National Archives - Fines and Fees Justice Center

How Fines and Fees in the Criminal Legal System Hinder Black Economic Mobility

Through the Black Family Thriving Initiative, Urban Institute seeks to build a deeper, more accurate understanding of what life is really like for Black Americans in the middle class through …

Diversion Without Debt: Case Studies from Three County Prosecutors Leading Fee Reform

Diversion programs offer an early off-ramp from the criminal legal system, providing accountability while reducing recidivism and enhancing public safety. However, the imposition of diversion program costs and fees undermines …

Ellinburg v. United States

Issue Whether restitution under the Mandatory Victims Restitution Act (MVRA) is legally a criminal punishment. Holding Restitution under the MVRA is plainly criminal punishment for purposes of the Ex Post …

Missing in Actions: How Low Appearance Rates Impact Courts

Missed appearances can have negative consequences for court users, as well as courts themselves. This report identifies four main ways missed court appearances impact court operations: caseflow & workload, staffing, …

Winnable Criminal Justice Reforms 2026

The Prison Policy Initiative released a list of promising policy reforms across several touchpoints in the criminal legal system: sentencing, incarceration, and release. The report identifies 34 reforms in eight …

How Cities are Rethinking Fines and Fees to Strengthen Residents’ Economic Stability

Cities across the country have a duty to their residents to promote economic mobility. The National League of Cities launched the Cities Addressing Fines and Fees Equitably Initiative (CAFFE) to …

Fines, Fees, and Financial Strain: Challenges for State and Local Governments in a Time of Fiscal Uncertainty

Though utilized as a routine source of revenue for many state and local governments, increasing reliance on fines and fees to fill budget gaps and raise additional revenue as a …

Roots of Wealth: Unearthing Black Prosperity in the South

By imposing financial burdens, fines and fees compromise the capacity of low-income families and individuals to meet their immediate financial needs. In addition to increasing short-term stress, fines and fees …

Hope after Harm: An Evaluation of State Victim Compensation Statutes

In 1984, Congress passed the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) which established the Crime Victims Fund (CVF) to provide financial support to state crime victim compensation programs and victim service …

Imposing Instability: How Court Fines and Fees Destabilize Government Budgets and Criminalize Those Who Cannot Pay

In a first-of-its-kind report, the Fines and Fees Justice Center looks at the amount of criminal, juvenile, municipal, and traffic fines and fees imposed by courts nationwide and compares those …