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.
Courts as Revenue Centers
Court Costs, Fines, And Fees Are Bad Policy- Recommendations For Illinois Legislators
This policy brief discusses the history and issues of court fines and fees nationally and specifically in Illinois.
Trapped: Most States Let Courts Fine Teenagers. The Debt is Taking Down their Whole Families.
This article examines the use of hefty punishment fines and the impact of those fines, and fees, on families. The article highlights the story of a New Jersey teen locked …
Privatization of Services in the Criminal Justice System
Privatization throughout the justice system has exacerbated the cycle of mandatory fees, nonpayment, and consequent additional fees. Private companies, often with little to no oversight, can have economic incentives to …
Debt Bondage: How Private Collection Agencies Keep the Formerly Incarcerated Tethered to the Criminal Justice System
In Washington, the clerk of courts can transfer the legal financial obligations of incarcerated people to a private debt collection agency if they are thirty days late making a payment. …
Nashville Community Bail Fund v. Howard Gentry
The policies created by Gentry’s office require people to remain incarcerated until their trial unless the person(s) posting cash bonds on their behalf sign a form acknowledging, in writing, notice of and agreement to garnishment of the cash bond deposit.
Monetary Sanctions: Legal Financial Obligations in US Systems of Justice
This review provides a historical background of court fines and fees and shows how these costs affect people present day.
Annual Assessments and Collections Report [Florida, 2013-2019]
Each year, the Florida Clerks & Comptrollers release a consolidated summary with data about the fines and fees that were assessed and collected statewide.
The Price of Taxation By Citation: Case Studies of Three Georgia Cities The Rely Heavily on Fines and Fees
The concept of taxation by citation and its subsequent harms are dissected and analyzed in this Institute for Justice report. Through the profiling of three Georgia cities–Morrow, Riverdale, and Clarkston–the authors use traffic and ordinance violation data to suggest that these towns’ use of code enforcement power is geared towards revenue generation rather than public safety.
Fees, Fines and Fairness: How Monetary Charges Drive Inequity in New York City’s Criminal Justice System
The State of New York and its localities impose financial obligations at each stage of involvement with the justice system, from pre-trial to post-incarceration. Failure to pay can lead to …