[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 175 (Tuesday, November 13, 2007)]
[House]
[Pages H13564-H13582]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SECOND CHANCE ACT OF 2007
Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 1593) to reauthorize the grant program for reentry of
offenders into the community in the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe
Streets Act of 1968, to
[[Page H13565]]
improve reentry planning and implementation, and for other purposes, as
amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 1593
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 ``Second Chance Act of 2007:
Community Safety Through Recidivism Prevention'' or the
``Second Chance Act of 2007''.
SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS.
The table of contents for this Act is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title.
Sec. 2. Table of contents.
Sec. 3. Purposes; findings.
Sec. 4. Definition of Indian tribe.
Sec. 5. Submission of reports to Congress.
Sec. 6. Rule of construction.
TITLE I--AMENDMENTS RELATED TO THE OMNIBUS CRIME CONTROL AND SAFE
STREETS ACT OF 1968
Subtitle A--Improvements to Existing Programs
Sec. 101. Reauthorization of adult and juvenile offender State and
local reentry demonstration projects.
Sec. 102. Improvement of the residential substance abuse treatment for
State offenders program.
Sec. 103. Definition of violent offender for drug court grant program.
Sec. 104. Use of violent offender truth-in-sentencing grant funding for
demonstration project activities.
Subtitle B--New and Innovative Programs To Improve Offender Reentry
Services
Sec. 111. State, tribal, and local reentry courts.
Sec. 112. Prosecution drug treatment alternative to prison programs.
Sec. 113. Grants for family-based substance abuse treatment.
Sec. 114. Grant to evaluate and improve education at prisons, jails,
and juvenile facilities.
Sec. 115. Technology Careers Training Demonstration Grants.
TITLE II--ENHANCED DRUG TREATMENT AND MENTORING GRANT PROGRAMS
Subtitle A--Drug Treatment
Sec. 201. Offender reentry substance abuse and criminal justice
collaboration program.
Subtitle B--Mentoring
Sec. 211. Mentoring grants to nonprofit organizations.
Sec. 212. Responsible reintegration of offenders.
Sec. 213. Bureau of prisons policy on mentoring contacts.
Sec. 214. Bureau of prisons policy on chapel library materials.
Subtitle C--Administration of Justice Reforms
Chapter 1--Improving Federal Offender Reentry
Sec. 231. Federal prisoner reentry initiative.
Sec. 232. Bureau of prisons policy on restraining of female prisoners.
Chapter 2--Reentry Research
Sec. 241. Offender reentry research.
Sec. 242. Grants to study parole or post-incarceration supervision
violations and revocations.
Sec. 243. Addressing the needs of children of incarcerated parents.
Sec. 244. Study of effectiveness of depot naltrexone for heroin
addiction.
Sec. 245. Authorization of appropriations for research.
Chapter 3--Correctional Reforms to Existing Law
Sec. 251. Clarification of authority to place prisoner in community
corrections.
Sec. 252. Residential drug abuse program in Federal prisons.
Sec. 253. Contracting for services for post-conviction supervision
offenders.
Chapter 4--Miscellanuous Provisions
Sec. 261. Extension of national prison rape elimination commission.
SEC. 3. PURPOSES; FINDINGS.
(a) Purposes.--The purposes of the Act are--
(1) to break the cycle of criminal recidivism, increase
public safety, and help States, local units of government,
and Indian Tribes, better address the growing population of
criminal offenders who return to their communities and commit
new crimes;
(2) to rebuild ties between offenders and their families,
while the offenders are incarcerated and after reentry into
the community, to promote stable families and communities;
(3) to encourage the development and support of, and to
expand the availability of, evidence-based programs that
enhance public safety and reduce recidivism, such as
substance abuse treatment, alternatives to incarceration, and
comprehensive reentry services;
(4) to protect the public and promote law-abiding conduct
by providing necessary services to offenders, while the
offenders are incarcerated and after reentry into the
community, in a manner that does not confer luxuries or
privileges upon such offenders;
(5) to assist offenders reentering the community from
incarceration to establish a self-sustaining and law-abiding
life by providing sufficient transitional services for as
short of a period as practicable, not to exceed one year,
unless a longer period is specifically determined to be
necessary by a medical or other appropriate treatment
professional; and
(6) to provide offenders in prisons, jails or juvenile
facilities with educational, literacy, vocational, and job
placement services to facilitate re-entry into the community.
(b) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
(1) In 2002, over 7,000,000 people were incarcerated in
Federal or State prisons or in local jails. Nearly 650,000
people are released from Federal and State incarceration into
communities nationwide each year.
(2) There are over 3,200 jails throughout the United
States, the vast majority of which are operated by county
governments. Each year, these jails will release more than
10,000,000 people back into the community.
(3) Recent studies indicate that over \2/3\ of released
State prisoners are expected to be rearrested for a felony or
serious misdemeanor within 3 years after release.
(4) According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics,
expenditures on corrections alone increased from
$9,000,000,000 in 1982, to $59,600,000,000 in 2002. These
figures do not include the cost of arrest and prosecution,
nor do they take into account the cost to victims.
(5) The Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Initiative
(SVORI) provided $139,000,000 in funding for State
governments to develop and implement education, job training,
mental health treatment, and substance abuse treatment for
serious and violent offenders. This Act seeks to build upon
the innovative and successful State reentry programs
developed under the SVORI, which terminated after fiscal year
2005.
(6) Between 1991 and 1999, the number of children with a
parent in a Federal or State correctional facility increased
by more than 100 percent, from approximately 900,000 to
approximately 2,000,000. According to the Bureau of Prisons,
there is evidence to suggest that inmates who are connected
to their children and families are more likely to avoid
negative incidents and have reduced sentences.
(7) Released prisoners cite family support as the most
important factor in helping them stay out of prison. Research
suggests that families are an often underutilized resource in
the reentry process.
(8) Approximately 100,000 juveniles (ages 17 years and
under) leave juvenile correctional facilities, State prison,
or Federal prison each year. Juveniles released from secure
confinement still have their likely prime crime years ahead
of them. Juveniles released from secure confinement have a
recidivism rate ranging from 55 to 75 percent. The chances
that young people will successfully transition into society
improve with effective reentry and aftercare programs.
(9) Studies have shown that between 15 percent and 27
percent of prisoners expect to go to homeless shelters upon
release from prison.
(10) Fifty-seven percent of Federal and 70 percent of State
inmates used drugs regularly before going to prison, and the
Bureau of Justice statistics report titled ``Trends in State
Parole, 1990-2000'' estimates the use of drugs or alcohol
around the time of the offense that resulted in the
incarceration of the inmate at as high as 84 percent.
(11) Family-based treatment programs have proven results
for serving the special populations of female offenders and
substance abusers with children. An evaluation by the
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration of
family-based treatment for substance-abusing mothers and
children found that 6 months after such treatment, 60 percent
of the mothers remained alcohol and drug free, and drug-
related offenses declined from 28 percent to 7 percent.
Additionally, a 2003 evaluation of residential family-based
treatment programs revealed that 60 percent of mothers
remained clean and sober 6 months after treatment, criminal
arrests declined by 43 percent, and 88 percent of the
children treated in the program with their mothers remained
stabilized.
