Nevada AB 116
The Nevada Assembly approved legislation to decriminalize minor traffic violations and end the practice of issuing warrants when an individual can’t afford to pay the fines and fees imposed. You …
News
More Harm than Good: Building a more Just Fine and Fee System in California
Fines and fees push many low-income, Black, and Latinx California families into debt, cutting into their ability to meet basic needs. Researchers estimate that there is at least $10 billion …
Reducing Fines and Fees for Low-Income Drivers: Improving California’s Online Ability-to-Pay System
To address the inequitable assessment of fines and fees by traffic courts, the Judicial Council of California piloted the use of MyCitations. MyCitations allows drivers to request a reduced fine …
The High Price of Using Justice Fines and Fees to Fund Government in Washington State
Fines and fees can cause severe and destabilizing harm for people required to pay them. Researchers from the Vera Institute of Justice collected and analyzed budget data from state, county, city and …
The High Price of Using Justice Fines and Fees to Fund Government in Virginia
Although Virginia has made progress in limiting collateral consequences from fines and fees, the financial burden of criminal legal fines and fees continues to be a barrier to achieving financial …
Traffic Without the Police
Traffic enforcement and policing have become intertwined as a gateway for funneling overpoliced and marginalized communities into the criminal justice system. This article explores a new legal framework that decouples …
Municipal Reliance on Fine and Fee Revenues: How Local Courts Contribute to Extractive Revenue Practices in U.S. in Cities
This report explores the problematic reliance on fine and fee revenue by examining the relationship between local courts, fine and fee revenues, and municipal finances. The author collected and reviewed …
Blood From a Turnip: Money as Punishment in Idaho
In 2019, the Idaho Legislature’s Office of Performance Evaluations (OPE) published a report acknowledging Idaho’s reliance on fines and fees as a source of court funding. According to the report …
Washington SB 5226: An Act Relating to the suspension of licenses for traffic infractions
Washington recently passed a bill ending driver’s license suspensions for failure to pay a monetary penalty, fee, cost, assessment, or other monetary obligation relating to a non criminal traffic infraction. You …
An Analysis of Citation Data from the City of Buffalo Speed Camera Program
In 2020, the City of Buffalo installed speed cameras in school zones around the city to reduce the number of crashes in areas where children are going to and from …