Driving for Opportunity Act of 2021
The act permits the Attorney General to make grants to states in order to cover the costs of reinstating driver’s licenses previously suspended for unpaid fines and fees. The bill …
Local Reforms
Seattle receives national recognition for preventing crashes with lower speed limits
The Seattle Department of Transportation recently reduced speed limits to 25 mph, resulting in a 22 percent decrease in crashes. In addition to reducing speed limits, the city increased speed …
Traffic: Online Traffic Adjudication and Ability-to-Pay
The Pilot Program for Online Adjudication of Infraction Violations allows qualified California litigants to request reductions in traffic infraction fines and fees in 8 pilot courts, remotely. This report provides …
Seattle Discretionary Fines and Fees Rule Change
Seattle Municipal Court judges voted unanimously to eliminate all discretionary fines and fees imposed in criminal cases. Judges recognize the financial harms caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, in addition to …
The Price of Justice: Fines, Fees and the Criminalization of Poverty in the United States
Mass incarceration and the rising cost of the justice system correlate with the high number and value of fines and fees imposed throughout the justice system. As federal funding for …
Price of Justice- Challenging the Future of Fines and Fees
This report summarizes the progress five states made in fines and fees reform, the challenges they experienced, and guidance for other jurisdictions interested in reforming their court systems.
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 …
Amendment of Chicago Municipal Code Titles 2, 3, 4, 7,8,9,10,11,15 at various sections relating to or impacting vehicle impoundment
This ordinance ends the practice of impoundment for many non-driving and non-public safety related offenses including possession of fireworks, possessing spray paint, or loud music. When impoundment is a sanction, …
Municipal Fines and Fees: A 50-State Survey of State Laws
This report, including an interactive map, provides a 50-state analysis of state laws that regulate municipal imposition and collection of fines and fees. The analysis is based on 52 factors, organized into 7 broad categories, that measure the extent to which state laws “prohibit, sustain, encourage or neutralize” municipal reliance on fines and fees.
If We Only Knew the Cost: Scratching the Surface on How Much it Costs to Assess and Collect Court Imposed Criminal Fines and Fees
This report investigates the amount of time and resources the court system spends to assess and collect criminal fines and fees.