[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 41 (Monday, March 26, 2001)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2902-S2904]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. DeWine (for himself, Mr. Hutchinson, Mr. Warner, Mr. 
        Allen, Mr. Helms, Mr. Hagel, Mr. Grassley, Mr. Santorum, and 
        Mr. Sessions):
  S. 619. A bill to establish a grant program that provides incentives 
for States to enact mandatory minimum sentences for certain firearms 
offenses, and for other purposes; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
  Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, today I rise to introduce Project Exile: 
The Safe Streets and Neighborhoods Act of 2001, along with my 
distinguished colleagues Senator Hutchinson from Arkansas, and Senators 
Warner, Allen, Hagel, Helms, Grassley, and Santorum. I introduced this 
bill in the 106th Congress, and today, we again are taking a 
commonsense step to reduce gun violence and help make our communities 
safer and more secure.
  Often, in the heat of the rhetoric, the real issue in gun control 
debate has become lost in the flurry of words. We must not, however, 
lose sight of the real issue, that is the need to reduce gun violence. 
While gun control efforts are often controversial, there is nothing 
controversial about protecting our children, our families, our 
communities by keeping guns out of the wrong hands, not those of law-
abiding citizens, but those of criminals and violent offenders.
  Criminals with guns are killing our children. They are killing our 
friends and our neighbors. I am very troubled by gun violence. However, 
I firmly believe that the Bush Administration will aggressively go 
after those who commit crimes with a gun.
  Right now, current law makes it a federal crime for a convicted felon 
to ever possess a firearm. It is also against federal law to use a gun 
to commit any crime, even a State crime. Under federal law, the 
sentences for these kinds of crimes are mandatory, no second chance, no 
parole.
  In the late 1980s, President George Bush made enforcement of these 
gun laws a priority. His Justice Department told local sheriffs, chiefs 
of police, and prosecutors that if they caught someone committing a 
crime in which a gun was used, or even caught a felon with a gun, the 
Federal Government would take the case, and put that criminal behind 
bars for at least five years, no exceptions. During the last 18 months 
of the Bush Administration, more than 2,000 criminals with guns were 
put behind bars.
  Unfortunately, consistent, effective enforcement ended once the 
Clinton administration took office. Between 1992 and 1998, for example, 
the number of gun cases filed for prosecution dropped from 7,048 to 
about 3,807, that's a 46 percent decrease. As a result, the number of 
federal criminal convictions for firearms offenses has fallen 
dramatically.
  For 6 years, the Clinton Justice Department refused to prosecute 
those criminals who use a gun to commit State crimes, even though the 
use of a gun to commit those crimes could be charged as a Federal 
crime. The only cases they would prosecute were those in which a 
federal crime had been committed and a gun was used in the commission 
of that crime.
  Even worse, some federal gun laws were almost never enforced by the 
prior administration. For instance, while Brady law background checks 
have stopped nearly 300,000 prohibited purchasers of firearms from 
buying guns, less than .1 percent have actually been prosecuted.
  I questioned Attorney General Ashcroft during his recent confirmation 
hearing, as well as in private, about the aggressive prosecution of gun 
cases. He shared our view that current law prohibits violent felons 
from possessing guns, and so we should aggressively enforce the laws 
that take guns away from violent criminals. We should take those guns 
away before they use them to injure and kill people.
  We have often heard that 6 percent of the criminals commit 70 percent 
of the crimes. Well, if you have a violent criminal who illegally 
possesses a gun, I can bet you that he is part of that 6 percent! He's 
one of the bad guys, and we should put him away before he has a chance 
to use that gun again.
  Our goal should be to take all of these armed criminals off the 
streets. That is how we can reduce crime and save lives. And, we can do 
it now, before another student, or any American, becomes a victim of 
gun violence.
  This bill offers the kind of practical solution we need to thwart gun 
crimes, now. It would provide $100 million in grants over 5 years to 
those States that agree to enact their own mandatory minimum five-year 
jail sentences for armed criminals who use or possess an illegal gun. 
As an alternative, a State also can qualify for the grants by turning 
armed criminals over for Federal prosecution under existing firearms 
laws. This would be done in the same manner in which it was done in the 
prior Bush administration. In our bill,

[[Page S2903]]

however, a State wishing to participate in this program has the option 
of prosecuting armed felons in either State or federal court.

