Hawaii SB2630: Relating to Monetary Obligations
This bill eliminates provisions restricting a person’s ability to obtain or renew a driver’s license, registration, or title due to the nonpayment of traffic fines and fees. Previously, Hawaii did …
News
Local Government Dependence on Criminal Justice Revenue and Emerging Constraints
Across the nation, local governments use the criminal justice system to balance their budgets through fines, fees, costs, assessments, and forfeitures. Many have become dependent on criminal justice revenue to …
UCLA Criminal Justice Law Review
The UCLA Criminal Justice Law Review (CJLR) has partnered with the Criminal Justice Policy Program at Harvard Law School to publish works from the Progressing Reform of Fees and Fines …
Case Studies in Indiana Community Corrections Fines and Fees
The experiences of four people involved in court-ordered community service programs in Indiana highlight the costs people are expected to pay and the variation of costs assessed between different people.
Debt, Incarceration, and Re-Entry: A Scoping Review
Justice-involved people and their families are heavily burdened by debt: legal financial obligations (LFO) from criminal justice involvement, pre-existing debt that compounded during incarceration, and debts accrued during reentry. This …
Best Practices: Reforming Fine & Fee Policies in the Criminal Justice System
The tough-on-crime era of the 1980s and 1990 and anti-tax sentiments have led many state and local governments to shift the cost of the criminal justice systems from taxpayers to …
Fines, Fees, Forfeitures, and Disparities: A Link Between Municipal Reliance on Fines and Racial Disparities in Policing
This research paper explores the relationship between a municipality's reliance on fines and fees and police behavior during traffic stops.
Financial Policies for Imposed Fines, Fees, and Asset Forfeitures: The Basis for Building Trust with the Public and Fair Treatment of All Citizens
Many local governments rely on imposed fines, fees, and forfeitures to raise revenue without a financial policy. Doing so can reduce citizens’ trust in government, have a disproportionate impact on …
The High Costs of “Justice”: A Snapshot of Juvenile Court Fines and Fees in Michigan
Through information collected from counties, advocates, community members and court involved families, the National Center for Youth Law published this brief summarizing the impact of juvenile court fines and fees …
Pandemic lays bare North Carolina’s reliance on fines and fees
This report discusses the growth of fee revenue in North Carolina and how the pandemic has exposed pre-existing issues concerning the use of fine and fee revenue.