[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 139 (Thursday, October 27, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S12014-S12016]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. SPECTER (for himself, Mr. Biden, Mr. Brownback, Mr. 
        Talent, Mr. DeWine, Mr. Corzine, Mr. Bingaman, Mr. Kyl, Mr. 
        Santorum, and Mr. Obama):
  S. 1934. A bill to reauthorize the grant program of the Department of 
Justice for reentry of offenders into the community, to establish a 
task force on Federal programs and activities relating to the reentry 
of offenders into the community, and for other purposes; to the 
Committee on the Judiciary.
  Mr. SPECTER. Mr. President, I have sought recognition to introduce, 
along with Senators Biden and Brownback, the Second Chance Act of 2005: 
Community Safety through Recidivism Prevention. This legislation is 
designed to reduce recidivism among adult and juvenile ex-offenders. 
Never before in our history have so many individuals been released from 
prison and never before in our history have so many ex-offenders been 
is prepared to reenter their communities. Each year, more than 650,000 
individuals are released, which roughly equates to about 1,700 
individuals returning communities each day. This number is expected to 
grow in the near future as more inmates complete their prison terms. 
For most offenders, the transition back into their communities is 
difficult because many lack the necessary skill to ensure a successful 
reentry. Many suffer from serious substance abuse addictions and mental 
health issues. Many have difficulty securing a job or adequate housing 
and often find themselves lured back to a life of crime. A study 
conducted by the Bureau of Justice Statistics reported that over two-
thirds of released prisoners were rearrested within three years and 
one-half of those rearrested were convicted and re-incarcerated. This 
high rate of recidivism devastates our towns and communities and puts 
an enormous strain on state and local budgets.
  The Second Chance Act reauthorizes the Adult and Juvenile Offender 
Reentry Demonstration projects, authorizing the Attorney General to 
make grants to States and local governments to establish offender 
reentry projects, with an enhanced focus on job training, housing, 
substance abuse and mental health treatment, and working with children 
and families. It also creates a new grant program available to 
nonprofit organizations for the purpose of providing mentoring and 
other transitional services essential to reintegrating ex-offenders. 
The Second Chance Act encourages new community partnerships to help 
educate, train, and employ these individuals who might otherwise return 
to a life of crime.
  Many ex-offenders are often stigmatized by their incarceration, and 
must face the reality that many employers are reluctant to hire them. A 
National Adult Literacy Study determined that a majority of prisoners 
are either illiterate or have marginal reading, writing, and math 
skills. Following the repeal of Pell Grant eligibility for incarcerated 
individuals, I worked to create the Grants to States for Workplace and 
Community Transition Training for Incarcerated Youth Offenders program. 
This program is aimed at providing post-secondary education, employment 
counseling, and workplace and community transition training for 
incarcerated youth offenders while in prison, which continue for up to 
one year after the individual is released. The current program limits 
expenditures per youth offender to $1,500 for tuition and books, and 
only allows an additional $300 for other related services. The Second 
Chance Act builds upon my earlier efforts by increasing State's 
flexibility and accountability within the grant program. It removes the 
cap and raises the allowable expenditure permitted for each youth 
offender to the maximum level of Pell Grants. One of the keys to 
preventing recidivism is access to education an in recognizing the 
impact that education an job training can have on incarcerated 
offenders. It is my sincere hope that this legislation will encourage 
incarcerated individuals to achieve their independence and to gain the 
necessary skills to become productive members of society.
  Another crisis that well face is the growing populations of prisoners 
who are parents. More than half of those currently incarcerated are 
parents of minor children. Female incarceration rates are increasing 
faster than those men, totaling 7 percent of the prison population. Of 
those incarcerated, 80 percent are mothers with, on average two 
dependent children. What is most troubling is that two-thirds of their 
children are younger the the age of 10. The incarceration of a parent 
can have a tremendous impact on childhood development. Prison presents 
a unique opportunity to improve a prisoner's ability to become a better 
part once they are released. Unfortunately, many of our prisons do not 
employ such programs, due to fiscal constraints as well as a shift in 
priorities. The Second Chance Act of 2005 encourages the creating of 
programs that facilitate visitation, if it is in the best interest of 
the child. It also directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services 
to establish services to help preserve family units, with special 
attention paid to the impact on the child of an incarcerated parent.
