[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4019 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4019

To provide grants to States and Indian tribes to reform their criminal 
 justice system to encourage the replacement of the use of payment of 
   secured money bail as a condition of pretrial release in criminal 
                     cases, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 11, 2017

 Mr. Ted Lieu of California (for himself, Mr. Curbelo of Florida, Mrs. 
  Love, and Ms. Jackson Lee) introduced the following bill; which was 
               referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To provide grants to States and Indian tribes to reform their criminal 
 justice system to encourage the replacement of the use of payment of 
   secured money bail as a condition of pretrial release in criminal 
                     cases, and for other purposes.

    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 ``Pretrial Integrity and Safety Act of 
2017''.

SEC. 2. PURPOSE AND FINDINGS.

    (a) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to provide grants to 
States and Indian tribes to reform their criminal justice system to 
encourage the replacement of the use of payment of money bail as a 
condition of pretrial release in criminal cases.
    (b) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) The money bail system has proven to be an ineffective 
        method of protecting public safety. Research shows that under 
        money bail systems, nearly 50 percent of defendants who were 
        determined to be high-risk were allowed to return to the 
        community with little or no effective oversight simply because 
        they could afford to pay the amount set for money bail.
            (2) Other studies have shown that for low-risk individuals, 
        pretrial detention for even short periods makes it more likely 
        the individuals will commit new crimes following release. Low-
        risk defendants held for as little as 3 days are 40 percent 
        more likely to commit a crime during the pretrial period 
        compared to comparable defendants released within 24 hours.
            (3) According to the Arnold Foundation, ``Compared to 
        individuals released within 24 hours of arrest, low-risk 
        defendants held 2-3 days were 17 percent more likely to commit 
        another crime within two years. Detention periods of 4-7 days 
        yielded a 35 percent increase in re-offense rates. And 
        defendants held for 8-14 days were 51 percent more likely to 
        recidivate than defendants who were detained less than 24 
        hours.''.
            (4) Jailing arrested individuals before trial is the 
        greatest expense generated by current pretrial justice 
        practice. Unconvicted detainees account for 95 percent of jail 
        population growth, nationally, since 2000. Taxpayers now spend 
        approximately $38,000,000 per day to jail individuals who are 
        awaiting trial. Annually, this adds up to $14,000,000,000 used 
        to detain individuals.
            (5) Unnecessary detention may be counterproductive and 
        undermine an important purpose of money bail--specifically to 
        produce the defendant at trial. Studies show that those who are 
        detained pretrial for more than 24 hours and then released are 
        less likely to reappear as required than other similarly 
        situated defendants who are detained for less than 24 hours.
            (6) In Bearden v. Georgia, 461 U.S. 660, 671 (1983), the 
        Supreme Court of the United States stated that the due process 
        and equal protection principles of the Fourteenth Amendment to 
        the Constitution of the United States prohibit ``punishing a 
        person for his poverty''. The Court prohibited the 
        incarceration of indigent probationers for non-willful failure 
        to pay a fine because to ``do otherwise would deprive the 
        probationer of his conditional freedom simply because, through 
        no fault of his own, he cannot pay the fine.''. State and local 
        justice systems that impose money bail that leads to pretrial 
        defendants being detained because they cannot afford a money 
        bail amount may result in ``punishing a person'' for his or her 
        poverty.
            (7) Pretrial detention can lead to devastating effects, 
        including threatening the employment, housing stability, child 
        custody, and access to healthcare of an individual. Barker v. 
        Wingo, 407 U.S. 514, 532-33 (1972) (``The time spent in jail 
        awaiting trial has a detrimental impact on the individual. It 
        often means loss of a job; it disrupts family life; and it 
        enforces idleness. Most jails offer little or no recreational 
        or rehabilitative programs. The time spent in jail is simply 
        dead time. Moreover, if a defendant is locked up, he is 
        hindered in his ability to gather evidence, contact witnesses, 
        or otherwise prepare his defense. Imposing those consequences 
        on anyone who has not yet been convicted is serious. It is 
        especially unfortunate to impose them on those persons who are 
        ultimately found to be innocent.'').
            (8) Nationwide, about 9 in 10 detained defendants had a 
        money bail amount set but were unable to meet the financial 
        conditions required to secure release.
            (9) The inability to post money bail may result in innocent 
        individuals pleading guilty to low-level crimes so they can be 
        released.
            (10) Money bail systems have resulted in disparate harms to 
        poor people and communities of color. Studies have shown that 
        African-American and Hispanic defendants are more likely to be 
        detained pretrial than White defendants and less likely to be 
        able to post money bail so they can be released. Moreover, race 
        and money bail amounts are significantly correlated. 
        Nationally, African-American men pay 35 percent higher money 
        bail amounts than White men, and Hispanic men pay 19 percent 
        higher money bail amounts than White men.
            (11) Congress should encourage replacement of the practice 
        of money bail systems to provide for a more equal and effective 
        criminal justice system for the people of the United States.

