Eliminating Discriminatory Fines and Fees: Learning from San Franscisco
In New York City, fines and fees provide the city with more than $2 billion in revenue each year. However, many of these fines and fees fall on lower income …
Local Reforms
Taking on Traffic Laws: A How-To Guide for Decriminalizing Mobility
Policy, planning, and funding decisions have left primarily Black and low-income communities without safe infrastructure for biking and walking and created conditions forcing people to make choices that cities have …
Estimating the Earnings Loss Associated With a Criminal Record and Suspended Driver’s License
Contact with the criminal legal system and sanctions such as driver’s license suspensions can result in limited employment opportunities and have lifelong impacts on a person’s potential earnings. To advance …
It’s Time To Reform Washington’s Harmful System Of Fines And Fees
People with low incomes, disabilities, and Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) shoulder much of the harm from the legal financial obligations (LFOs) levied in Washington’s criminal legal system. …
Inequitable Fines and Fees Hurt Vulnerable Communities. Now, Policymakers Have an Opportunity For Reform.
Before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, many individuals were forced to choose between paying fines and fees or their day-to-day needs. As the pandemic further exacerbated economic insecurity, many …
Driver’s License Suspension for Unpaid Fines and Fees: The Movement for Reform
Laws that suspend, revoke, or prevent driver’s licenses and restrict driving privileges can limit individuals’ access to employment, healthcare, family, and other necessities. Debt-based (nonpayment of traffic and court-related debt) …
Equitable Approaches to Municipal Fines and Fees
The assessment and collection of fines and fees can have wide-ranging harmful consequences, particularly for Black and Latino people who are more likely to be targeted by the criminal justice …
RI opens path for former inmates to break impoverishing cycle of court fees and fines
Many Rhode Islanders are saddled with debt after incarceration, making reentering into their communities difficult. After the death of George Floyd in Minnesota, Rhode Island’s Supreme Court Committee on Racial …
Eliminating fees in the Alameda County juvenile justice system meaningfully reduced financial burdens on families
Parents and families are typically responsible for the financial responsibilities imposed on minors by the juvenile justice system. In 2018, California became the first state to repeal administrative fees in …
Part 1: Rethinking Local Government Revenue Systems
Most local governments depend on property taxes and sales taxes to raise revenue. Although property taxes are a stable source of revenue for local governments, property taxes have decreased. Municipalities …