  Qualifying States can use their grants for any variety of purposes 
that would strengthen their criminal or juvenile justice systems' 
ability to deal with violent criminals.
  This approach works, as Senators Warner and Allen can tell you first-
hand. In Virginia, for example, the State instituted a program in 1997, 
also called ``Project Exile.'' Their program is based on one simple 
principle: Any criminal caught with a gun will serve a minimum 
mandatory sentence of 5 years in prison. Period. End of story. As a 
result, gun-toting criminals are being prosecuted six times faster, and 
serving sentences up to four times longer than they otherwise would 
under State law. Moreover, the homicide rate in Richmond already has 
dropped 50-percent!
  Every State should have the opportunity to implement Project Exile in 
their high-crime communities. The bill that we have introduced will 
make this proven, commonsense approach to reducing gun violence 
available to every State.
  It will take guns out of the hands of violent criminals. It will make 
our neighborhoods safer. It will save lives. I urge my colleagues on 
both sides of the aisle to support and pass this legislation.
  Mr. President, I ask that the full text of the bill be printed in the 
Record.
  There being no objection the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                 S. 619

       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 ``Project Exile: The Safe 
     Streets and Neighborhoods Act of 2001''.

     SEC. 2. FIREARMS SENTENCING INCENTIVE GRANTS.

       (a) Program Established.--Title II of the Violent Crime 
     Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (Public Law 103-322; 
     108 Stat. 1815) is amended--
       (1) by redesignating subtitle D as subtitle E; and
       (2) by inserting after subtitle C the following:

           ``Subtitle D--Firearms Sentencing Incentive Grants

     ``SEC. 20351. DEFINITIONS.

       ``In this subtitle:
       ``(1) Firearm.--The term `firearm' has the meaning given 
     the term in section 921(a) of title 18, United States Code.
       ``(2) Part 1 violent crime.--The term `part 1 violent 
     crime' means murder and nonnegligent manslaughter, forcible 
     rape, robbery, and aggravated assault, as reported to the 
     Federal Bureau of Investigation for purposes of the Uniform 
     Crime Reports.
       ``(3) Serious drug trafficking crime.--The term `serious 
     drug trafficking crime' means an offense under State law for 
     the manufacture or distribution of a controlled substance, 
     for which State law authorizes to be imposed a sentence to a 
     term of imprisonment of not less than 10 years.
       ``(4) State.--The term `State' means a State of the United 
     States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto 
     Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, 
     and the Northern Mariana Islands.
       ``(5) Unit of local government.--The term `unit of local 
     government' has the meaning given the term in section 901(a) 
     of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act 
     of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3791(a)).
       ``(6) Violent crime.--The term `violent crime' means murder 
     and nonnegligent manslaughter, forcible rape, robbery, and 
     aggravated assault, or a crime in a reasonably comparable 
     class of serious violent crimes, as approved by the Attorney 
     General.

     ``SEC. 20352. AUTHORIZATION OF GRANTS.

       ``(a) In General.--From amounts made available to carry out 
     this subtitle, the Attorney General shall award Firearms 
     Sentencing Incentive Grants to eligible States in accordance 
     with this subtitle.
       ``(b) Allowable Uses.--Grants awarded under this subtitle 
     may be used by a State only--
       ``(1) to support--
       ``(A) law enforcement agencies;
       ``(B) prosecutors;
       ``(C) courts;
       ``(D) probation officers;
       ``(E) correctional officers;
       ``(F) the juvenile justice system;
       ``(G) the expansion, improvement, and coordination of 
     criminal history records; or
       ``(H) case management programs involving the sharing of 
     information about serious offenders;
       ``(2) to carry out a public awareness and community support 
     program described in section 20353(a)(2); or
       ``(3) to build or expand correctional facilities.
       ``(c) Subgrants.--A State may use grants awarded under this 
     subtitle directly or by making subgrants to units of local 
     government within that State.