SEC. 3. PRETRIAL INTEGRITY AND SAFETY.

    Title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 
(42 U.S.C. 3711 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

                ``PART MM--PRETRIAL INTEGRITY AND SAFETY

``SEC. 3031. DEFINITIONS.

    ``In this part--
            ``(1) the term `charge-risk profile' means a composite of 
        the charge (or charge category) and risk score (or risk 
        category of failing to appear in court or being rearrested) of 
        a defendant;
            ``(2) the term `eligible entity' means a public or private 
        entity, including--
                    ``(A) a nonprofit entity (including a tribal 
                nonprofit);
                    ``(B) a faith-based or community organization;
                    ``(C) a State or tribal court system;
                    ``(D) a unit of local government; and
                    ``(E) an Indian tribe;
            ``(3) the term `evidence-based practices', with respect to 
        supervision of the conditions of pretrial release, means 
        intervention programs and supervision policies, procedures, 
        programs, and practices that scientific research demonstrates 
        are the least restrictive necessary to reduce the instance of a 
        failure by a defendant to appear in court or criminal activity 
        by a defendant during the pretrial period, when implemented 
        competently;
            ``(4) the term `least restrictive conditions'--
                    ``(A) includes court date notifications by phone 
                call, letter or postcard, text message, in-person 
                reminder, or another noninvasive pretrial supervisory 
                condition; and
                    ``(B) does not include a condition that imposes 
                additional financial obligations on the defendant, 
                including charging the defendant for implementation of 
                the conditions;
            ``(5) the term `money bail' means a secured monetary 
        obligation that is imposed by a court as a condition of the 
        release of a defendant before the trial or adjudication of the 
        criminal charges pending against the defendant;
            ``(6) the term `reason for detention' means whether a 
        defendant was held without bond, held on another charge, or 
        held for another reason;
            ``(7) the term `release condition' means whether a 
        defendant was released--
                    ``(A) based on nonfinancial, personal recognizance;
                    ``(B) with pretrial supervision;
                    ``(C) with an unsecured financial obligation; or
                    ``(D) with a secured financial obligation; and
            ``(8) the term `State or tribal court system' means the 
        court, court system, administrative offices of the courts, or 
        similarly situated agency of a State or Indian tribe.

``SEC. 3032. GRANTS AND CONDITIONS.

