Introduction

Citizens in lower socio-economic classes in the United States have struggled to make enough to afford basic life necessities with 63% of U.S. citizens living paycheck to paycheck. On top of their struggles, they are burdened with fines and fees surmounting to more than they can afford and being penalized for not being able to pay them off.

The flat rate fines system implements monetary punishments for infractions, misdemeanors, or felonies. They are intended to reduce crime, punish offenders, and compensate victims as well as cover costly systematic fees. Researchers question the justice behind our current fines and fees system in place and trials have been conducted for the integration of a new system, the day fines system. The day fines system, although not free of all flaws, issues fines proportional to one’s income. This system protects lower-income citizens but also holds higher-income citizens accountable for their misdemeanors.

After thorough research, and conducting a brief survey on the Baruch campus, I have concluded the day fines system is a better alternative to the flat rate fines system currently in place. Through my survey with a sample of 19 students, roughly 68% of the sample confirmed having received fines and 31% of those who received fines reported a struggle with providing for daily necessities due to said fine. I have conducted my research around Baruch students to help educate them on this pressing matter as they seemed to know little to nothing about the alternative system, day fines. Baruch students are the future of society who will contribute significantly to the development and changes to come in the future, and educating them on the topic would only help grow popularity around the much-needed reform.

Flat Rate Fines Advantages & Disadvantages

Some of the reasons why we currently use the flat rate fines system include the ease of consistency when administering fines, the alleged pressure for their use due to high incarceration rates, and the injustice behind long periods of incarceration. It is important to note that we will get into the incarceration rates later with the use of day fines in comparison to the use of flat-rate fines. Flat-rate fines are cheaper than housing offenders when they get incarcerated. They also prevent the loss of employment and the removal of public assistance for incarcerated individuals.

However, studies have shown multiple disadvantages to utilizing this system in society. These include setting the amounts of the sanctions. Many offenders struggle economically, as most tend to be lower-income individuals. Throughout the court process, offenders are charged fees on top of the fine they are already being assessed. Some of these fees include paying for their arrest warrants, court-ordered drug and alcohol abuse treatment, having their DNA samples collected, and even alternative community service sentencing fees. Receiving payments from offenders who can not pay is another major problem, as there are $4.5 billion in fines unpaid at the federal level. The use of probation officers causes other issues, with the primary focus being fine collection rather than the rehabilitation of offenders. Additionally, the probation officer’s time is wasted chasing offenders to collect fines and fees when they are already overburdened with the responsibilities of supervision.

Day Fines Advantages & Disadvantages

The day fines system has had growing popularity amongst other countries such as Austria, Czechia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Switzerland, and Sweden. Some of the advantages when it comes to income-based fines include the representation of equal impact, equal deterrence regardless of economic wealth, and the equal possibility of committing an offense. The day fines system also helps lower incarceration rates with the shift to fair and payable fines. Equality is one of the core pillars in which the United States was founded, so it would only be fair to protect each individual’s equality.

On the other hand, day fines have been proved ineffective in Czechia with little to no structure behind their implementation. Judicial corruption interferes with the true intent of the system allowing the judges to take advantage of loopholes and continue ruling based on their own accord. Implementing more structured rules to follow in the day fines system is needed to enhance its effectiveness and prevent corruption. Some of the key issues pointed out in Czechia by Jakub Drápal include the lack of a clear formula to dictate the value of a day fine. There needs to be different day fine amounts for different offenses, fixation on the judges not having the power to change the length of imprisonment if the day fines are unpaid, and an easy way to reveal information on an offender’s economic situation. One other question posed by the use of day fines is if there will be a limit on how much a person can be charged given the case of Reima Kuisla, a Finnish businessman, who was required to pay €54,000 for a speeding fine. These fines were never intended to charge absurd amounts, and the option of community service to make up for these penalties would be an alternative worth exploring.

Justice in Income Based Fines

Day fines intend to lessen the divide between high-income and low-income offenders. By linking the offense to the relative income of the offender, it provides equality for all citizens, regardless of their economic status. The current fines and fees system makes hypocritical steps, advocating for the reintegration of offenders but supporting hefty fines and fees, which only make it harder. Approximately 700,000 convicts rejoin society with long-term debt after leaving jail or prison yearly. This debt leads to trouble finding jobs, a place to stay, access to education, and being denied driver licenses. These issues only make it impossible to reintegrate convicts and throw them back into the same never-ending cycle of incarceration. Yet, in 1983, in Bearden v. Georgia, the Supreme Court ruled that people cannot be jailed or have probation revoked because of an inability to pay fines. How can the Supreme Court rule it unconstitutional to be jailed for inability to pay fines but offenders get jailed for this exact reason constantly? Judges abuse their power and take advantage of offenders. They look for loopholes to justify incarceration, such as unemployment and determine the sentencing regardless of the offender’s ability to pay.

Incarceration Rates

The chart on the left shows the incarceration rate per 100,000 inhabitants per country for all countries in the EU. The countries which utilize income-based fines include Austria, Czechia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Switzerland, and Sweden. These countries, except Czechia, have some of the lowest incarceration rates in comparison to the other countries in the EU. The day fines system builds on the positive aspect of the flat-fine system, keeping fines consistent, but adding another layer of equality between offenders and giving them the chance to pay what they can afford. The current fines and fees system leads to the stacking of additional fees when offenders can not pay the original fine.

These fees start to add up, totaling absurd amounts that these offenders are unable to pay. Once the fees reach a certain amount, a probation officer is sent to find the offender, and they typically are incarcerated or sentenced to jail time. According to Jessica Brand, “To raise revenue and make up for budget shortfalls, cities, states, courts, and prosecutors levy hefty fines at nearly every stage of the criminal justice system. People leaving prison owe on average $13,607 in fines and fees.” Brand also offers many stories of injustice where people are jailed for charges such as the need to wear an ankle monitor or missing an installment on a payment plan. Such petty misdemeanors like these seem unjust to assess jail time, and it’s a growing problem in our corrupt judicial system. Implementing a new fines system would allow for further regulation and specificity of rules behind the system that prevents injustice from occurring. There are thousands of stories where innocent citizens are penalized for something they have no control over.

Conclusion

Our current fines and fees system seems outright corrupt, unjust, and sloppy. Whether it be through the targeting of lower-income offenders, growing incarceration rates, or misuse of resources, our fines system has had its flaws for quite a while and the offenders are the ones who take the blow. The day fines system is much better in all aspects, even with all its current flaws. It allows for equal assessment under the law, leads to lower incarceration rates, and helps with the reintegration of offenders back into society.