WASHINGTON D.C. — The Justice Department issued a letter to state and local courts and juvenile justice agencies on Tuesday, addressing the practices of imposing and enforcing fines and fees for adults and youth. The letter warns against unlawful practices that unfairly penalize individuals unable to pay or that have a discriminatory effect.
The letter supports the department’s ongoing commitment to fairness, economic justice, and addressing policies that disproportionately affect low-income communities. The Justice Department is emphasizing the importance of conducting a meaningful assessment of an individual’s ability to pay before imposing consequences for failure to pay, considering alternatives to fines and fees, guarding against excessive penalties, and ensuring due process protections, including assistance of counsel when appropriate.
Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta said, “Justice in the United States should not depend on one’s income or background.” She added that the updated guidance addresses practices that disproportionately affect low-income communities and people of color, and trap individuals and their families in patterns of poverty and punishment.
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Civil Rights Division stated that the unfettered imposition of fines and fees across the country has entrapped poor people, many of whom are people of color, in a cycle of escalating debt, unnecessary incarceration, and debilitating entanglement in the justice system. She emphasized the need to confront these harms and promote equal justice under the law for all.
The Justice Department plans to build a best practices guide, highlighting innovative work by states and court leaders to reform fines and fees policies and practices. The ultimate goal is to help jurisdictions reduce the use of unjust fines and fees and redirect resources into activities with a greater return on public safety.
This initiative is grounded in constitutional principles, including the Sixth, Eighth, and Fourteenth Amendments, as well as federal nondiscrimination statutes, such as Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Safe Streets Act of 1968.