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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Big changes are ahead at FFJC! After 9 incredible years leading the organization, Co-Founder & Co-Executive Director Joanna Weiss is stepping down on December 31, 2026. She’ll stay on as Senior Advisor through early March 2027 to support FFJC’s smooth transition.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

After Tracy DeSenti’s husband passed away, Connecticut sent her a $232,733 bill for his former prison stay—and suggested she sell her home to pay it. Her story isn't unique. States nationwide charge pay-to-stay fees, with CT charging up to $347/day.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Partnerships are at the core of our advocacy work. Building partnerships for FFJC is not transactional work. It is deeply relational. We build partnerships that last, and endure the constantly shifting landscapes that face criminal and economic justice advocacy.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

South Dakota, still uses driver’s license suspensions as punishment for unpaid court debt while over half of states no longer do. The state suspends nearly 250 licenses a month, meaning that 250 people cannot get to work to earn the money to pay off court debt.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Ever wondered what fines and fees reveal about local governments and budgets? Join FFJC and Moss Justice Partners on October 6th for the “Fines, Fees & Budgets” Webinar at 2:00pm ET on Zoom.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

No one should be jailed simply for being poor. California’s Assembly Bill 2122 would end the use of bench warrants that incarcerate people over minor infractions—like a jaywalking fine or a missed court date for expired registration.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

Last week, FFJC joined forces with the CATO Institute on an amicus brief in the Supreme Court case Jouppi v. Alaska. In our brief, we argue that the forfeiture of Mr. Jouppi’s plane is an unconstitutional excessive fine – something the 8th amendment was created to protect against.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

In Winston County, AL, people are being sent to jail for not paying their garbage bills. The county is using the criminal system to collect civil debt. The SPLC is fighting back by challenging the county and asking for criminal cases to end. Learn more: spectrumlocalnews.com/sc/south-car...

spectrumlocalnews.com

SPLC challenges Winston County’s handling of unpaid garbage bills

The Southern Poverty Law Center is challenging Winston County’s practice of pursuing criminal cases.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

This week, DE Gov. Meyer signed House Bill 133 into law, giving state courts discretion to waive fines and fees when someone lacks the ability to pay. The bill also creates an avenue for relief from already assigned fines and fees.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Fees are a regressive tax meant to push the cost of the system on to those who can least afford it. Fines are meant to be a punishment, but they punish people differently depending on their financial status. Learn more about fines and fees by visiting our website ➡️ finesandfeesjusticecenter.org

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

The Free to Drive campaign has unlocked a staggering $15.6 BILLION in financial relief! That’s enough to send more than 326,000 students to a four-year university.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

Todd Sidesinger's death exposes the injustice of jailing people for unpaid fines/fees. Jail doesn't fix financial struggles—it worsens them. Co-Executive Director Priya Sarathy Jones discusses this tragedy and the need for reform on the LegalAF podcast.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

What is the long-term economic impact of an arrest or conviction record? The Clean Slate Initiative’s new report, The Economic Losses from Arrest and Conviction Records, puts numbers behind what people with records have long experienced:

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

FFJC’s Joanna Weiss explains why driver’s license suspensions for unpaid fines are unjust. Driving privileges should be limited only for dangerous driving, not court debt. Read more: finesandfeesjusticecenter.org/wp-content/u...

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 26/08/2026

Women disproportionately bear the brunt of fine and fee debt, taking on payments for family members or keeping the family running while a loved one is incarcerated. The current system disadvantages women; fine and fee reform presents a solution.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 24/08/2026

On a recent episode of the @legalafmtn.bsky.social podcast, FFJC co-founder and co-executive director Joanna Weiss discussed our most recent report, The Cost We No Longer Pay. 💰Communities have retained at least $37.5 billion across 73 pieces of fine and fee reform legislation.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 21/08/2026

Huge congrats to New Mexico Supreme Court Justice C. Shannon Bacon for receiving the William H. Rehnquist Award for Judicial Excellence. Justice Bacon has been at the forefront of eliminating court fines and fees in criminal and traffic cases and ending driver’s license suspensions in NM.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

Oklahoma is proving justice fees don't work. HB 1460 eliminated 6 fees, stabilizing budgets & easing burdens on residents. Learn more in Sarah’s blog with Oklahomans for Criminal Justice Reform: okjusticereform.org/blog/fee-eli...