  There is ample evident that well-designed reentry programs reduce 
recidivism. Programs such as aftercare for substance abusers and adult 
vocational education have shown to reduce recidivism up to 15 percent. 
These programs pay for themselves by reducing future correction costs 
associated with re-housing these individuals upon their return back 
into the institution. The revolving door of prisons not only hurts 
those who are caught up in the process, but hurts their families and 
our communities. If we fail to address this problem, 1e are burdening 
our communities not only with greater expenditures, but in the risk of 
increased crime and unsafe neighborhoods. The more we can do to prepare 
these individuals when they return home, the better off we will all be. 
I urge my colleagues to join me in cosponsoring this legislation, and 
urge its swift adoption.
  Mr. BIDEN. Mr. President, Senator Specter, Senator Brownback, and I 
introduce today the Second Chance Act of 2005, which takes direct aim 
at reducing recidivism rates for our nation's ex-offenders and 
improving the transition for these offenders from prison back into the 
community.
  All too often we think about today, but not tomorrow. We look to 
short-

[[Page S12015]]

term solutions for long-term problems. We need to have a change in 
thinking and approach. It's time we face the dire situation of 
prisoners reentering our communities with insufficient monitoring, 
little nor no job skills, inadequate drug treatment, insufficient 
housing, lack of positive influences, a pap city of basic physical and 
mental health services, and deficient basic life skills.
  The bill we introduce today is about providing a second chance for 
these ex-offenders, and the children and families that depend on them. 
It's about strengthening communities and ensuring safe neighborhoods.
  Since my 1994 Crime Bill passed, we've had great success in cutting 
down on crime rates in this country. Under the Community Oriented 
Policing Services, COPS, program, we've funded over 100,000 officers 
all across the country. And our crime rate has plummeted.
  But there's a record number of people currently serving time in our 
country--over 2 million in our federal and state prisons; with millions 
more in local jails. And 95 percent of all prisoners we lock up today 
will eventually get out. That equals nearly 650,000 being released from 
federal or state prisons to communities each year.
  If we are going to continue the downward trend of crime rates, we 
simply have to make strong, concerted, and common-sense efforts now to 
help ex-prisoners successfully reenter and reintegrate to their 
communities.
  And right now, we're not doing a good enough job. A staggering two-
thirds of released State prisoners are expected to be rearrested for a 
felony or serious misdemeanor within 3 years of release. Two out of 
every three. You're talking about hundreds of thousands of reoffending, 
ex-offenders each year and hundreds of thousands of serious crimes 
being committed by people who have already served time in jail.
  And, unfortunately, it's too difficult to see why such a huge portion 
of our released prisoners recommit serious crimes. Up to 60 percent of 
former inmates are not employed; 15-27 percent of prisoners expect to 
go to homeless shelters upon release; and 57 percent of federal and 70 
percent of state inmates used drugs regularly before prison, with some 
estim1tes of involvement with drugs or alcohol around the time of the 
offense as high as 84 percent.
  These huge numbers or released prisoners each year and the out-of-
control recidivism rates are a recipe for diaster--leading to untold 
damage, hardship, and death for victims; ruined futures and lost 
potential for re-offenders; and a huge drain on society at large. One 
particularly vulnerable group is the children of these offenders. We 
simply cannot be resigned to allowing generation after generation 
entering and reentering our prisons. This pernicious cycle must come to 
an end.
  My 1994 Crime Bill recognized these extraordinarily high rates of 
recidivism as a real problem. My bill, for example, created innovative 
drug treatment programs for State and Federal inmates to help them kick 
their habit.
  But this is only one piece of the puzzle. I introduced a bill in 2000 
that would have built on my 1994 Crime Bill--the ``Offender Reentry and 
Community Safety Act of 2000'' (S. 2908). This bill would have created 
demonstration reentry programs for Federal, State, and local prisoners. 
These programs were designed to assist high-risk, high-need offenders 
who served their prison sentences, but who posed the greatest risk of 
reoffending upon release because they lacked the education, job skills, 
stable family or living arrangements, and the health services they 
needed to successfully reintegrate into society.
