Economic Sanctions Project
(Act 37 of 2007)

Current Project

Senate Bill 116 of 2007 (Act 2007-37), signed by the Governor on July 17, 2007, directs the Commission to adopt guidelines for fines and other lawful economic sanctions that take into account the severity of the offense and the prior record of the offender, prescribe variations to account for aggravating and mitigating circumstances, and prescribe community service alternatives which may be imposed in lieu of part or all of the fine. This legislation took effect November 14, 2007.

While the Commission understood the need to move expeditiously to comply with the statute, it also recognized the complexity of the task of developing a comprehensive set of guidelines for fines or other economic sanctions. Earlier research by the Commission had documented the varied practices throughout the Commonwealth for ordering restitution, fines, costs, fees and forfeitures; the hydraulic effect that increasing one economic sanction has on other economic sanctions; and the mixed outcomes in terms of successful collection and consequences for non-payment. As a result, the Commission adopted a two-track approach. On the 'fast-track' was the development of guidelines for fines and community service to be considered as part of the current review of the sentencing guidelines.

The second track of this project is a long-term research effort to obtain the information necessary to expand guidelines for fines and community service to cells of the guidelines that presumptively recommend ranges of incarceration, whether as alternatives to or enhancements of existing recommendations. Of critical importance is the development of a comprehensive view of the current use of all economic sanction, those mandated or permitted by statute and those established by counties. Several steps have been taken to begin this effort. First, staff is in the process of updating a survey of counties, first completed in 2002, to document local costs and fees imposed in criminal courts. Second, staff has obtained information from the AOPC Common Please Case Management System (CPCMS) on all economic sanctions ordered and collected during 2006.
Through the Commission's research partnership with Penn State, Professor Barry Ruback will be serving as principle investigator of this long-term study, building on previous work with the Commission on economic sanctions. Professor Ruback will initially be analyzing the data received from AOPC as well as that available from the Commission. It will be important to develop baseline information on what economic sanctions are ordered, the relative use of the various economic sanctions based on the nature of the offense and the sentence imposed, and the outcomes in terms of collections and public safety. Another aspect of the early phases of this project will be the evaluation, in pilot counties, of the use and outcomes of fines and community service consistent with the recommendations proposed in the sentencing guidelines.

Previous Projects
In 1998 the Sentencing Commission and the Crime Law and Justice Program at Penn State University were awarded a two-year grant from the National Institute of Justice to support collaborative research. The first project under the partnership umbrella, conducted by Professor Barry Ruback, was the beginning of a multi-year, multi-method project on Economic Sanctions.  The first set of studies focused on the imposition, payment, and effect of restitution in Pennsylvania.  These restitution studies involved analysis of the Sentencing Commission data, site visits to six counties, and a survey of judges, district attorneys, and chief probation officers. In 2000 Professor Ruback received further funding from the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency to extend his research in this area

In 2003 the Sentencing Commission received a grant from the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency to allow for a three-year follow-up study to be conducted by Professor Ruback.  This research extended beyond restitution to include all types of economic sanctions imposed in Pennsylvania.  The major issues addressed in this set of studies included: 1) the administrative process involved in the imposition and payment economic sanctions, 2) the role and responses of victims, and 2) the offenders’ knowledge about the process and their ability to pay.  The project involved data collection in six counties, an Offender Survey, and a Victim Survey.

Reports

2006   Evaluation of Best Practices in Restitution and Victim Compensation Orders and Payments
2002   Restitution in Pennsylvania: A Multimethod Investigation. Final Grant Report

Research Bulletins

2006 A Multi-Method Evaluation of Economic Sanctions in Pennsylvania
2002 Payment of Restitution and Recidivism
2002 A Survey of Judges, District Attorneys, and Chief Probation Officers on Restitution in Pennsylvania
2001 Restitution Orders in Pennsylvania

Publications

2006     Ruback, R. Barry and Bergstrom, Mark H. “Economic Sanctions in Criminal Justice: Purposes, Effects, and Implications” Criminal Justice and Behavior, Vol. 33. No. 2, April 2006.
2006     Ruback, R. Barry. Hoskins, Stacy N., Cares, Alison C., and Feldmeyer, Ben. .”Perception and Payment of Economic Sanctions: A Survey of Offenders”.  Federal Probation.  Vol. 70, No. 26.  Dec. 2006
2005     Ruback, R. Barry and Shaffer, Jennifer N. “The Role of Victim-Related Factors in Victim Restitution: A Multi-Method Analysis of Restitution in Pennsylvania. Law and Human Behavior, Vol. 29. No. 6, Dec. 2005
2005     Ruback, R. Barry, Gretchen. R. Ruth, and Jennifer N. Shaffer.  “Assessing the Impact of Statutory Change: A Statewide Multilevel Analysis of Restitution Orders in Pennsylvania.” Crime and Delinquency, vol. 51. no. 3, July 2005
2004     Ruback, R. Barry. “The Imposition of Economic Sanctions in Philadelphia: Costs, Fines, and Restitution” Federal Probation, Vol  68. No. 1, June 2004
2004     Ruback, R. Barry, Shaffer, Jennifer N. and Logue Melissa A. “The Imposition and Effects of Restitution in Four Pennsylvania Counties: Effects of Size of County at Collection Units”.  Crime and Delinquency. Vol. 50. No. 2, April 2004
1999     Outlaw, Maureen c. and Ruback, R. Barry. “Predictors and Outcomes of Victim Restitution Orders”.  Justice Quarterly. Vol. 16. No. 4, Dec. 1999

Presentations

2006  Economic Sanctions in Pennsylvania: A Summary of Findings and Conclusions