Blue Background with a picture of a woman in the right upper corner. Navy blue text that reads "Governments that rely on fees as a revenue source are violating the very tenets of public safety, requiring people to get caught up un the system in order to help fund that same system." On the right hand side there is smaller text reading "Sarah Couture, Regional Directors, in Oklahomans for Criminal Justice Reform."

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

Stay ahead of the curve on fine & fee reform! 📢 Get the latest news, research and tools delivered straight to your inbox. Join our community today by subscribing to our newsletter: finesandfeesjusticecenter.org

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

The results speak for themselves: The End Justice Fees campaign has delivered $549.1 million in financial relief to families and communities. That’s equivalent to a full year of rent for over 30,000 people—30,000 neighbors who can now prioritize groceries and housing over court debt.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 12/08/2026

The devastating effects of court debt can harm every facet of life—from housing and food security to driver's license suspensions and even loss of life. No one should be incarcerated for an inability to pay court fees. Learn more: www.themarshallproject.org/2026/08/08/m...

themarshallproject.org

Will a Looming Budget Crunch Reverse Efforts to Rein in Fines and Fees?

From suspended driver’s licenses to jail stays, legal financial obligations can shape lives long after an arrest.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 10/08/2026

Kudos to @ucberkeleylaw.bsky.social’s Policy Advocacy Clinic (PAC) for helping end juvenile fines and fees in 18 states. Their work has stopped $61 million in annual fees and discharged $783 million in debt, breaking the cycle for youth. Learn more about PAC here: tinyurl.com/4zp6kwxn

tinyurl.com

Policy Advocacy Clinic marks a decade of nationwide success in ending juvenile fines and fees

Juvenile courts no longer charge youth and families more than $61 million in fees each year, and they have discharged a staggering $783 million in debt.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 05/08/2026

The negative impacts of these costs can last a lifetime. FFJC Co-Founder and Co-Executive Director Joanna Weiss recently attended the Women’s Justice Conference, hosted by the @counciloncj.org’s Women’s Justice Commission and Jobs for the Future, to hear directly from impacted women

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 28/07/2026

“It’s like trying to squeeze blood from a stone,” said FFJC’s Lillian Patil. Relying on fines and fees to fund the government is unstable, unreliable, and inefficient. Read more about this misguided approach to balancing budgets in a new article by @pewresearch.org 👉https://tinyurl.com/3pfjmwpk

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 23/07/2026

Relying on fine and fee revenue for balancing budgets is bad policy. The failed deal between Chicago and Bank of America shows the volatility of public budgets dependent on revenue from court debt.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 21/07/2026

The city of Chicago’s failed attempt to sell off parking ticket debt to a private bank shows why cities cannot depend on fines and fees revenue to balance their budgets.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 17/07/2026

Driver's license suspensions for unpaid traffic fines do far more harm than good. By stripping individuals of their ability to drive to work, the system actively prevents them from earning the income necessary to resolve their court debt.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

WIN FOR ILLINOIS FAMILIES: Last month, Illinois enacted a new law ensuring incarcerated people and their loved ones cannot be charged any fees that exceed the standard postage rate for mail and scanning services.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 13/07/2026

Todd Sidesinger was taken to jail for unpaid court costs and fees in February 2024. Within 48 hours, he was dead. Todd’s court debt totaled about $1,500. According to his family, Sidesinger was unaware of his outstanding debt and would’ve paid it if he’d known about it.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 08/07/2026

The harms of fines and fees hit rural communities hard; there are often fewer job opportunities, higher rates of poverty than urban areas, and higher percentages of people who need to drive to access basic needs.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 07/07/2026

“We know that if you allow people to talk to their loved ones, and to have constant communication, that we have better outcomes. And if the people of Nevada want to have a prison system that keeps them safe, they need to demand this type of investment.”

