Reforming unjust fines and fees requires local solutions
Fines and fees have devastated the lives of millions of Americans, trapping many in a cycle of poverty and punishment; these impacts fall most heavily on low-income communities and communities of color. Recognizing the harms of fines and fees in their communities, many city and county leaders have chosen to reform their local fine and fee policies, ensuring they do not place a disproportionate burden on vulnerable communities.
These fine and fee reforms advance racial and economic equity and make a difference in the lives of residents by increasing economic prosperity while safely shrinking the criminal legal system.
About Cities and Counties for Fine and Fee Justice
Led by Results for America, the San Francisco Financial Justice Project, and the Fines and Fees Justice Center, Cities & Counties for Fine and Fee Justice (CCFFJ) is a national leadership network of local places committed to meaningful fines and fees reform that will make a positive difference in the lives of low-income residents.
Two cohorts of leaders have engaged with CCFFJ to enact bold fine and fee reforms in their jurisdictions. CCFFJ jurisdictions have enacted reforms to eliminate in-custody fees, court fees, and surcharges ended debt-based driver’s license suspensions, reduced parking fines, recalled and dismissed decades-old warrants, and reduced other fees that exceeded people’s ability to pay. Learn more about the reforms enacted and underway here:
2020-21: Inaugural CCFFJ Leadership Network Impact
2022-23: Second CCFFJ Leadership Network Impact
What’s next for Cities and Counties for Fine and Fee Justice – CCFFJ Bootcamp
In the Fall of 2024, CCFFJ partners will be hosting a 2-day in person Fines and Fees Bootcamp to engage local jurisdictions interested in fine and fee reform. During the Bootcamp, local jurisdictions will receive actionable tools and resources to help them lay the groundwork to advance local fine and fee reform. To join our email list to learn more, email us at ccffj@ffjc.us
Local Policy Guides To Help Cities and Counties Lead on Fines and Fees Reform
When harmful fines and fees policies are imposed at the local level, they require local solutions. To help localities pursue effective reforms, FFJC has released three local reform guides, each with a step-by-step process to assess specific fines and fees issues and implement corresponding reforms. See our policy guides on fee elimination, ending debt-based license suspensions, and eliminating the predatory costs of jail goods & services.
About Cities & Counties for Fine and Fee Justice partners
The San Francisco Financial Justice Project is the nation’s first effort embedded in government to assess and reform fines, fees, and financial penalties that disproportionately impact low-income residents and communities of color. Working with community organizations, advocates, city and county departments, and courts, the Financial Justice Project has spearheaded the elimination or reduction of dozens of fines and fees and lifted millions of dollars in debt off of tens of thousands of local residents. The Project’s accomplishments are listed here, and here is a guide to available fine and fee discounts for San Francisco low-income residents.
The Fines and Fees Justice Center seeks to catalyze a movement to eliminate the fines and fees that distort justice. FFJC’s goal is to eliminate fees in the justice system and to ensure that fines are equitably imposed and enforced. FFJC provides resources, makes critical connections, offers strategic advice, and serves as a hub for the fines and fees reform movement, working with impacted communities, researchers, advocates, legislators, justice system stakeholders, and media all across America.
Results for America helps decision-makers at all levels of government harness the power of evidence and data to solve our world’s greatest challenges. Their mission is to make investing in what works the “new normal,” so that when policymakers make decisions, they start by seeking the best evidence and data available, and then use what they find to get better results.
Contact us
To learn more about Cities & Counties for Fine and Fee Justice and to learn of upcoming opportunities, contact us at ccffj@ffjc.us
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