(12) A Bureau of Justice Statistics analysis indicated that
only 33 percent of Federal inmates and 36 percent of State
inmates had participated in residential in-patient treatment
programs for alcohol and drug abuse 12 months before their
release. Further, over one-third of all jail inmates have
some physical or mental disability and 25 percent of jail
inmates have been treated at some time for a mental or
emotional problem.
(13) State Substance Abuse Agency Directors, also known as
Single State Authorities, manage the publicly funded
substance abuse prevention and treatment system of the
Nation. Single State Authorities are responsible for planning
and implementing statewide systems of care that provide
clinically appropriate substance abuse services. Given the
high rate of substance use disorders among offenders
reentering our communities, successful reentry programs
require close interaction and collaboration with each Single
State Authority as the program is planned, implemented, and
evaluated.
(14) According to the National Institute of Literacy, 70
percent of all prisoners function at the lowest literacy
levels.
[[Page H13566]]
(15) Less than 32 percent of State prison inmates have a
high school diploma or a higher level of education, compared
to 82 percent of the general population.
(16) Approximately 38 percent of inmates who completed 11
years or less of school were not working before entry into
prison.
(17) The percentage of State prisoners participating in
educational programs decreased by more than 8 percent between
1991 and 1997, despite growing evidence of how educational
programming while incarcerated reduces recidivism.
(18) The National Institute of Justice has found that 1
year after release, up to 60 percent of former inmates are
not employed.
(19) Transitional jobs programs have proven to help people
with criminal records to successfully return to the workplace
and to the community, and therefore can reduce recidivism.
SEC. 4. DEFINITION OF INDIAN TRIBE.
In this Act, the term ``Indian Tribe'' has the meaning
given that term in section 901 of the Omnibus Crime Control
and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3791).
SEC. 5. SUBMISSION OF REPORTS TO CONGRESS.
Not later than January 31 of each year, 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 each report required by the Attorney General
under this Act or an amendment made by this Act during the
preceding year.
SEC. 6. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.
Nothing in this Act or an amendment made by this Act shall
be construed as creating a right or entitlement to assistance
or services for any individual, program, or grant recipient.
Each grant made under this Act or an amendment made by this
Act shall--
(1) be made as competitive grants to eligible entities for
a 12-month period, except that grants awarded under section
113, 201, 211, and 212 may be made for a 24-month period; and
(2) require that services for participants, when necessary
and appropriate, be transferred from programs funded under
this Act or the amendment made by this Act, respectively, to
State and community-based programs not funded under this Act
or the amendment made by this Act, respectively, before the
expiration of the grant.
TITLE I--AMENDMENTS RELATED TO THE OMNIBUS CRIME CONTROL AND SAFE
STREETS ACT OF 1968
Subtitle A--Improvements to Existing Programs
SEC. 101. REAUTHORIZATION OF ADULT AND JUVENILE OFFENDER
STATE AND LOCAL REENTRY DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS.
(a) Adult and Juvenile Offender Demonstration Projects
Authorized.--Section 2976(b) of the Omnibus Crime Control and
Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3797w(b)) is amended by
striking paragraphs (1) through (4) and inserting the
following:
``(1) providing offenders in prisons, jails, or juvenile
facilities with educational, literacy, vocational, and job
placement services to facilitate re-entry into the community;
``(2) providing substance abuse treatment and services
(including providing a full continuum of substance abuse
treatment services that encompasses outpatient and
comprehensive residential services and recovery);
``(3) providing coordinated supervision and comprehensive
services for offenders upon release from prison, jail, or a
juvenile facility, including housing and mental and physical
health care to facilitate re-entry into the community, and
which, to the extent applicable, are provided by community-
based entities (including coordinated reentry veteran-
specific services for eligible veterans);
``(4) providing programs that--
``(A) encourage offenders to develop safe, healthy, and
responsible family relationships and parent-child
relationships; and
``(B) involve the entire family unit in comprehensive
reentry services (as appropriate to the safety, security, and
well-being of the family and child);
``(5) encouraging the involvement of prison, jail, or
juvenile facility mentors in the reentry process and enabling
those mentors to remain in contact with offenders while in
custody and after reentry into the community;
``(6) providing victim-appropriate services, encouraging
the timely and complete payment of restitution and fines by
offenders to victims, and providing services such as security
and counseling to victims upon release of offenders; and
``(7) protecting communities against dangerous offenders by
using validated assessment tools to assess the risk factors
of returning inmates and developing or adopting procedures to
ensure that dangerous felons are not released from prison
prematurely.''.
(b) Juvenile Offender Demonstration Projects
Reauthorized.--Section 2976(c) of the Omnibus Crime Control
and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3797w(c)) is amended
by striking ``may be expended for'' and all that follows
through the period at the end and inserting ``may be expended
for any activity described in subsection (b).''.
(c) Applications; Requirements; Priorities; Performance
Measurements.--Section 2976 of the Omnibus Crime Control and
Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3797w) is amended--
(1) by redesignating subsection (h) as subsection (o); and
(2) by striking subsections (d) through (g) and inserting
the following:
``(d) Applications.--A State, unit of local government,
territory, or Indian Tribe, or combination thereof, desiring
a grant under this section shall submit an application to the
Attorney General that--
``(1) contains a reentry strategic plan, as described in
subsection (h), which describes the long-term strategy and
incorporates a detailed implementation schedule, including
the plans of the applicant to pay for the program after the
Federal funding is discontinued;
``(2) identifies the local government role and the role of
governmental agencies and nonprofit organizations that will
be coordinated by, and that will collaborate on, the offender
reentry strategy of the applicant, and certifies the
involvement of such agencies and organizations;
``(3) describes the evidence-based methodology and outcome
measures that will be used to evaluate the program funded
with a grant under this section, and specifically explains
how such measurements will provide valid measures of the
impact of that program; and
``(4) describes how the project could be broadly replicated
if demonstrated to be effective.
``(e) Requirements.--The Attorney General may make a grant
to an applicant under this section only if the application--
``(1) reflects explicit support of the chief executive
officer of the State, unit of local government, territory, or
Indian Tribe applying for a grant under this section;
``(2) provides extensive discussion of the role of State
corrections departments, community corrections agencies,
juvenile justice systems, or local jail systems in ensuring
successful reentry of offenders into their communities;
``(3) provides extensive evidence of collaboration with
State and local government agencies overseeing health,
housing, child welfare, education, substance abuse, victims
services, and employment services, and with local law
enforcement agencies;
``(4) provides a plan for analysis of the statutory,
regulatory, rules-based, and practice-based hurdles to
reintegration of offenders into the community; and
``(5) includes the use of a State, local, territorial, or
Tribal task force, described in subsection (i), to carry out
the activities funded under the grant.