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 01/07/2026

Our goal at FFJC is to break the link between money and justice. When that happens, people have the opportunity to spend their money on the things that matter to them and not on funding government functions.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 29/06/2026

Our newest report, The Cost We No Longer Pay, tallies up the amount of financial relief achieved through 73 pieces of legislation that ended or significantly reformed 135 fine and fee policies nationwide.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 26/06/2026

This week, we celebrate the passing of AZ HB2265, a landmark new bill that #EndsJusticeFees for a person’s right to a public defender, appeal, and trial by jury.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

At a time when households are falling short of economic security, and 1 in 3 people over the last decade is impacted by fines & fees, creating this level of financial relief through fine & fee reform is a powerful way to ensure that families can preserve their income to afford their basic needs.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

“In America, there should not be concurrently operating justice systems – one for those rich enough to pay for justice, and another for the rest of us.”

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 19/06/2026

This Juneteenth, we are highlighting the ways that fines and fees disproportionately impact Black people. The over-policing of Black communities has led to the over-representation of Black people impacted by the criminal legal system.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 17/06/2026

“A debt that cannot be paid will not magically become collectible simply because it is sold to a private buyer.” FFJC’s very own Fatima Monteiro authored a powerful piece about the city of Chicago transferring legal debt to private debt collectors and its harmful impact on working families.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 16/06/2026

FFJC is proud to celebrate Vermont’s elimination of supervision fees across the DOC. Supervision fees are recurring fees charged to people on probation or parole, and can place oppressive and unfair financial strain on people working to secure housing, maintain employment, or support their families.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 12/06/2026

When 99% of parents impacted by court debt have to cut back on one essential need in order to pay fines and fees, the system is not working in the best interest of the people it’s meant to serve.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

There’s a growing trend across the country: prisons are eliminating physical mail and forcing all letters and cards to be digitized. Forcing all communication, including physical mail, onto tablets will make avoiding these costly devices impossible for families.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 05/06/2026

1 in 3 Americans experience financial hardship due to court debt; fines and fees have likely impacted someone you know. While FFJC has been at the front lines of fine and fee reform for years, we aren’t in this fight alone.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

Driving fines and fees reform is essential, but it isn’t the only way to end the criminalization of those who cannot afford to pay down court debt. Change must come from every corner of the system — and that includes courts. finesandfeesjusticecenter.org/our-work/cou...

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

“What lies ahead will require resolve and perseverance in the face of deep resistance. It will take brave people — and brave businesses — willing to use their economic power and influence to advocate for meaningful reform.”

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 01/06/2026

“When you link a police agency budget to fines and fees, you are literally betting on crime and creating an overreliance on a volatile revenue source.”

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 29/05/2026

💌Maintaining bonds with family and friends through letters serves as a vital emotional anchor for incarcerated people. However, many prison facilities across the country are moving to eliminate physical mail and replace it with scanned copies.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 28/05/2026

“These are just things that keep people in a mindframe that thinks: ‘I’m never going to get out of this.’” On the Everyday Injustice podcast, Oklahoma advocate for reform Tiffani Shaw outlines the financial and emotional strain of the multiple fees and costs that are imposed on people on probation.

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 27/05/2026

Fine and fee reform adds up to billions in financial relief for families. Our first-of-its kind report, The Cost We No Longer Pay, calculates the financial relief as a result of the reform work of FFJC and our partners. Our partners at Americans for Prosperity agree:

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 26/05/2026

2 in 5 incarcerated people have a history of mental illness—twice the national average (NAMI). Family connection via calls, videos, and mail is a vital lifeline, but high costs often block access to this essential support. #MentalHealthAwarenessMonth

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Fines and Fees Justice Center @finesandfeesjc.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

“Fines and fees reform resonates across the political spectrum because it’s fundamentally about economic stability and public safety.” This month, FFJC Co-Executive Director and Co-Founder Joanna Weiss was interviewed by M. Harris & Kern, a marketing and creative agency in Chicago.

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