    ``(a) Grants Authorized.--
            ``(1) Replacement of money bail.--The Assistant Attorney 
        General may make grants to State and tribal court systems and 
        eligible entities for the replacement of the use of payment of 
        money bail as a condition of pretrial release with respect to 
        criminal cases.
            ``(2) National pretrial reporting program.--The Assistant 
        Attorney General may make grants to eligible entities to 
        implement a National Pretrial Reporting Program to collect data 
        on the processing of defendants by courts of States and units 
        of local government.
    ``(b) Terms and Conditions.--
            ``(1) Duration of grants.--A grant under subsection (a) 
        shall be for a period of 3 fiscal years.
            ``(2) Maximums.--
                    ``(A) Replacement of money bail.--Under subsection 
                (a)(1), the Assistant Attorney General may make--
                            ``(i) not more than 6 grants to a State or 
                        tribal court system during each fiscal year; 
                        and
                            ``(ii) not more than $10,000,000 in grants 
                        during each fiscal year, of which--
                                    ``(I) not more than $6,500,000 
                                shall be grants to State or tribal 
                                court systems; and
                                    ``(II) not more than $3,500,000 
                                shall be grants to eligible entities to 
                                provide technical assistance, training, 
                                and performance evaluation.
                    ``(B) National pretrial reporting program.--The 
                Assistant Attorney General may not make more than 
                $5,000,000 in grants under subsection (a)(2) during 
                each fiscal year.
    ``(c) Use of Funds for Replacement of Money Bail Grants.--
            ``(1) Activities.--Amounts received under a grant under 
        subsection (a)(1) shall be used for developing the long-term, 
        sustainable capacity to perform more effective pretrial 
        practices that include system analysis, training and technical 
        assistance, meeting facilitation, research and performance 
        evaluation, and information technology reprogramming, and shall 
        seek to incorporate and implement the elements described in 
        paragraph (2).
            ``(2) Elements.--The elements described in this paragraph 
        are--
                    ``(A) replacing money bail systems with 
                individualized, pretrial assessments that--
                            ``(i) measure the risk of flight and risk 
                        of anticipated criminal conduct posed by a 
                        defendant while on pretrial release; and
                            ``(ii) shall use risk-based decision making 
                        that includes objective, research-based, and 
                        locally validated assessment tools that do not 
                        result in unwarranted disparities on the basis 
                        of any classification protected under Federal 
                        non-discrimination laws or the non-
                        discrimination laws of the applicable State;
                    ``(B) providing for--
                            ``(i) a presumption of release in most 
                        cases; and
                            ``(ii) a preventative detention protocol 
                        only for cases in which a judicial officer 
                        determines, by clear and convincing evidence 
                        and after a hearing during which the defendant 
                        is represented by counsel, that the appearance 
                        of the defendant in court and the safety of the 
                        community cannot reasonably be assured through 
                        the use of any combination of conditions;
                    ``(C) if pretrial release requires imposing 
                conditions, ensuring it is based on the least 
                restrictive conditions that a judicial officer 
                determines would reasonably assure the appearance of 
                the defendant and the safety of others in the 
                community;
                    ``(D) ensuring supervision of the conditions of 
                pretrial release is based on evidence-based practices;
                    ``(E) ensuring a defendant is provided with counsel 
                at the earlier of--
                            ``(i) as soon as is feasible after 
                        custodial restraint; or
                            ``(ii) the first appearance before a 
                        committing magistrate, judge, or other judicial 
                        officer;
                    ``(F) ensuring an officer of the State, unit of 
                local government, or Indian tribe appears before a 
                committing magistrate, judge, or other judicial officer 
                at the pretrial hearing;
                    ``(G) ensuring the constitutional right of a 
                defendant to a speedy trial is effectuated, including--
                            ``(i) setting specific limits on the time 
                        within which either the defendant shall be 
                        brought to trial or the case shall be resolved 
                        through a nontrial disposition;
                            ``(ii) providing guidelines for computing 
                        the time within which the trial must be 
                        commenced or the case otherwise resolved; and
                            ``(iii) establishing appropriate 
                        consequences in the event that the right of the 
                        defendant to a speedy trial is denied;
                    ``(H) ensuring that the defendant, State, unit of 
                local government, or Indian tribe is entitled to an 
                immediate, expedited appeal of a pretrial detention 
                decision; and
                    ``(I) instituting a system of data collection and 
                reporting to determine the effectiveness of the program 
                replacing the money bail system.
            ``(3) Benchmarks.--A State or tribal court systems or 
        eligible entity receiving a grant under subsection (a)(1) shall 
        seek to achieve the following:
                    ``(A) Defendants return to court rates are not less 
                than 95 percent.
                    ``(B) Not more than 10 percent of defendants are 
                rearrested pending trial.
                    ``(C) Overall release rates of defendants pending 
                trial are not less than 85 percent.
                    ``(D) 100 percent of defendants have an attorney at 