``(f) Priority Considerations.--The Attorney General shall
give priority to grant applications under this section that
best--
``(1) focus initiative on geographic areas with a
disproportionate population of offenders released from
prisons, jails, and juvenile facilities;
``(2) include--
``(A) input from nonprofit organizations, in any case where
relevant input is available and appropriate to the grant
application;
``(B) consultation with crime victims and offenders who are
released from prisons, jails, and juvenile facilities; and
``(C) coordination with families of offenders;
``(3) demonstrate effective case assessment and management
abilities in order to provide comprehensive and continuous
reentry, including--
``(A) planning while offenders are in prison, jail, or a
juvenile facility, prerelease transition housing, and
community release;
``(B) establishing prerelease planning procedures to ensure
that the eligibility of an offender for Federal or State
benefits upon release is established prior to release,
subject to any limitations in law, and to ensure that
offenders obtain all necessary referrals for reentry
services; and
``(C) delivery of continuous and appropriate drug
treatment, medical care, job training and placement,
educational services, or any other service or support needed
for reentry;
``(4) review the process by which the applicant adjudicates
violations of parole, probation, or supervision following
release from prison, jail, or a juvenile facility, taking
into account public safety and the use of graduated,
community-based sanctions for minor and technical violations
of parole, probation, or supervision (specifically those
violations that are not otherwise, and independently, a
violation of law);
``(5) provide for an independent evaluation of reentry
programs that include, to the maximum extent possible, random
assignment and controlled studies to determine the
effectiveness of such programs; and
``(6) target high-risk offenders for reentry programs
through validated assessment tools.
``(g) Uses of Grant Funds.--
``(1) Federal share.--
``(A) In general.--Except as provided in subparagraph (B),
the Federal share of a grant received under this section may
not exceed 50 percent of the project funded under such grant
in fiscal year 2009.
``(B) Waiver.--Subparagraph (A) shall not apply if the
Attorney General--
``(i) waives, in whole or in part, the requirement of this
paragraph; and
``(ii) publishes in the Federal Register the rationale for
such waiver.
``(C) In-kind contributions.--
``(i) In general.--Subject to clause (ii), the recipient of
a grant under this section may meet the matching requirement
under subparagraph (A) by making in-kind contributions of
goods or services that are directly
[[Page H13567]]
related to the purpose for which such grant was awarded.
``(ii) Maximum percentage.--Not more than 50 percent of the
amount provided by a recipient of a grant under this section
to meet the matching requirement under subparagraph (A) may
be provided through in-kind contributions under clause (i).
``(2) Supplement not supplant.--Federal funds received
under this section shall be used to supplement, not supplant,
non-Federal funds that would otherwise be available for the
activities funded under this section.
``(h) Reentry Strategic Plan.--
``(1) In general.--As a condition of receiving financial
assistance under this section, each applicant shall develop a
comprehensive strategic reentry plan that contains measurable
annual and 5-year performance outcomes, and that uses, to the
maximum extent possible, random assigned and controlled
studies to determine the effectiveness of the program funded
with a grant under this section. One goal of that plan shall
be to reduce the rate of recidivism (as defined by the
Attorney General, consistent with the research on offender
reentry undertaken by the Bureau of Justice Statistics) by 50
percent over a 5-year period for offenders released from
prison, jail, or a juvenile facility who are served with
funds made available under this section.
``(2) Coordination.--In developing a reentry plan under
this subsection, an applicant shall coordinate with
communities and stakeholders, including persons in the fields
of public safety, juvenile and adult corrections, housing,
health, education, substance abuse, children and families,
victims services, employment, and business and members of
nonprofit organizations that can provide reentry services.
``(3) Measurements of progress.--Each reentry plan
developed under this subsection shall measure the progress of
the applicant toward increasing public safety by reducing
rates of recidivism and enabling released offenders to
transition successfully back into their communities.
``(i) Reentry Task Force.--
``(1) In general.--As a condition of receiving financial
assistance under this section, each applicant shall establish
or empower a Reentry Task Force, or other relevant convening
authority, to--
``(A) examine ways to pool resources and funding streams to
promote lower recidivism rates for returning offenders and
minimize the harmful effects of offenders' time in prison,
jail, or a juvenile facility on families and communities of
offenders by collecting data and best practices in offender
reentry from demonstration grantees and other agencies and
organizations; and
``(B) provide the analysis described in subsection (e)(4).
``(2) Membership.--The task force or other authority under
this subsection shall be comprised of--
``(A) relevant State, Tribal, territorial, or local
leaders; and
``(B) representatives of relevant--
``(i) agencies;
``(ii) service providers;
``(iii) nonprofit organizations; and
``(iv) stakeholders.
``(j) Strategic Performance Outcomes.--
``(1) In general.--Each applicant shall identify in the
reentry strategic plan developed under subsection (h),
specific performance outcomes relating to the long-term goals
of increasing public safety and reducing recidivism.
``(2) Performance outcomes.--The performance outcomes
identified under paragraph (1) shall include, with respect to
offenders released back into the community--
``(A) reduction in recidivism rates, which shall be
reported in accordance with the measure selected by the
Director of the Bureau of Justice Statistics under section
234(c)(2) of the Second Chance Act of 2007;
``(B) reduction in crime;
``(C) increased employment and education opportunities;
``(D) reduction in violations of conditions of supervised
release;
``(E) increased payment of child support;
``(F) increased housing opportunities;
``(G) reduction in drug and alcohol abuse; and
``(H) increased participation in substance abuse and mental
health services.
``(3) Other outcomes.--A grantee under this section may
include in the reentry strategic plan developed under
subsection (h) other performance outcomes that increase the
success rates of offenders who transition from prison, jails,
or juvenile facilities.
``(4) Coordination.--A grantee under this section shall
coordinate with communities and stakeholders about the
selection of performance outcomes identified by the
applicant, and shall consult with the Attorney General for
assistance with data collection and measurement activities as
provided for in the grant application materials.
``(5) Report.--Each grantee under this section shall submit
to the Attorney General an annual report that--
``(A) identifies the progress of the grantee toward
achieving its strategic performance outcomes; and
``(B) describes other activities conducted by the grantee
to increase the success rates of the reentry population, such
as programs that foster effective risk management and
treatment programming, offender accountability, and community
and victim participation.
``(k) Performance Measurement.--
``(1) In general.--The Attorney General, in consultation
with grantees under this section, shall--
``(A) identify primary and secondary sources of information
to support the measurement of the performance indicators
identified under this section;
``(B) identify sources and methods of data collection in
support of performance measurement required under this
section;
``(C) provide to all grantees technical assistance and
training on performance measures and data collection for
purposes of this section; and
``(D) consult with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health
Services Administration and the National Institute on Drug
Abuse on strategic performance outcome measures and data
collection for purposes of this section relating to substance
abuse and mental health.
``(2) Coordination.--The Attorney General shall coordinate
with other Federal agencies to identify national and other
sources of information to support performance measurement of
grantees.
``(3) Standards for analysis.--Any statistical analysis of
population data conducted pursuant to this section shall be
conducted in accordance with the Federal Register Notice
dated October 30, 1997, relating to classification standards.
``(l) Future Eligibility.--To be eligible to receive a
grant under this section in any fiscal year after the fiscal
year in which a grantee receives a grant under this section,
a grantee shall submit to the Attorney General such
information as is necessary to demonstrate that--
``(1) the grantee has adopted a reentry plan that reflects
input from nonprofit organizations, in any case where
relevant input is available and appropriate to the grant
application;
``(2) the reentry plan of the grantee includes performance
measures to assess progress of the grantee toward a 10
percent reduction in the rate of recidivism over a 2-year
period;
``(3) the grantee will coordinate with the Attorney
General, nonprofit organizations (if relevant input from
nonprofit organizations is available and appropriate), and
other experts regarding the selection and implementation of
the performance measures described in subsection (k); and
``(4) the grantee has made adequate progress, as determined
by the Attorney General, toward reducing the rate of
recidivism by 10 percent over a 2-year period.