     ``SEC. 20353. FIREARMS SENTENCING INCENTIVE GRANTS.

       ``(a) Eligibility.--Except as provided in subsection (b), 
     to be eligible to receive a grant award under this section, a 
     State shall submit an application to the Attorney General, 
     which shall comply with the following requirements:
       ``(1) Firearms sentencing laws.--The application shall 
     demonstrate that the State has implemented firearms 
     sentencing laws requiring 1 or both of the following:
       ``(A) Any person who, during and in relation to any violent 
     crime or serious drug trafficking crime, uses or carries a 
     firearm, shall, in addition to the punishment provided for 
     that crime of violence or serious drug trafficking crime, be 
     sentenced to a term of imprisonment of not less than 5 years 
     (without the possibility of parole during that term).
       ``(B) Any person who, having not less than 1 prior 
     conviction for a violent crime, possesses a firearm, shall, 
     for such possession, be sentenced to a term of imprisonment 
     of not less than 5 years (without the possibility of parole 
     during that term).
       ``(2) Public awareness and community support program.--The 
     application shall demonstrate that the State has implemented, 
     or will implement not later than 6 months after receiving a 
     grant under this subtitle, a public awareness and community 
     support program that seeks to build support for, and warns 
     potential violators of, the firearms sentencing laws 
     implemented under paragraph (1).
       ``(3) Coordination with federal government; crime reduction 
     in high-crime areas.--The application shall provide 
     assurances that the State--
       ``(A) will coordinate with Federal prosecutors and Federal 
     law enforcement agencies whose jurisdictions include the 
     State, so as to promote Federal involvement and cooperation 
     in the enforcement of laws within that State; and
       ``(B) will allocate its resources in a manner calculated to 
     reduce crime in the high-crime areas of the State.
       ``(b) Alternate Eligibility Requirement.--
       ``(1) In general.--A State that is unable to demonstrate in 
     its application that the State meets the requirement of 
     subsection (a)(1) shall be eligible to receive a grant award 
     under this subtitle notwithstanding that inability, if that 
     State, in such application, provides assurances that the 
     State has in effect an equivalent Federal prosecution 
     agreement.
       ``(2) Equivalent federal prosecution agreement.--For 
     purposes of paragraph (1), an equivalent Federal prosecution 
     agreement is an agreement with appropriate Federal 
     authorities that ensures that 1 or more of the following:
       ``(A) If a person engages in the conduct specified in 
     subsection (a)(1)(A), but the conviction of that person under 
     State law for that conduct is not certain to result in the 
     imposition of an additional sentence as specified in that 
     subsection, that person is prosecuted for that conduct under 
     Federal law.
       ``(B) If a person engages in the conduct specified in 
     subsection (a)(1)(B), but the conviction of that person under 
     State law for that conduct is not certain to result in the 
     imposition of a sentence as specified in that subsection, 
     that person is prosecuted for that conduct under Federal law.

     ``SEC. 20354. FORMULA FOR GRANTS.

       ``(a) In General.--The amount available for grants under 
     this subtitle for any fiscal year shall be allocated to each 
     eligible State, in the ratio that the number of part 1 
     violent crimes reported by the State to the Federal Bureau of 
     Investigation for the 3 years preceding the year in which the 
     determination is made, bears to the average annual number of 
     part 1 violent crimes reported by all eligible States to the 
     Federal Bureau of Investigation for the 3 years preceding the 
     year in which the determination is made.
       ``(b) Unavailable Data.--If data regarding part 1 violent 
     crimes in any State is substantially inaccurate or is 
     unavailable for the 3 years preceding the year in which the 
     determination is made, the Attorney General shall utilize the 
     best available comparable data regarding the number of 
     violent crimes for the previous year for the State for the 
     purposes of the allocation of funds under this subtitle.

