The Economic Justice Center assesses and reforms how fines and fees impact our city’s low-income residents and communities of color. Fines, fees, and financial penalties can trap people in a maze of poverty and punishment and prevent people from succeeding. We work with community groups, city and county departments, and the courts to advance reforms that work better for people and for government. Working with our partners, we have eliminated or adjusted dozens of fees and fines to lift a financial burden off of struggling San Franciscans.
The Problem: Government-imposed fines and fees can trap low-income people in a maze of poverty and punishment.
Government programs and courts have long levied fines and fees, either to discourage behaviors or to cover costs. However, using these tools can have an insidious and unintended impact—to push people into poverty. Fines and fees can widen racial disparities, since they are disproportionately imposed on communities of color. They can erode confidence in public institutions and undermine safety and prosperity in our communities. These financial penalties can make government a driver of inequality, not an equalizer of opportunity.
We have found that fines and fees that exceed people’s ability to pay them are often a lose-lose, for people and for government. We believe that better solutions exist that hold people accountable, but do not put people in financial distress. We think that the consequences should fit the person and the offense, and that budgets should not be balanced on the backs of those who can least afford it.
The Solution: Reform fines and fees to make a difference in the lives of struggling San Franciscans and in a way that is feasible and affordable for government to implement.
The Economic Justice Center has worked with community groups, city and county departments, and the courts to propose and implement reforms to fines, fees, and financial penalties. We have eliminated and adjusted dozens of fines and fees, and lifted tens of millions of dollars in debt from these fees off tens of thousands of San Francisco residents. Examples include:
- Eliminated criminal administrative fees and waived $33 million in debt owed by 21,000 people
- Cleared 88,000 holds on driver’s licenses for people who missed a traffic court date
- Launched payment plan and community service options for low-income people who receive parking citations
- Made phone calls from county jail free and eliminated markups on commissary items
- Eliminated overdue library fines, and waived $1.5 million in debt stemming from overdue fines
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