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<p>COUN CIL OF ECON OMIC AD VISERS ISSUE BRIEF
DECEMB ER 2015
FINES, FEES, AND BAIL
PAYMEN TS IN THE CRIMIN AL JUSTICE SYSTEM THAT DISPROPORTIONATELY IMPACT THE POOR
Introduction
Much of public discussion about the need for criminal
justice system reform has focused on the dramatic
growth in the size of the incarcerated population, as the
number of Americans behind bars is now approximately
2.2 million.1 At the same time, concerns are growing
about the expanding use of monetary penalties, which
disproportionately
impact poor defendants and
offenders. Crime imposes real costs on society in terms
of both the harm done to victims and in resources that
must be allocated to policing, prosecution and
incarceration. Increases in criminal justice spending have
put a strain on local criminal justice budgets and led to
the broader use of fine penalties and itemized criminal
justice fees in an effort to support budgets. However, this
practice places large burdens on poor offenders who are
unable to pay criminal justice debts and, because many
offenders assigned monetary penalties fall into this
category, has largely been ineffective in raising revenues.
Similarly, the growing use of fixed bail bonds as a
condition for pretrial release has contributed to growth
in jail populations, and often results in localities
detaining the poorest rather than the most dangerous
defendants.
In this brief, we examine three common types of
monetary payments in the criminal justice system:
• Fines are monetary punishments for infractions,
misdemeanors or felonies. Fines are intended to
deter crime, punish offenders, and compensate
victims for losses.
• Fees are itemized payments for court activities,
supervision, or
incarceration charged
to
defendants determined guilty of infractions,
1 Carson, Ann. 2015. “Prisoners in 2014.” Bureau of Justice
Statistics, Department of Justice, Washington, D.C.;
Minton, Todd and Zhen