[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 370 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 370

 To amend the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 to 
                prevent luxurious conditions in prisons.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 19, 1999

   Mr. Franks of New Jersey introduced the following bill; which was 
               referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 to 
                prevent luxurious conditions in prisons.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``No Frills Prison Act''.

SEC. 2. ELIMINATION OF LUXURIOUS PRISON CONDITIONS.

    (a) States.--Section 20102(a) of the Violent Crime Control and Law 
Enforcement Act of 1994 is amended--
            (1) by inserting ``(A)'' after ``(1)'';
            (2) by redesignating existing paragraph (2) as subparagraph 
        (B);
            (3) by redesignating existing subparagraphs (A) through (D) 
        as clauses (i) through (iv) respectively;
            (4) by redesignating existing clauses (i) and (ii) as 
        subclauses (I) and (II);
            (5) by striking the period at the end and inserting ``; 
        and''; and
            (6) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(2) provides living conditions and opportunities to 
        prisoners within its prisons that are not more luxurious than 
        those conditions and opportunities the average prisoner would 
        have experienced if such prisoner were not incarcerated, and 
        does not provide to any such prisoner--
                    ``(A)(i) earned good time credits;
                    ``(ii) less than 40 hours a week of work that 
                either offsets or reduces the expenses of keeping the 
                prisoner or provides resources toward restitution of 
                victims;
                    ``(iii) unmonitored phone calls, except when 
                between the prisoner and the prisoner's immediate 
                family or legal counsel;
                    ``(iv) in-cell television viewing;
                    ``(v) the viewing of R, X, or NC-17 rated movies, 
                through whatever medium presented;
                    ``(vi) possession of any pornographic materials;
                    ``(vii) any instruction (live or through 
                broadcasts) or training equipment for boxing, 
                wrestling, judo, karate, or other martial art, or any 
                bodybuilding or weightlifting equipment of any sort;
                    ``(viii) except for use during required work, the 
                use or possession of any electric or electronic musical 
                instrument, or practice on any musical instrument for 
                more than one hour a day;
                    ``(ix) use of personally owned computers or modems;
                    ``(x) possession of in-cell coffee pots, hot 
                plates, or heating elements;
                    ``(xi) any living or work quarters into which the 
                outside view is obstructed;
                    ``(xii) food exceeding in quality or quantity that 
                which is available to enlisted personnel in the United 
                States Army;
                    ``(xiii) dress or hygiene, grooming and appearance 
                other than those allowed as uniform or standard in the 
                prison; or
                    ``(xiv) equipment or facilities at public expense 
                for publishing or broadcasting content not previously 
                approved by prison officials as consistent with prison 
                order and prisoner discipline; and
                    ``(B) in the case of a prisoner who is serving a 
                sentence for a crime of violence which resulted in 
                serious bodily injury to another--
                            ``(i) housing other than in separate cell 
                        blocks intended for violent prisoners and 
                        designed to emphasize punishment rather than 
                        rehabilitation;
                            ``(ii) less than 9 hours a day of physical 
                        labor, with confinement to cell for any 
                        refusing to engage in that labor, but a 
                        prisoner not physically able to do physical 
                        labor may be assigned to alternate labor;
                            ``(iii) any temporary furlough, leave, 
                        excursion, or other release from the prison for 
                        any purpose, unless the prisoner remains at all 
                        times under physical or mechanical restraints, 
                        such as handcuffs, and under the constant 
                        escort and immediate supervision of at least 
                        one armed correctional officer;
                            ``(iv) any viewing of television;
                            ``(v) any inter-prison travel for 
                        competitive sports, whether as a participant or 
                        spectator;
                            ``(vi) more than one hour a day spent in 
                        sports or exercise; or
                            ``(vii) possession of personal property 
                        exceeding 75 pounds in total weight or that 
                        cannot be stowed in a standard size United 
                        States military issue duffel bag.''.
    (b) Federal.--
            (1) Generally.--The Attorney General shall by rule 
        establish conditions in the Federal prison system that, as 
        nearly as may be, are the same as those conditions required in 
        State prisons under section 20102(a) of the Violent Crime 
        Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 as amended by this 
        section.
            (2) Conforming amendment.--Section 3624 of title 18, United 
        States Code, is amended by striking subsection (b).
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