TY - JOUR
T1 - Race, Representation, and Revenue
T2 - Reliance on Fines and Forfeitures in City Governments
AU - Singla, Akheil
AU - Kirschner, Charlotte
AU - Stone, Samuel B.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2019.
PY - 2020/7/1
Y1 - 2020/7/1
N2 - Historically, revenue associated with things like traffic citations—termed fines and forfeitures—has made up an insignificant portion of city revenue. In recent years, however, cities are increasingly reliant on these revenues. This changed without fanfare, meaning there is little understanding of how or why it occurred. One potential explanation is budgetary, meaning cities rely more on fines due to increased fiscal stress or demand for public safety services. Alternatively, existing research demonstrates that race and representation are significant predictors of crime and punishment outcomes, including traffic citations. Using a stratified random sample of California cities, this study investigates which of these factors explain city reliance on revenue from fines and forfeitures. It finds that cities’ reliance on fines and forfeitures is not associated with budgetary need or public safety service provision, but is associated with the race of the population and the racial composition of law enforcement.
AB - Historically, revenue associated with things like traffic citations—termed fines and forfeitures—has made up an insignificant portion of city revenue. In recent years, however, cities are increasingly reliant on these revenues. This changed without fanfare, meaning there is little understanding of how or why it occurred. One potential explanation is budgetary, meaning cities rely more on fines due to increased fiscal stress or demand for public safety services. Alternatively, existing research demonstrates that race and representation are significant predictors of crime and punishment outcomes, including traffic citations. Using a stratified random sample of California cities, this study investigates which of these factors explain city reliance on revenue from fines and forfeitures. It finds that cities’ reliance on fines and forfeitures is not associated with budgetary need or public safety service provision, but is associated with the race of the population and the racial composition of law enforcement.
KW - fines and forfeitures
KW - nontax revenue
KW - public finance
KW - representation
KW - representative bureaucracy
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85063608023&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85063608023&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1177/1078087419834632
DO - 10.1177/1078087419834632
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85063608023
SN - 1078-0874
VL - 56
SP - 1132
EP - 1167
JO - Urban Affairs Review
JF - Urban Affairs Review
IS - 4
ER -