``(m) National Adult and Juvenile Offender Reentry Resource
Center.--
``(1) Authority.--The Attorney General may, using amounts
made available to carry out this subsection, make a grant to
an eligible organization to provide for the establishment of
a National Adult and Juvenile Offender Reentry Resource
Center.
``(2) Eligible organization.--An organization eligible for
the grant under paragraph (1) is any national nonprofit
organization approved by the Interagency Task Force on
Federal Programs and Activities Relating to the Reentry of
Offenders Into the Community, that provides technical
assistance and training to, and has special expertise and
broad, national-level experience in, offender reentry
programs, training, and research.
``(3) Use of funds.--The organization receiving a grant
under paragraph (1) shall establish a National Adult and
Juvenile Offender Reentry Resource Center to--
``(A) provide education, training, and technical assistance
for States, tribes, territories, local governments, service
providers, nonprofit organizations, and corrections
institutions;
``(B) collect data and best practices in offender reentry
from demonstration grantees and others agencies and
organizations;
``(C) develop and disseminate evaluation tools, mechanisms,
and measures to better assess and document coalition
performance measures and outcomes;
``(D) disseminate information to States and other relevant
entities about best practices, policy standards, and research
findings;
``(E) develop and implement procedures to assist relevant
authorities in determining when release is appropriate and in
the use of data to inform the release decision;
``(F) develop and implement procedures to identify
efficiently and effectively those violators of probation,
parole, or supervision following release from prison, jail,
or a juvenile facility who should be returned to prisons,
jails, or juvenile facilities and those who should receive
other penalties based on defined, graduated sanctions;
``(G) collaborate with the Interagency Task Force on
Federal Programs and Activities Relating to the Reentry of
Offenders Into the Community, and the Federal Resource Center
for Children of Prisoners;
``(H) develop a national reentry research agenda; and
``(I) establish a database to enhance the availability of
information that will assist offenders in areas including
housing, employment, counseling, mentoring, medical and
mental health services, substance abuse treatment,
transportation, and daily living skills.
``(4) Limit.--Of amounts made available to carry out this
section, not more than 4 percent of the authorized level
shall be available to carry out this subsection.
``(n) Administration.--Of amounts made available to carry
out this section--
[[Page H13568]]
``(1) not more than 2 percent of the authorized level shall
be available for administrative expenses in carrying out this
section; and
``(2) not more than 2 percent of the authorized level shall
be made available to the National Institute of Justice to
evaluate the effectiveness of the demonstration projects
funded under this section, using a methodology that--
``(A) includes, to the maximum extent feasible, random
assignment of offenders (or entities working with such
persons) to program delivery and control groups; and
``(B) generates evidence on which reentry approaches and
strategies are most effective.''.
(d) Grant Authorization.--Section 2976(a) of the Omnibus
Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C.
3797w(a)) is amended by striking ``States, Territories'' and
all that follows through the period at the end and inserting
the following: ``States, local governments, territories, or
Indian Tribes, or any combination thereof, in partnership
with stakeholders, service providers, and nonprofit
organizations.''.
(e) Authorization of Appropriations.--Section 2976(o) of
the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42
U.S.C. 3797w), as so redesignated by subsection (c) of this
section, is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``$15,000,000 for fiscal
year 2003'' and all that follows and inserting ``$55,000,000
for each of fiscal years 2009 and 2010.''; and
(2) by amending paragraph (2) to read as follows:
``(2) Limitation; equitable distribution.--
``(A) Limitation.--Of the amount made available to carry
out this section for any fiscal year, not more than 3 percent
or less than 2 percent may be used for technical assistance
and training.
``(B) Equitable distribution.--The 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.''.
SEC. 102. IMPROVEMENT OF THE RESIDENTIAL SUBSTANCE ABUSE
TREATMENT FOR STATE OFFENDERS PROGRAM.
(a) Requirement for Aftercare Component.--Section 1902(c)
of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42
U.S.C. 3796ff-1(c)), is amended--
(1) by striking the subsection heading and inserting
``Requirement for aftercare component''; and
(2) by amending paragraph (1) to read as follows:
``(1) To be eligible for funding under this part, a State
shall ensure that individuals who participate in the
substance abuse treatment program established or implemented
with assistance provided under this part will be provided
with aftercare services, which may include case management
services and a full continuum of support services that ensure
providers furnishing services under that program are approved
by the appropriate State or local agency, and licensed, if
necessary, to provide medical treatment or other health
services.''.
(b) Definition.--Section 1904(d) of the Omnibus Crime
Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796ff-3(d))
is amended to read as follows:
``(d) Residential Substance Abuse Treatment Program
Defined.--In this part, the term `residential substance abuse
treatment program' means a course of comprehensive individual
and group substance abuse treatment services, lasting a
period of at least 6 months, in residential treatment
facilities set apart from the general population of a prison
or jail (which may include the use of pharmacological
treatment, where appropriate, that may extend beyond such
period).''.
(c) Requirement for Study and Report on Aftercare
Services.--The Attorney General, through the National
Institute of Justice, and in consultation with the National
Institute on Drug Abuse, shall conduct a study on the use and
effectiveness of funds used by the Department of Justice for
aftercare services under section 1902(c) of the Omnibus Crime
Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968, as amended by
subsection (a) of this section, for offenders who reenter the
community after completing a substance abuse program in
prison or jail.
SEC. 103. DEFINITION OF VIOLENT OFFENDER FOR DRUG COURT GRANT
PROGRAM.
(a) Definition.--Section 2953(a)(1) of the Omnibus Crime
Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3797u-
2(a)(1)) is amended by inserting ``that is punishable by a
term of imprisonment exceeding one year'' after ``convicted
of an offense''.
(b) Period for Compliance.--Notwithstanding Section 2952(2)
of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42
U.S.C. 3797u-1(2)), each grantee under part EE of such Act
shall have not more than 3 years from the date of the
enactment of this Act to adopt the definition of ``violent
offender'' under such part, as amended by subsection (a) of
this section.
(c) Regulations.--Not later than 90 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall revise any
regulations or guidelines described in section 2952 of the
Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C.
3797u-1) in accordance with the amendments made by subsection
(a). Such regulations shall specify that grant amounts under
part EE of such Act shall be reduced for any drug court that
does not adopt the definition of ``violent offender'' under
such part, as amended by subsection (a) of this section,
within 3 years after such date of enactment.
SEC. 104. USE OF VIOLENT OFFENDER TRUTH-IN-SENTENCING GRANT
FUNDING FOR DEMONSTRATION PROJECT ACTIVITIES.
(a) Permissible Uses.--Section 20102(a) of the Violent
Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C.
13702(a)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (2) by striking ``and'' at the end;
(2) in paragraph (3) by striking the period at the end and
inserting ``; and''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
``(4) to carry out any activity referred to in section
2976(b) of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of
1968 (42 U.S.C. 3797w(b)).''
