South Carolina reduces occupational licensing barriers for people with...
South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster recently signed a law to help reduce unnecessary employment barriers for people with criminal records. Research on reducing recidivism—the rate at which people are...
View ArticleFlorida criminal justice reform would reduce technical violations of probation
Probation is intended to provide a more constructive alternative to incarceration by rehabilitating low-risk criminal offenders in their communities. But in Florida, minor technical violations of...
View ArticleSouthern California counties should get rid of late fees for traffic fines
Following state reforms aimed at reducing traffic ticket late fees, many Bay Area counties have eliminated these fees, and it is time for Southern California counties to follow their example. These...
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New report highlights enormous scale of community supervision in the United...
Mass incarceration in the United States has received much public attention in recent years, and rightfully so––there are currently 1.9 million people incarcerated in U.S. jails, prisons, and other...
View ArticleOccupational licensing reform can reduce barriers to employment faced by...
Most people who are convicted of a crime in the United States will remain in or eventually return to their communities. Research suggests that employment is a key factor in reducing the risk that an...
View ArticleStrategies for improving community supervision programs
Community supervision refers to several programs that allow criminal offenders to remain in their communities rather than being incarcerated, albeit under varying degrees of oversight by an officer...
View ArticleProviding returning citizens with IDs and other essential documents can...
Over 80% of prisoners will eventually be released and roughly 500,000 people are released from prison each year. A government-issued ID is essential for gaining access to employment, housing,...
View ArticleText message reminders can improve community supervision outcomes and reduce...
Community supervision refers to several programs that allow criminal offenders to remain in their communities rather than being incarcerated, albeit under varying degrees of oversight by an officer...
View ArticleMonetary sanctions and court fees are counterproductive to the goals of...
Each year, an estimated 1 million youth enter juvenile courts. In nearly every state, juveniles and their families may encounter a host of fines, fees, and court costs. Empirical research demonstrates...
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Examining recent crime trends and flaws in national statistics
In recent years, headlines have warned of a nationwide spike in crime. Crime data compiled by the Federal Bureau of Investigation revealed a nearly 30% nationwide increase in reported homicides...
View ArticleOhio should abolish the death penalty
A version of the following public comment was delivered to the Ohio House Finance Committee on October 11, 2023. State executions are incompatible with the principles of individual liberty and limited...
View ArticleGrading every state’s telehealth laws
Introduction In 2023, state legislative progress on reforming telehealth laws stalled, with a few exceptions. Even as many public health emergency declarations for COVID-19 expired in 2023, state...
View ArticleData shows how Georgia municipalities aggressively use law enforcement to...
Local governments in Georgia collected over $158 million in fines and forfeitures revenue in 2019. The post Data shows how Georgia municipalities aggressively use law enforcement to generate revenue...
View ArticleAnalysis: 34 cities in Georgia collected at least 20 percent of their total...
A new Reason Foundation data visualization finds that many cities in Georgia routinely collect large shares of their budget from law enforcement revenues. The visualization highlights the cities of...
View ArticleSouth Dakota reduces unnecessary occupational licensing barriers for people...
South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem signed Senate Bill 57 into law on Feb. 7, reducing unnecessary employment barriers for people with criminal records. Research indicates that access to gainful employment...
View ArticleNew York’s clean slate reforms offer former offenders a second chance
Encouraging people to lead law-abiding lives following punishment for a crime becomes challenging when a criminal record interferes with their ability to get a job or rent an apartment years after...
View ArticleFlorida’s successful telehealth policies should be applied to address dental...
Florida is leading the nation in health care reforms that can help unleash innovation and ensure patients have access to care as the state and country face of a growing physician shortage. Proposed...
View ArticleKentucky House Bill 124 would reduce occupational licensing barriers for...
A version of this public comment was provided to the Kentucky House Licensing, Occupations, & Administrative Regulations Committee on Feb. 28, 2024. Research consistently indicates that access to...
View ArticleCalifornia politicians shouldn’t forget the effectiveness of telehealth
Many Californians used telehealth services for the first time during the COVID-19 pandemic. The rapid rise in telehealth during the pandemic was made possible, in part, by emergency actions that...
View ArticleThe effects of cash bail on crime and court appearances
Executive Summary On any given day, approximately 514,000 people are held in local jails across the United States. Though defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty, more than 80% of the...
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