  While we have made some progress on offender reentry efforts since 
1994, much more needs to be done. In the current session of Congress, I 
am pleased that colleagues of mine--from both sides of Capitol Hill and 
from both sides of the aisle--are also focusing their attention and 
this vital issue.
  Senators Specter and Brownback have been dedicated and tireless 
leaders on crime and public safety issues throughout their careers, and 
I am proud to join efforts with them today. Other Senators have also 
taken a leadership role on these issues, including Senators Leahy, 
Kennedy, Brownback, Hatch, Specter, Grassley, Feinstein, DeWine, 
Santorum, Landrieu, Bingaman, Coburn, Durbin, and Obama.
  The Second Chance Act of 2005 provides a competitive grant program to 
promote innovative programs to this out a variety of methods aimed at 
reducing recidivism rates. Efforts would be focus on post-release 
housing, education and job training, substance abuse and mental health 
services, and mentoring programs, just to name a few.
  Because the scope of the problem is so large--with 650,000 prisoners 
being released from state and federal prisons each year--our bill 
provides $100 million per year in competitive grant funding . This 
isn't being wasteful with our scarce federal resources, it's just an 
acknowledgement of the scope of the problem we're faced with.
  A relatively modest investment in offender reentry efforts compares 
very well with the alternative, building more and more prisons for 
these ex-offenders to return to if they are unable to successfully 
reenter their communities and instead are rearrested and reconvicted of 
more cries. We must remember that the average cost of incarcerating 
each prisoner exceeds 20,000 per year, with expenditures on corrections 
alone having increased from $9 billion in 1982 to $60 billion in 2002. 
We simply can't be penny-wise but pound-foolish.
  The Second Chance Act of 2005 also requires that federal departments 
with a role in offender reentry efforts coordinate and work together; 
to make sure there aren't duplicative efforts or funding gaps; and to 
coordinate reentry research. Our bill would raise the profile of this 
issue within the executive branch and secure the sustained and 
coordinated federal attention offender reentry efforts deserve.
  We also need to examine existing Federal and State reentry barriers--
laws, regulations, rules, and practices that make it more difficult for 
former inmates to successfully reintegrate back into their communities; 
laws that confine ex-offenders to society's margins, making it even 
more likely that they will recommit serious crimes and return to 
prison.
  Turning over a new leaf and going from a life of crime to becoming a 
productive member of society is tough enough. We shouldn't have Federal 
and State laws on the books that make this even more challenging. 
That's not say that we don't want to restrict former drug addicts from 
working in pharmacies, for example, or to bar sex offenders from 
working it day care centers. But many communities across the country 
currently exclude ex-prisoners from virtually every occupation 
requiring a state license, like chiropractic care, engineering, and 
real estate. Lifting these senselessly punitive bans would make it 
easier for ex-offenders to stay out of prison.
  Our bill provides for a roust analysis of these federal and state 
barriers with recommendations on what next steps we need to take. And 
these reviews are mandated to take place out in the open under public 
scrutiny.
  The Second Chance Act also spurs state-of-the-art research and study 
on offender reentry issues. We need to know who is most likely to 
recommit crimes when they are released, to better target our limited 
resources where they can do the most good. We need to study why some 
ex-offenders who seem to have the entire deck stacked against them are 
able to become successful and productive members of our society. We 
need to know what, works and how we can replicate what works for 
others.
  Our bill also provides a whole slew of common-sense proposals in the 
areas of job training, employment, education, post-release housing, 
substance abuse, and prisoner mentoring--efforts and changes in law 
that we can do now.
  Our Second Chance Act is a next, natural step in our campaign against 
crime. Making a dent in recidivism rate is an enormous undertaking; one 
that requires action now and continued focus in the future. I commit to 
vigorously pushing this legislation as well as keeping an eye on what 
steps we need to take in the future. We need to realize that the 
problems facing ex-offenders are enormous and will need sustained 
focus. The safety of our neighbors, our children, and our communities 
depends on it.
  I am proud today to join with Senator Specter and Senator Brownback 
in introducing the Second Chance Act and ask our colleagues to join 
with us in this vital effort.

[[Page S12016]]

  Mr. BROWNBACK. Mr. President, I am please to join with Chairman 
Specter and Senator Biden today as we introduce a bill that will have a 
dramatic and positive effect in the lives of individuals re-entering 
society after incarceration. The Second Chance Act: Community Safety 
Through Recidivism Prevention is a bill that will not only protect our 
Nation's citizens but will more importantly help to reduce recidivism 
in our Nation.