(b) Use of Funds Appropriated.--Section 20108(b)(4) of the
Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (42
U.S.C. 13708(b)(4)) is amended by adding at the end the
following: ``Funds obligated, but subsequently unspent and
deobligated, may remain available, to the extent as may
provided in appropriations Acts, for the purpose described in
section 20102(a)(4) for any subsequent fiscal year. The
further obligation of such funds by an official for such
purpose shall not be delayed, directly or indirectly, in any
manner by any officer or employee in the executive branch.''
Subtitle B--New and Innovative Programs To Improve Offender Reentry
Services
SEC. 111. STATE, TRIBAL, AND LOCAL REENTRY COURTS.
Part FF of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe
Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3797w et seq.) is amended by
adding at the end the following:
``SEC. 2978. STATE, TRIBAL, AND LOCAL REENTRY COURTS.
``(a) Grants Authorized.--The Attorney General may award
grants, in accordance with this section, of not more than
$500,000 to--
``(1) State, Tribal, and local courts; and
``(2) State agencies, municipalities, public agencies,
nonprofit organizations, territories, and Indian Tribes that
have agreements with courts to take the lead in establishing
a reentry court (as described in section 2976(b)(19)).
``(b) Use of Grant Funds.--Grant funds awarded under this
section shall be administered in accordance with such
guidelines, regulations, and procedures as promulgated by the
Attorney General, and may be used to--
``(1) monitor juvenile and adult offenders reentering the
community;
``(2) provide juvenile and adult offenders reentering the
community with coordinated and comprehensive reentry services
and programs such as--
``(A) drug and alcohol testing and assessment for
treatment;
``(B) assessment for substance abuse from a substance abuse
professional who is approved by the State or Indian Tribe and
licensed by the appropriate entity to provide alcohol and
drug addiction treatment, as appropriate;
``(C) substance abuse treatment from a provider that is
approved by the State or Indian Tribe, and licensed, if
necessary, to provide medical and other health services;
``(D) health (including mental health) services and
assessment;
``(E) aftercare and case management services that--
``(i) facilitate access to clinical care and related health
services; and
``(ii) coordinate with such clinical care and related
health services; and
``(F) any other services needed for reentry;
``(3) convene community impact panels, victim impact
panels, or victim impact educational classes;
``(4) provide and coordinate the delivery of community
services to juvenile and adult offenders, including--
``(A) housing assistance;
``(B) education;
``(C) job training;
``(D) conflict resolution skills training;
``(E) batterer intervention programs; and
``(F) other appropriate social services; and
``(5) establish and implement graduated sanctions and
incentives.
``(c) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this section shall
be construed as preventing a grantee that operates a drug
court under part EE at the time a grant is awarded under this
section from using funds from such grant to supplement such
drug court in accordance with paragraphs (1) through (5) of
subsection (b).
``(d) Application.--To be eligible for a grant under this
section, an entity described in subsection (a) shall, in
addition to any other requirements required by the Attorney
General, submit to the Attorney General an application that--
``(1) describes the program to be assisted under this
section and the need for such program;
``(2) describes a long-term strategy and detailed
implementation plan for such program, including how the
entity plans to pay for the program after the Federal funding
is discontinued;
``(3) identifies the governmental and community agencies
that will be coordinated by the project;
``(4) certifies that--
[[Page H13569]]
``(A) all agencies affected by the program, including
community corrections and parole entities, have been
appropriately consulted in the development of the program;
``(B) there will be appropriate coordination with all such
agencies in the implementation of the program; and
``(C) there will be appropriate coordination and
consultation with the Single State Authority for Substance
Abuse (as that term is defined in section 201(e) of the
Second Chance Act of 2007) of the State; and
``(5) describes the methodology and outcome measures that
will be used to evaluate the program.
``(e) Matching Requirements.--The Federal share of a grant
under this section may not exceed 75 percent of the costs of
the project assisted by such grant unless the Attorney
General--
``(1) waives, wholly or in part, the matching requirement
under this subsection; and
``(2) publicly delineates the rationale for the waiver.
``(f) Annual Report.--Each entity receiving a grant under
this section shall submit to the Attorney General, for each
fiscal year in which funds from the grant are expended, a
report, at such time and in such manner as the Attorney
General may reasonably require, that contains--
``(1) a summary of the activities carried out under the
program assisted by the grant;
``(2) an assessment of whether the activities are meeting
the need for the program identified in the application
submitted under subsection (d); and
``(3) such other information as the Attorney General may
require.
``(g) Authorization of Appropriations.--
``(1) In general.--There are authorized to be appropriated
$10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2009 and 2010 to carry
out this section.
``(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 Attorney
General for salaries and administrative expenses; and
``(ii) not more than 5 percent nor less than 2 percent may
be used for technical assistance and training.
``(B) Equitable distribution.--The 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.''.
SEC. 112. PROSECUTION DRUG TREATMENT ALTERNATIVE TO PRISON
PROGRAMS.
(a) Authorization.--Title I of the Omnibus Crime Control
and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3711 et seq.) is
amended by inserting after part BB the following:
``PART CC--PROSECUTION DRUG TREATMENT ALTERNATIVE TO PRISON PROGRAM
``SEC. 2901. GRANT AUTHORITY.
``(a) In General.--The Attorney General may make grants to
State, Tribal, and local prosecutors to develop, implement,
or expand qualified drug treatment programs that are
alternatives to imprisonment, in accordance with this part.
``(b) Qualified Drug Treatment Programs Described.--For
purposes of this part, a qualified drug treatment program is
a program--
``(1) that is administered by a State, Tribal, or local
prosecutor;
``(2) that requires an eligible offender who is sentenced
to participate in the program (instead of incarceration) to
participate in a comprehensive substance abuse treatment
program that is approved by the State or Indian Tribe and
licensed, if necessary, to provide medical and other health
services;
``(3) that requires an eligible offender to receive the
consent of the State, Tribal, or local prosecutor involved to
participate in such program;
``(4) that, in the case of an eligible offender who is
sentenced to participate in the program, requires the
offender to serve a sentence of imprisonment with respect to
the crime involved if the prosecutor, in conjunction with the
treatment provider, determines that the offender has not
successfully completed the relevant substance abuse treatment
program described in paragraph (2);
``(5) that provides for the dismissal of the criminal
charges involved in an eligible offender's participation in
the program if the offender is determined to have
successfully completed the program;
``(6) that requires each substance abuse provider treating
an eligible offender under the program to--
``(A) make periodic reports of the progress of the
treatment of that offender to the State, Tribal, or local
prosecutor involved and to the appropriate court in which the
eligible offender was convicted; and
``(B) notify such prosecutor and such court if the eligible
offender absconds from the facility of the treatment provider
or otherwise violates the terms and conditions of the
program, consistent with Federal and State confidentiality
requirements; and
``(7) that has an enforcement unit comprised of law
enforcement officers under the supervision of the State,
Tribal, or local prosecutor involved, the duties of which
shall include verifying an eligible offender's addresses and
other contacts, and, if necessary, locating, apprehending,
and arresting an eligible offender who has absconded from the
facility of a substance abuse treatment provider or otherwise
violated the terms and conditions of the program, consistent
with Federal and State confidentiality requirements, and
returning such eligible offender to court for sentencing for
the crime involved.
``SEC. 2902. USE OF GRANT FUNDS.
