State Of Phone Justice 2022: The Problem, The Progress, and What’s Next
As a result of actions by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and efforts at the state and local level, prison and jail phone call fees have steadily reduced over the …
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Legal Financial Obligations in Washington State: Final Report
Washington state code refers to 376 unique criminal legal financial obligations (LFOs) that stem from misdemeanors, gross misdemeanors, or felony convictions. The Washington State Institute for Public Policy (WSIPP) used …
The Fines and Fees Justice Index
In December 2022, The National Center for Access to Justice updated its Fines and Fees Justice Index. The last update was in May 2020. The Fines and Fees Index gives …
Removing Barriers to Youth and Family Success: The Role of State Juvenile Cost of Care Fees
For youth in Idaho, courts assess fines and fees with little regard for how their lives may be affected. Cost of care fees, also known as parent reimbursement fees, can …
How a Wealthy Cleveland Suburb Profits From Ticketing Black Drivers
Black Clevelanders say Bratenahl officers target them when they drive through the affluent and majority White village. From January to September 2022, almost all of the 1,006 tickets were issued …
Rethinking How Law Enforcement Is Deployed
To mitigate the risk of harm, municipalities have tasked non-law enforcement responders with addressing nonviolent social and medical issues and narrowed police discretion and duties in traffic enforcement. Many have …
Performance Audit of The City’s Towing Program
In FY 2017, San Diego contracted with companies for towing and impound services and established towing and storage rates for vehicle owners that disproportionately impact the city’s vulnerable populations. Disproportionate …
Reducing the Harms of Court Debt: Driver’s License Revocations are an Ineffective Policy for Increasing Court Collections
Since 2011, Tennessee law has allowed for the revocation of a driver’s license for overdue court debt, but a temporary policy change from July 2018 to July 2021 halted driver’s …
Regressive Revenue Sourcing by Local Governments
With limits on revenue sources, such as property taxes and intergovernmental transfers, localities are increasingly turning to regressive and discriminatory non tax alternatives such as fines, fees, and forfeitures to …
Locked Out 2022: Estimates Of People Denied Voting Rights Due To A Felony Conviction
Laws and policies across the United States have disenfranchised an estimated 4.6 million people as of 2022 due to felony convictions. This report chronicles felony disenfranchisement over the past 20 …