  A hallmark of any just society lies in its ability to protect the 
interest of all its citizens and I am proud that the United States is a 
leader in this regard. Yet, while we continue to strive toward this 
lofty goal, we must realize that there are areas in which we, as a 
society and as government, must do more to improve. No where is that 
more apparent than in our Nation's pension system.
  Today, we have challenges within the prison system that range from 
high recidivism rates to budgetary and safety concerns. With this bill, 
we will be able to address this pressing problem within our society. 
Already we have seen innovative and model programs within the states 
and the faith community, and I am proud to say that Kansas is a leader 
in this regard, as well a such faith organizations as Prison Fellowship 
Ministries, Catholic Charities U.S.A., and the Salvation Army. However, 
we must stimulate innovation in this area on a national level and that 
is what this bill will accomplish. It is paramount that we ensure the 
safety of our communities and ensure that those incarcerated have the 
tools necessary to succeed after they rejoin society.
  With this bill, we wil1 be able to combat the extremely high 
recidivism rates plaguing the prison system, currently as high as 70 
percent, as well as address the financial burdens that hinder many of 
our state penitentiaries. State prison operating expenditures totaled 
$28.4 billion in fiscal year 2001, or a nationwide average annual 
operating cost of $22,650 per inmate. Today, it is more likely than 
ever that a person released from prison will be rearrested--two-thirds 
of state prisoners are rearrested within 3 years of release. Depending 
of the expert consulted, between one-third and two-thirds of all prison 
re-admissions are related to probation or parole violations and at 
least half of those violations are technical.
  We must stop subsiding programs that do not work and that lead, in 
turn, to negative behavior.
  I am confident that the bill we are putting forward today will indeed 
take the much needed steps to reduce the recidivism rate in this 
Nation, which will in turn help those incarcerated make positive 
changes within their lives so that when they do rejoin society, they 
will be able to do so with the confidence of knowing that they can 
contribute to society in a positive manner. As an added incentive to 
recidivism reduction, each grant application submitted under this 
program must have as its strategic plan a goal to reduce recidivism by 
50 percent in 5 years and in order to receive continued funding under 
this program, each granted must show a reduction in the recidivism rate 
of participants by 10 percent over 2 years.
  Specifically, this bill facilitates change within our current 
correctional system, and promotes coordination with the Federal 
Government to better assist those returning to our communities after 
incarceration their children. The bill reauthorizes the Re-Entry 
Demonstration Project with an enhanced focus on jobs, housing, 
substance abuse treatment, mental health, and the children and families 
of those incarcerated. The bill authorizes $200 million over a period 
of two years to fund these demonstration programs and creates 
performance outcome standards and deliverables. It will also encourage 
states to enhance their re-entry services and systems with grants to 
fund the creation or enhancement of state re-entry councils for 
strategic planning and review the state barriers and resources that 
exit.
  Additionally, the bill creates a Federal interagency taskforce to 
facilitate collaboration and identify innovative programs initiatives. 
The taskforce will review and report to Congress on the Federal 
barriers that exist to successful re-entry.
  Furthermore, the bill create a $50 million 2 year mentoring program 
geared toward reducing recidivism and the societal costs of recidivism. 
This mentoring program will help ex-offenders re-integrate into their 
communities. This initiative will specifically harness the resources 
and experience of community-based organizations in helping returning 
ex-offender.
  Finally, the bill amends the Workplace and Community Transition 
Training for Incarcerated Youth Offenders Act by improving the existing 
grants to States under this program and provides $60 million for the 
administration of the program. This youth program calls for expanding 
the eligibility age from 25 to 35 years, increases accountability by 
requiring State correctional education agencies to track specific and 
quantified student outcomes referenced to non-program participants, and 
increases the allowable expenditure per youth offender up to the level 
of the maximum Federal Pell Grant award for tuition, books and 
essential materials; and related services, such as career development.
  We have an incredible opportunity to re-shape the way in which this 
nation's prison systems operate. Much like welfare reform in the mid 
1990s, we have a chance to make real and effective change in an area 
where change is sorely needed. I look forward to pushing this 
legislation forward.

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