``(a) In General.--A State, Tribal, or local prosecutor
that receives a grant under this part shall use such grant
for expenses of a qualified drug treatment program, including
for the following expenses:
``(1) Salaries, personnel costs, equipment costs, and other
costs directly related to the operation of the program,
including the enforcement unit.
``(2) Payments for substance abuse treatment providers that
are approved by the State or Indian Tribe and licensed, if
necessary, to provide alcohol and drug addiction treatment to
eligible offenders participating in the program, including
aftercare supervision, vocational training, education, and
job placement.
``(3) Payments to public and nonprofit private entities
that are approved by the State or Indian Tribe and licensed,
if necessary, to provide alcohol and drug addiction treatment
to offenders participating in the program.
``(b) Supplement and Not Supplant.--Grants made under this
part shall be used to supplement, and not supplant, non-
Federal funds that would otherwise be available for programs
described in this part.
``SEC. 2903. APPLICATIONS.
``To request a grant under this part, a State, Tribal, or
local prosecutor shall submit an application to the Attorney
General in such form and containing such information as the
Attorney General may reasonably require. Each such
application shall contain the certification by the State,
Tribal, or local prosecutor that the program for which the
grant is requested is a qualified drug treatment program, in
accordance with this part.
``SEC. 2904. FEDERAL SHARE.
``The Federal share of a grant made under this part shall
not exceed 75 percent of the total costs of the qualified
drug treatment program funded by such grant for the fiscal
year for which the program receives assistance under this
part.
``SEC. 2905. GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION.
``The Attorney General shall ensure that, to the extent
practicable, the distribution of grants under this part is
equitable and includes State, Tribal, or local prosecutors--
``(1) in each State; and
``(2) in rural, suburban, Tribal, and urban jurisdictions.
``SEC. 2906. REPORTS AND EVALUATIONS.
``For each fiscal year, each recipient of a grant under
this part during that fiscal year shall submit to the
Attorney General a report with respect to the effectiveness
of activities carried out using that grant. Each report shall
include an evaluation in such form and containing such
information as the Attorney General may reasonably require.
The Attorney General shall specify the dates on which such
reports shall be submitted.
``SEC. 2907. DEFINITIONS.
``In this part:
``(1) State or local prosecutor.--The term `State, Tribal,
or local prosecutor' means any district attorney, State
attorney general, county attorney, tribal attorney, or
corporation counsel who has authority to prosecute criminal
offenses under State, Tribal, or local law.
``(2) Eligible offender.--The term `eligible offender'
means an individual who--
``(A) has been convicted, pled guilty, or admitted guilt
with respect to a crime for which a sentence of imprisonment
is required and has not completed such sentence;
``(B) has never been charged with or convicted of an
offense, during the course of which--
``(i) the individual carried, possessed, or used a firearm
or dangerous weapon; or
``(ii) there occurred the use of force against the person
of another, without regard to whether any of the behavior
described in clause (i) is an element of the offense or for
which the person is charged or convicted;
``(C) does not have 1 or more prior convictions for a
felony crime of violence involving the use or attempted use
of force against a person with the intent to cause death or
serious bodily harm; and
``(D)(i) has received an assessment for alcohol or drug
addiction from a substance abuse professional who is approved
by the State or Indian Tribe and licensed by the appropriate
entity to provide alcohol and drug addiction treatment, as
appropriate; and
``(ii) has been found to be in need of substance abuse
treatment because that individual has a history of substance
abuse that is a significant contributing factor to the
criminal conduct of that individual.''.
(b) Authorization of Appropriations.--Section 1001(a) of
title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of
1968 (42 U.S.C. 3793(a)) is amended by adding at the end the
following new paragraph:
``(26) There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out
part CC $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2009 and
2010.''.
SEC. 113. GRANTS FOR FAMILY-BASED SUBSTANCE ABUSE TREATMENT.
Title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act
of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3711 et seq.) is amended by inserting
after part CC, as added by this Act, the following:
[[Page H13570]]
``PART DD--GRANTS FOR FAMILY-BASED SUBSTANCE ABUSE TREATMENT
``SEC. 2921. GRANTS AUTHORIZED.
``The Attorney General may make grants to States, units of
local government, territories, and Indian Tribes to--
``(1) develop, implement, and expand comprehensive and
clinically-appropriate family-based substance abuse treatment
programs as alternatives to incarceration for nonviolent
parent drug offenders; and
``(2) to provide prison-based family treatment programs for
incarcerated parents of minor children.
``SEC. 2922. USE OF GRANT FUNDS.
``Grants made to an entity under section 2921 for a program
described in such section may be used for--
``(1) the development, implementation, and expansion of
prison-based family treatment programs in correctional
facilities for incarcerated parents with minor children
(except for any such parent who there is reasonable evidence
to believe engaged in domestic violence or child abuse);
``(2) the development, implementation, and expansion of
residential substance abuse treatment;
``(3) coordination between appropriate correctional
facility representatives and the appropriate governmental
agencies;
``(4) payments to public and nonprofit private entities to
provide substance abuse treatment to nonviolent parent drug
offenders participating in that program; and
``(5) salaries, personnel costs, facility costs, and other
costs directly related to the operation of that program.
``SEC. 2923. PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS.
``(a) In General.--A program for which a grant is made
under section 2921(1) shall comply with the following
requirements:
``(1) The program shall ensure that all providers of
substance abuse treatment are approved by the State or Indian
Tribe and are licensed, if necessary, to provide medical and
other health services.
``(2) The program shall ensure appropriate coordination and
consultation with the Single State Authority for Substance
Abuse of the State (as that term is defined in section 201(e)
of the Second Chance Act of 2007).
``(3) The program shall consist of clinically-appropriate,
comprehensive, and long-term family treatment, including the
treatment of the nonviolent parent drug offender, the child
of such offender, and any other appropriate member of the
family of the offender.
``(4) The program shall be provided in a residential
setting that is not a hospital setting or an intensive
outpatient setting.
``(5) The program shall provide that if a nonviolent parent
drug offender who participates in that program does not
successfully complete the program the offender shall serve an
appropriate sentence of imprisonment with respect to the
underlying crime involved.
``(6) The program shall ensure that a determination is made
as to whether a nonviolent drug offender has completed the
substance abuse treatment program.
``(7) The program shall include the implementation of a
system of graduated sanctions (including incentives) that are
applied based on the accountability of the nonviolent parent
drug offender involved throughout the course of that program
to encourage compliance with that program.
``(8) The program shall develop and implement a reentry
plan for each participant.
``(b) Prison-Based Programs.--A program for which a grant
is made under section 2921(2) shall comply with the following
requirements:
``(1) The program shall integrate techniques to assess the
strengths and needs of immediate and extended family of the
incarcerated parent to support a treatment plan of the
incarcerated parent.
``(2) The program shall ensure that each participant in
that program has access to consistent and uninterrupted care
if transferred to a different correctional facility within
the State or other relevant entity.
``(3) The program shall be located in an area separate from
the general population of the prison.
``SEC. 2924. APPLICATIONS.
``(a) In General.--An entity described in section 2921
desiring a grant under this part shall submit to the Attorney
General an application in such form and manner and at such
time as the Attorney General requires.
