Some states call them fees, others, ad-ons, but whether it’s a fee or an add-on, it often means an unmanageable debt for people coming out of prison. Some states charge a per-day fee for every day someone is incarcerated, or court fees, fees for parole and probation, fees to rent global positioning systems, fees for drug tests, and fees for required classes like anger management. States also charge interest.

Washington is one state where fees create substantial barriers for people to get their lives together after prison. For one thing, Washington charges 12% interest a year. Washington then bases a person’s right to vote to payment of fees. If you can’t pay your fees, you can’t vote. In a number of cases, people wind up disenfranchised for life -- a policy which is receiving increasing criticism across the country.

This newsbrief is based on a story from the New York Times, Debt to Society is Least of Cost to Convicts [1]. If the link is broken, check their archive.