FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
March 13, 2024
Contact:
Antonya Jeffrey, Fines and Fees Justice Center
ajeffrey@ffjc.us 718-708-1934
Jessey Neves, Fines and Fees Justice Center
jneves@ffjc.us 562-453-6342
No Price on Justice Applauds the Inclusion of Court Fee Elimination in the Senate One-House Budget
ALBANY, NY – Late Monday night, the New York Senate released its one-house budget proposal, which includes a provision that would eliminate the mandatory court surcharge, a fee added to every traffic ticket or criminal conviction that gets handed down in New York. No Price on Justice, a coalition of economic and racial justice advocates, grassroots organizations, and impacted people, released the following statement:
“We applaud the New York State Senate for including several provisions of the End Predatory Court Fees Act in the Senate one-house budget resolution. Elimination of the outdated and ineffective mandatory court surcharge is an important step in ending the harmful impact of court fines and fees for hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers and their families.
While court fees account for a negligible part of the state budget (0.01%), the cost to New Yorkers is crushing. In the current economic environment, nearly 60% of residents across the state could not afford to cover a $245 fine and fee without cutting back on household expenses. For all the families currently being forced to choose between paying court fees or providing for their families, this would be life changing.
We urge our state lawmakers and Governor Hochul to include the End Predatory Court Fees Act (S.313/A.4183) in the final enacted budget for New York State FY 2025”.
The one-house proposal includes elimination of the mandatory court surcharge for violations, misdemeanors, and vehicle and traffic law offenses, and the ability for courts to waive other mandatory court fees. It also gives courts the ability to reduce or waive mandatory minimum fines and takes aim at commissary garnishment to pay fines and fees.
###
About the campaign:
No Price on Justice is a coalition of economic and racial justice organizations, grassroots groups, business leaders, direct service organizations, advocates and impacted people working to end New York’s predatory court fines and fees.Members of the No Price on Justice coalition include: Brooklyn Defender Services, Center for Community Alternatives, Fines and Fees Justice Center, Legal Aid Society, New York Civil Liberties Union, New York Communities for Change, Partnership for the Public Good and dozens of other organizations across New York State and nationwide.
###
Recent Comments