``(b) Contents.--An application under subsection (a) shall
include a description of the methods and measurements the
applicant will use for purposes of evaluating the program
involved.
``SEC. 2925. REPORTS.
``An entity that receives a grant under this part during a
fiscal year shall submit to the Attorney General, not later
than a date specified by the Attorney General, a report that
describes and evaluates the effectiveness of that program
during such fiscal year that--
``(1) is based on evidence-based data; and
``(2) uses the methods and measurements described in the
application of that entity for purposes of evaluating that
program.
``SEC. 2926. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
``(a) In General.--There are authorized to be appropriated
to carry out this part $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years
2009 and 2010.
``(b) Use of Amounts.--Of the amount made available to
carry out this part in any fiscal year, not less than 5
percent shall be used for grants to Indian Tribes.
``SEC. 2927. DEFINITIONS.
``In this part:
``(1) Nonviolent parent drug offender.--The term
`nonviolent parent drug offender' means an offender who is--
``(A) a parent of an individual under 18 years of age; and
``(B) convicted of a drug (or drug-related) felony that is
a nonviolent offense.
``(2) Nonviolent offense.--The term `nonviolent offense'
has the meaning given that term in section 2991(a).
``(3) Prison-based family treatment program.--The term
`prison-based family treatment program' means a program for
incarcerated parents in a correctional facility that provides
a comprehensive response to offender needs, including
substance abuse treatment, child early intervention services,
family counseling, legal services, medical care, mental
health services, nursery and preschool, parenting skills
training, pediatric care, physical therapy, prenatal care,
sexual abuse therapy, relapse prevention, transportation, and
vocational or GED training.''.
SEC. 114. GRANT TO EVALUATE AND IMPROVE EDUCATION AT PRISONS,
JAILS, AND JUVENILE FACILITIES.
Title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act
of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3711 et seq.), is further amended--
(1) by redesignating part X as part KK; and
(2) by inserting after part II the following:
``PART JJ--GRANT PROGRAM TO EVALUATE AND IMPROVE EDUCATIONAL METHODS AT
PRISONS, JAILS, AND JUVENILE FACILITIES
``SEC. 3001. GRANT PROGRAM TO EVALUATE AND IMPROVE
EDUCATIONAL METHODS AT PRISONS, JAILS, AND
JUVENILE FACILITIES.
``(a) Grant Program Authorized.--The Attorney General may
carry out a grant program under which the Attorney General
may make grants to States, units of local government,
territories, Indian Tribes, and other public and private
entities to--
``(1) evaluate methods to improve academic and vocational
education for offenders in prisons, jails, and juvenile
facilities;
``(2) identify, and make recommendations to the Attorney
General regarding, best practices relating to academic and
vocational education for offenders in prisons, jails, and
juvenile facilities, based on the evaluation under paragraph
(1); and
``(3) improve the academic and vocational education
programs (including technology career training) available to
offenders in prisons, jails, and juvenile facilities.
``(b) Application.--To be eligible for a grant under this
part, a State or other entity described in subsection (a)
shall submit to the Attorney General an application in such
form and manner, at such time, and accompanied by such
information as the Attorney General specifies.
``(c) Report.--Not later than 90 days after the last day of
the final fiscal year of a grant under this part, each entity
described in subsection (a) receiving such a grant shall
submit to the Attorney General a detailed report of the
progress made by the entity using such grant, to permit the
Attorney General to evaluate and improve academic and
vocational education methods carried out with grants under
this part.
``SEC. 3002. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
``There are authorized to be appropriated $5,000,000 to
carry out this part for each of fiscal years 2009 and
2010.''.
SEC. 115. TECHNOLOGY CAREERS TRAINING DEMONSTRATION GRANTS.
(a) Authority to Make Grants.--From amounts made available
to carry out this section, the Attorney General shall make
grants to States, units of local government, territories, and
Indian Tribes to provide technology career training to
prisoners.
(b) Use of Funds.--Grants awarded under subsection (a) may
be used for establishing a technology careers training
program to train prisoners for technology-based jobs and
careers during the 3-year period before release from prison,
jail, or a juvenile facility.
(c) Control of Internet Access.--An entity that receives a
grant under subsection (a) shall restrict access to the
Internet by prisoners, as appropriate, to ensure public
safety.
(d) Reports.--Not later than the last day of each fiscal
year, an entity that receives a grant under subsection (a)
during the preceding fiscal year shall submit to the Attorney
General a report that describes and assesses the uses of such
grant during the preceding fiscal year.
(e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized
to be appropriated to carry out this section $10,000,000 for
each of fiscal years 2009 and 2010.
TITLE II--ENHANCED DRUG TREATMENT AND MENTORING GRANT PROGRAMS
Subtitle A--Drug Treatment
SEC. 201. OFFENDER REENTRY SUBSTANCE ABUSE AND CRIMINAL
JUSTICE COLLABORATION PROGRAM.
(a) Grant Program Authorized.--The Attorney General may
make competitive grants to States, units of local government,
territories, and Indian Tribes, in accordance with this
section, for the purposes of--
(1) improving the provision of drug treatment to offenders
in prisons, jails, and juvenile facilities; and
(2) reducing the use of alcohol and other drugs by long-
term substance abusers during the period in which each such
long-term substance abuser is in prison, jail, or a juvenile
[[Page H13571]]
facility, and through the completion of parole or court
supervision of such long-term substance abuser.
(b) Use of Grant Funds.--A grant made under subsection (a)
may be used--
(1) for continuing and improving drug treatment programs
provided at a prison, jail, or juvenile facility;
(2) to develop and implement programs for supervised long-
term substance abusers that include alcohol and drug abuse
assessments, coordinated and continuous delivery of drug
treatment, and case management services;
(3) to strengthen rehabilitation efforts for offenders by
providing addiction recovery support services; and
(4) to establish pharmacological drug treatment services as
part of any drug treatment program offered by a grantee to
offenders who are in a prison or jail.
(c) Application.--
(1) In general.--An entity described in subsection (a)
desiring a grant under that subsection shall submit to the
Attorney General an application in such form and manner and
at such time as the Attorney General requires.
(2) Contents.--An application for a grant under subsection
(a) shall--
(A) identify any agency, organization, or researcher that
will be involved in administering a drug treatment program
carried out with a grant under subsection (a);
(B) certify that such drug treatment program has been
developed in consultation with the Single State Authority for
Substance Abuse;
(C) certify that such drug treatment program shall--
(i) be clinically-appropriate; and
(ii) provide comprehensive treatment;
(D) describe how evidence-based strategies have been
incorporated into such drug treatment program; and
(E) describe how data will be collected and analyzed to
determine the effectiveness of such drug treatment program
and describe how randomized trials will be used where
practicable.
(d) Reports to Congress.--
(1) Interim report.--Not later than September 30, 2009, the
Attorney General shall submit to Congress a report that
identifies the best practices relating to--
(A) substance abuse treatment in prisons, jails, and
juvenile facilities; and
(B) the comprehensive and coordinated treatment of long-
term substance abusers, including the best practices
identified through the activities funded under subsection
(b)(3).
(2) Final report.--Not later than September 30, 2010, the
Attorney General shall submit to Congress a report on the
drug treatment programs funded under this section, including
on the matters specified in paragraph (1).