                the first appearance of the defendant before a 
                magistrate, judge, or other judicial officer.
                    ``(E) The majority of defendants preventively 
                detained were detained after a hearing that occurred 
                not later than 3 days after the date of the arrest or 
                booking of the defendant, and 100 percent of such 
                hearings occurred not later than 7 days after the date 
                of the arrest or booking.
                    ``(F) Validated pretrial assessments with risk-
                based decision making that do not lead to 
                disproportionately higher pretrial detention rates for 
                individuals on the basis of race and ethnicity.
            ``(4) Alternative pretrial release mechanisms.--Nothing in 
        this part shall be construed to prohibit the consideration of 
        alternative pretrial release mechanisms that replace money bail 
        systems while furthering the principles described in this part.
    ``(d) Annual Report.--
            ``(1) In general.--Each entity receiving a grant under this 
        section shall submit to the Assistant Attorney General, for 
        each fiscal year during which the entity expends amounts 
        received under the grant, a report, at such time and in such 
        manner as the Assistant Attorney General may reasonably 
        require, that contains--
                    ``(A) a summary of the activities carried out using 
                amounts made available under the grant;
                    ``(B) an assessment of whether the activities are 
                meeting the need for the program identified in the 
                application for the grant;
                    ``(C) for a grant under subsection (a)(1), data on 
                the money bail program of the State or Indian tribe; 
                and
                    ``(D) such other information as the Assistant 
                Attorney General may require.
            ``(2) Data.--The data provided under paragraph (1)(C) 
        shall--
                    ``(A) be broken down by the demographic variables 
                of age group, sex, race and ethnicity, disability, and 
                charge-risk profile of the defendant;
                    ``(B) include the percentage of defendants detained 
                in jail or prison who are released from jail or prison 
                prior to case disposition, broken down by demographic 
                variables of age group, sex, race and ethnicity, 
                disability, charge-risk profile, and release condition;
                    ``(C) provide the average time to release from jail 
                for defendants who are released pretrial, broken down 
                by demographic variables of age group, sex, race and 
                ethnicity, disability, charge-risk profile, and release 
                condition;
                    ``(D) provide the percentage of defendants who are 
                detained for the entire duration of the pretrial phase 
                of their case, broken down by demographic variables of 
                age group, sex, race and ethnicity, disability, charge-
                risk profile, and reason for detention;
                    ``(E) provide the average duration of the period 
                defendants who are not released are in custody in a 
                prison or jail before the disposition of their case, 
                broken down by demographic variables of age group, sex, 
                race and ethnicity, disability, charge-risk profile, 
                and reason for detention;
                    ``(F) provide the percentage of defendants released 
                from custody before trial who appeared at all court 
                appearances for which the court expected them to appear 
                during the pretrial phase of their case, broken down by 
                demographic variables of age group, sex, race and 
                ethnicity, disability, charge-risk profile, and release 
                condition;
                    ``(G) provide the percentage of defendants released 
                from custody before trial who were not arrested for or 
                charged with a new crime during the pretrial phase of 
                their case, broken down by demographic variables of age 
                group, sex, race and ethnicity, disability, charge-risk 
                profile, and release condition;
                    ``(H) provide data on the access of defendants to 
                counsel, including the number of counsel appointments 
                for indigent defendants and the outcomes of pretrial 
                release decisions based on whether counsel was 
                provided; and
                    ``(I) include a summary of the steps the entity has 
                taken to ensure that any risk assessment tool--
                            ``(i) is properly and regularly validated 
                        based on reliable local data;
                            ``(ii) includes objective, research-based 
                        data; and
                            ``(iii) does not result in unwarranted 
                        disparities on the basis of any classification 
                        protected under Federal non-discrimination laws 
                        or the non-discrimination laws of the 
                        applicable State.
    ``(e) Allocation of Funds.--
            ``(1) In general.--For fiscal year 2018, of the amounts 
        appropriated to the Office, the Assistant Attorney General 
        shall use $15,000,000 to carry out this part.
            ``(2) Limitations; equitable distribution.--
                    ``(A) Limitations.--Of the amount made available to 
                carry out this section in any fiscal year--
                            ``(i) not more than 2 percent may be used 
                        by the Assistant Attorney General for salaries 
                        and administrative expenses; and
                            ``(ii) not more than 25 percent may be used 
                        for technical assistance, training, and 
                        evaluation.
                    ``(B) Equitable distribution.--The Assistant 
                Attorney General shall ensure that grants awarded under 
                this section are equitably distributed among the 
                geographical regions and between urban and rural 
                populations, including Indian tribes, consistent with 
                the objective of reducing recidivism among criminal 
                offenders.
    ``(f) Reallocation of Appropriations.--A recipient of a grant under 
subsection (a) shall return to the Assistant Attorney General any 
amounts received under a grant under subsection (a) that are not 
expended for a purpose described in this section.''.
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