and fees that impact family finances, social structures, and support, keeping many trapped …

Limited Justice: An Assessment of Access to and Quality of Juvenile Defense Counsel in Kansas

Over the course of a year, the National Juvenile Defender Center spent a year assessing Kansas’ juvenile defender system and delinquency courts. Through interviews, court observations and research, the authors …

Clean Slate Day

Clean Slate Day is an annual event that provides relief to people who owe fines and fees to the Topeka Municipal Court.

Kansas Supreme Court: Ad Hoc Committee Report on Bonding Practices, Fines and Fees in Municipal Courts

This report was published by the Kansas Supreme Court following a rigorous assessment of Kansas municipal court practices. It advances 18 recommendations for judges and courts to more fairly and constitutionally impose and enforce fines and fees and outlines an implementation plan for reform.

Who Pays? The True Cost of Incarceration on Families

This report is the result of a collaborative research project from 20 community-based organizations that studied the costs of incarceration on families across 14 states.

Personal Narrative: Melissa Stephens

Melissa Stephens, a mother of three, was forced to move from Wichita, Kansas to Las Vegas, Nevada because of $8000 of traffic ticket debt.