Fleecing the serfs: Nearly 600 Towns Get 10% Of Their Budgets (Or More) From Court Fines

Just in time for a Labor Day weekend road trip, a new report reveals hundreds of America’s worst speed traps. According to a national database compiled by Governing magazine, at least 583 cities and towns have collected 10% or more of their general fund revenue from fines and forfeitures. Among those jurisdictions, 80 relied on fines to generate over half of their budget revenue. Most of those municipalities came from just four states: Georgia, Texas, Louisiana, and Oklahoma.

Fleecing the serfs: Nearly 600 Towns Get 10% Of Their Budgets (Or More) From Court Fines 960x0

Fleecing the serfs: Nearly 600 Towns Get 10% Of Their Budgets (Or More) From Court Fines 960x0

Unsurprisingly, many towns on the list are closely clustered around highways or heavily rely on traffic tickets. Take Seat Pleasant, Maryland, right on the border with Washington, D.C. Fines collected from speed and red-light cameras formed nearly half of the town’s budget. Though Seat Pleasant has a mere 4,800 residents, it manages to employ a staggering “24 full-time sworn officers, including a three-person dedicated automated speed enforcement unit and a drone aviation unit.”

Or consider Robeline, Louisiana, a village west of Natchitoches that comprises just one square mile. But since Robeline straddles Louisiana Highway 6, it managed to rack up nearly $570,000 in fines and forfeitures, or 84% of its total budget—the fifth highest share in the nation.

Thanks to two new Dodge Chargers Robeline leased to enforce traffic laws, revenue almost doubled between 2017 and 2018. Today, the village has one full-time and five part-time officers—overkill, perhaps for a town with fewer than 200 residents. Given its tiny size and hefty fines, Robeline accumulated a jaw-dropping $6,256 in fine revenue per resident.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/nicksibilla/2019/08/29/nearly-600-towns-get-10-of-their-budgets-or-more-from-court-fines/#1ae9b624c998

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Fleecing the serfs: Nearly 600 Towns Get 10% Of Their Budgets (Or More) From Court Fines

Fleecing the serfs: Nearly 600 Towns Get 10% Of Their Budgets (Or More) From Court Fines

Anarcho-Capitalist Categorical Imperatives

Via AnCaps: Law & Enforced Unnatural Order