Criminal Justice Policy Program at Harvard Law School
50-State Criminal Justice Debt Reform Builder Bringing transparency to areas of significant legal complexity.
50-State Criminal Justice Debt Reform Builder Bringing transparency to areas of significant legal complexity.
Poverty Penalties and Poverty Traps
Keyword search across all of the laws in the states. Subject-area tabs above allow you to narrow results. Click the advanced search for further refinement.
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See all poverty penalty and poverty trap policy recommendations in CJPP’s Policy Guide
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- Civil judgment (3)
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- Payment plan/installment plan (15)
- Property liens (9)
- Wage/bank account garnishment (13)
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Narrrow results
Level of Offense
Below are the poverty penalties and poverty traps that meet your search criteria. Many include a See related provisions prompt which searches our database for laws that may pertain to your result.
6 Results
| State | Statute | Description/Statute Name | Statutory language | Type of poverty penalty or poverty trap | Level of offense | Mandatory | |
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California | Cal. Rules of Court 4.335(4)(B) | Ability to pay determination for infraction offenses | the court may exercise its discretion to: . . . (B) Allow the defendant to complete community service in lieu of paying the total fine (if available) | Community service | Misdemeanor | No |
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California | Cal. Pen. Code § 594(c), (f) | Vandalism; Punishment |
(c) Upon conviction of any person under this section for acts of vandalism consisting of defacing property with graffiti or other inscribed materials, the court shall, when appropriate and feasible, in addition to any punishment imposed under subdivision (b), order the defendant to clean up, repair, or replace the damaged property himself or herself, or order the defendant, and his or her parents or guardians if the defendant is a minor, to keep the damaged property or another specified property in the community free of graffiti for up to one year. Participation of a parent or guardian is not required under this subdivision if the court deems this participation to be detrimental to the defendant, or if the parent or guardian is a single parent who must care for young children. If the court finds that graffiti cleanup is inappropriate, the court shall consider other types of community service, where feasible....
(f) The court may order any person ordered to perform community service or graffiti removal pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (c) to undergo counseling. |
Community service | Misdemeanor | Yes |
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Kansas | Kan. Stat. Ann. § 8-1567 | Driving a commercial motor vehicle under the influence; penalties |
In lieu of payment of a fine imposed pursuant to this section, the court may order that the person perform community service specified by the court. The person shall receive + See morea credit on the fine imposed in an amount equal to $5 for each full hour spent by the person in the specified community service. The community service ordered by the court shall be required to be performed not later than one year after the fine is imposed or by an earlier date specified by the court. If by the required date the person performs an insufficient amount of community service to reduce to zero the portion of the fine required to be paid by the person, the remaining balance of the fine shall become due on that date.
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Community service | All | No |
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Montana | Mont. Code Ann. § 46-18-201(3) | Sentences that may be imposed |
(a) Whenever a person has been found guilty of an offense upon a verdict of guilty or a plea of guilty or nolo contendere, a sentencing judge may impose a + See moresentence that may include: (i) a fine as provided by law for the offense; (ii) payment of costs, as provided in 46-18-232, or payment of costs of assigned counsel as provided in 46-8-113... (b) A court may permit a part or all of a fine to be satisfied by a donation of food to a food bank program.
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Community service | All | No |
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Montana | Mont. Code Ann. § 46-18-244(4) | Type and time of payment--defenses--ensuring payment |
With the consent of the victim and in the discretion of the court, an offender may be ordered to make restitution in services to the victim in lieu of money + See moreor to make restitution to a person designated by the victim, if that person provided services to the victim as a result of the offense.
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Community service | All | No |
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Montana | Mont. Code Ann. § 46-18-241(3) | Condition of Restitution |
If at any time the court finds that, because of circumstances beyond the offender's control, the offender is not able to pay any restitution, the court may order the offender + See moreto perform community service during the time that the offender is unable to pay. The offender must be given a credit against restitution due at the rate of the hours of community service times the state minimum wage in effect at the time that the community service is performed.
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Community service | All | No |
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