Honest History: How Fines and Fees Came to Harm Black Communities in Virginia

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Recent Reforms

Intentional, anti-racist policies are needed to begin reversing the harmful impacts of “colorblind” and outwardly racist policy choices. Community leaders and advocates have made some progress in recent years to reform the system of fines and fees. In 2020, Virginia lawmakers passed legislation with bipartisan support that ended the harmful practice of suspending driver’s licenses for unpaid court debt, a change that restored driving privileges to over 600,000 people. In 2021, a broad coalition of advocates engaged lawmakers and was able to repeal some of the most onerous debt collection practices, specifically involving court fines and fees. The legislation (House Bill, or HB 1895) extended the grace period on interest that accumulates on court debt from 40 days to 180 days and made payment plans more universally available. That same year, advocates worked with legislators to pass a bill (HB 1990) that allows for a limited number of criminal legal-related proposals to be assessed based on their potential impact on people in Virginia by race before becoming law. 

More recently, in 2025, the General Assembly passed HB 1661, requiring all courts to offer affordable payment plans with monthly minimums of $25 and even lower for people determined to have limited resources, so that repayment does not force impossible choices between covering basic needs and paying court costs. In the same year, lawmakers also passed HB 1665, which requires courts to provide itemized receipts, clearly separating fines, fees, restitution, and interest when requested, instead of only providing a lump sum amount. This gives people more transparency and information about what they owe and how their money is being used to pay off their debt. But more work must be done. Lawmakers have, and must use, available tools to create a more equitable justice system through policies that illuminate the harm to low-income and Black communities and provide targeted relief to the individuals most impacted by policy choices.

Conclusion

While the specific form has evolved over time, policing and criminal legal system policies and practices that target and harm Black Virginians persist to this day. If this were not reason enough, fines and fees are not a sufficient means of funding for the state, nor are fines and fees collected efficiently. This ineffective and harmful system perpetuates Virginia’s practice of racism, wealth bias, and overreliance on Black and low-income people in Virginia to fund basic human rights, such as fair trials and education. At the same time, Virginia and its localities need revenue to fund important public services such as education, a small portion of which is currently funded through fines that go to the Literary Fund, and court systems, which are partially funded through fees. The good news is, fines and fees are a small portion of overall revenue for Virginia and its local governments, and Virginia has many options to raise replacement revenue from wealthy individuals and multistate corporations who have the most ability to pay, but often pay the least as a share of income. Given the racially-biased history of the criminal legal system in conjunction with the current harm caused to Black communities, the elimination of fines and fees and their replacement with fairer revenue sources should be a concern for all of us who call Virginia home and a priority of Virginia lawmakers.