     ``SEC. 20355. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

       ``(a) Authorizations.--There are authorized to be 
     appropriated to carry out this subtitle--
       ``(1) $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2001;
       ``(2) $15,000,000 for fiscal year 2002;
       ``(3) $20,000,000 for fiscal year 2003;
       ``(4) $25,000,000 for fiscal year 2004; and
       ``(5) $30,000,000 for fiscal year 2005.
       ``(b) Limitations on Funds.--
       ``(1) Uses of funds.--Funds made available pursuant to this 
     subtitle shall be used only to carry out the purposes 
     described in section 20352(b).
       ``(2) Nonsupplanting requirement.--Funds made available 
     pursuant to this section shall not be used to supplant State 
     funds, but shall be used to increase the amount of funds that 
     would, in the absence of Federal funds, be made available 
     from State sources.
       ``(3) Administrative costs.--Not more than 3 percent of the 
     funds made available

[[Page S2904]]

     pursuant to this section for a fiscal year shall be available 
     to the Attorney General for purposes of administration, 
     research and evaluation, technical assistance, and data 
     collection.
       ``(4) Carryover of appropriations.--Funds appropriated 
     pursuant to this section during any fiscal year shall remain 
     available until expended.
       ``(5) Matching funds.--The Federal share of a grant awarded 
     under this subtitle may not exceed 90 percent of the costs of 
     a proposal as described in an application approved under this 
     subtitle.

     ``SEC. 20356. REPORT BY THE ATTORNEY GENERAL.

       ``Beginning on October 1, 2001, and on each subsequent July 
     1 thereafter, the Attorney General shall submit to the 
     Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and the Committee on 
     the Judiciary of the House of Representatives a report on the 
     implementation of this subtitle. The report shall include 
     information regarding the eligibility of States under section 
     20353 and the distribution and use of funds under this 
     subtitle.''.
       (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents in section 2 
     of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 
     (Public Law 103-322; 108 Stat. 1796) is amended--
       (1) by redesignating the item relating to subtitle D of 
     title II as an item relating to subtitle E of that title; and
       (2) by inserting after the item relating to subtitle C of 
     title II the following:

           ``Subtitle D--Firearms Sentencing Incentive Grants

``Sec. 20351. Definitions.
``Sec. 20352. Authorization of grants.
``Sec. 20353. Firearms sentencing incentive grants.
``Sec. 20354. Formula for grants.
``Sec. 20355. Authorization of appropriations.
``Sec. 20356. Report by the Attorney General.''.

  Mr. HUTCHINSON. Mr. President, I am honored to rise today as an 
original cosponsor of Senator DeWine's legislation, Project Exile: the 
Safe Streets and Neighborhood Act 2001. This legislation will go a long 
way towards the goal of effectively reducing gun violence and saving 
lives.
  Like many of my colleagues, I am extremely concerned about gun 
violence. However, unlike many of my colleagues, I do not believe that 
more gun control laws are needed to make our Nation safer. Rather, I 
agree with the thousands of Arkansans who have written asking me to 
simply enforce the laws already in effect. I also point to the 
experience of States and cities around the Nation which have seen 
reductions in violent crime when the existing gun laws were 
aggressively enforced.
  The Project Exile legislation will provide the additional resources 
needed to expand this effort. It authorizes $100 million in block 
grants over 5 years to those States that agree to enact and enforce 
laws with mandatory minimum sentences for anyone who uses a firearm to 
commit any violent or drug trafficking crime as well as for any person 
convicted of a violent felony who is in possession of a firearm. If a 
State does not wish to change its laws, it can simply agree to ensure 
that these offenders will be turned over to the appropriate United 
States Attorney's office for prosecution under Federal firearms 
statutes.
  For some time now, I have been working to see Project Exile 
implemented in Arkansas, and I support this legislation because it will 
authorize the additional funding necessary to allow Arkansas and other 
states to implement a program which has been proven to reduce gun 
violence. Finally, I support this legislation because it is the right 
approach.
                                 ______