(e) Definition of Single State Authority for Substance
Abuse.--The term ``Single State Authority for Substance
Abuse'' means an entity designated by the Governor or chief
executive officer of a State as the single State
administrative authority responsible for the planning,
development, implementation, monitoring, regulation, and
evaluation of substance abuse services.
(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--
(1) In general.--There are authorized to be appropriated to
carry out this section $15,000,000 for each of fiscal years
2009 and 2010.
(2) Equitable distribution of grant amounts.--Of the amount
made available to carry out this section in any fiscal year,
the Attorney General shall ensure that grants awarded under
this section are equitably distributed among geographical
regions and between urban and rural populations, including
Indian Tribes, consistent with the objective of reducing
recidivism among criminal offenders.
Subtitle B--Mentoring
SEC. 211. MENTORING GRANTS TO NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS.
(a) Authority to Make Grants.--From amounts made available
to carry out this section, the Attorney General shall make
grants to nonprofit organizations and Indian Tribes for the
purpose of providing mentoring and other transitional
services essential to reintegrating offenders into the
community.
(b) Use of Funds.--A grant awarded under subsection (a) may
be used for--
(1) mentoring adult and juvenile offenders during
incarceration, through transition back to the community, and
post-release;
(2) transitional services to assist in the reintegration of
offenders into the community; and
(3) training regarding offender and victims issues.
(c) Application; Priority Consideration.--
(1) In general.--To be eligible to receive a grant under
this section, a nonprofit organization or Indian Tribe shall
submit an application to the Attorney General at such time,
in such manner, and accompanied by such information as the
Attorney General may require.
(2) Priority consideration.--Priority consideration shall
be given to any application under this section that--
(A) includes a plan to implement activities that have been
demonstrated effective in facilitating the successful reentry
of offenders; and
(B) provides for an independent evaluation that includes,
to the maximum extent feasible, random assignment of
offenders to program delivery and control groups.
(d) Strategic Performance Outcomes.--The Attorney General
shall require each applicant under this section to identify
specific performance outcomes related to the long-term goal
of stabilizing communities by reducing recidivism (using a
measure that is consistent with the research undertaken by
the Bureau of Justice Statistics under section 241(b)(6)),
and reintegrating offenders into the community.
(e) Reports.--An entity that receives a grant under
subsection (a) during a fiscal year shall, not later than the
last day of the following fiscal year, submit to the Attorney
General a report that describes and assesses the uses of that
grant during that fiscal year and that identifies the
progress of the grantee toward achieving its strategic
performance outcomes.
(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized
to be appropriated to the Attorney General to carry out this
section $15,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2009 and 2010.
SEC. 212. RESPONSIBLE REINTEGRATION OF OFFENDERS.
(a) Eligible Offenders.--
(1) In general.--In this section, the term ``eligible
offender'' means an individual who--
(A) is 18 years of age or older;
(B) has been convicted as an adult and imprisoned under
Federal or State law;
(C) has never been convicted of a violent or sex-related
offense; and
(D) except as provided in paragraph (2), has been released
from a prison or jail for not more than 180 days before the
date on which the individual begins participating in a grant
program carried out under this section.
(2) Exception.--Each grantee under this section may permit
not more than 10 percent of the individuals served with a
grant under this section to be individuals who--
(A) meet the conditions of subparagraphs (A) through (C) of
paragraph (1); and
(B) have been released from a prison or jail for more than
180 days before the date on which the individuals begin
participating in the grant program carried out under this
section.
(3) Priority of service.--Grantees shall provide a priority
of service in projects funded under this section to
individuals meeting the requirements of paragraph (1) who
have been released from State correctional facilities.
(b) Authority to Make Grants.--The Secretary of Labor may
make grants to nonprofit organizations for the purpose of
providing mentoring, job training and job placement services,
and other comprehensive transitional services to assist
eligible offenders in obtaining and retaining employment.
(c) Use of Funds.--
(1) In general.--A grant awarded under this section may be
used for--
(A) mentoring eligible offenders, including the provision
of support, guidance, and assistance in the community and the
workplace to address the challenges faced by such offenders;
(B) providing job training and job placement services to
eligible offenders, including work readiness activities, job
referrals, basic skills remediation, educational services,
occupational skills training, on-the-job training, work
experience, and post-placement support, in coordination with
the one-stop partners and one-stop operators (as such terms
are defined in section 101 of the Workforce Investment Act of
1998 (29 U.S.C. 2801)) that provide services at any center
operated under a one-stop delivery system established under
section 134(c) of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (29
U.S.C. 2864(c)), businesses, and educational institutions;
and
(C) providing outreach, orientation, intake, assessments,
counseling, case management, and other transitional services
to eligible offenders, including prerelease outreach and
orientation.
(2) Limitations.--
(A) Certain services excluded.--A grant under this section
may not be used to provide substance abuse treatment
services, mental health treatment services, or housing
services, except that such a grant may be used to coordinate
with other programs and entities to arrange for such programs
and entities to provide substance abuse treatment services,
mental health treatment services, or housing services to
eligible offenders.--
(B) Administrative cost limit.--Not more than 15 percent of
the amounts awarded to a grantee under this section may be
used for the costs of administration, as determined by the
Secretary of Labor.
(d) Application.--
(1) In general.--
(A) Application required.--A nonprofit organization
desiring a grant under this section shall submit an
application to the Secretary of Labor at such time, in such
manner, and accompanied by such information as the Secretary
of Labor may require.
(B) Contents.--At a minimum, an application for a grant
under this section shall include--
(i) the identification of the eligible area that is to be
served and a description of the need for support in such
area;
(ii) a description of the mentoring, job training and job
placement, and other services to be provided;
(iii) a description of partnerships that have been
established with the criminal justice system (including
coordination with demonstration projects carried out under
section 2976 of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets
Act of 1968, as amended by this Act,
[[Page H13572]]
where applicable), the local workforce investment boards
established under section 117 of the Workforce Investment Act
of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 2832)), and housing authorities that will
be used to assist in carrying out grant activities under this
section; and
(iv) a description of how other Federal, State, local, or
private funding will be leveraged to provide support services
that are not directly funded under this section, such as
mental health and substance abuse treatment and housing.
(2) Eligible area.--In this subsection, the term ``eligible
area'' means an area that--
(A) is located within an urbanized area or urban cluster,
as determined by the Bureau of the Census in the most
recently available census;
(B) has a large number of prisoners returning to the area
each year; and
(C) has a high rate of recidivism among prisoners returning
to the area.
(e) Performance Outcomes.--
(1) Core indicators.--Each nonprofit organization receiving
a grant under this section shall report to the Secretary of
Labor on the results of services provided to eligible
offenders with that grant with respect to the following
indicators of performance:
(A) Rates of recidivism.
(B) Entry into employment.
(C) Retention in employment.
(D) Average earnings.
(2) Additional indicators.--In addition to the indicators
described in paragraph (1), the Secretary of Labor may
require a nonprofit organization receiving a grant under this
section to report on additional indicators of performance.
(f) Reports.--Each nonprofit organization receiving a grant
under this section shall maintain such records and submit
such reports, in such form and containing such information,
as the Secretary of Labor may require regarding the
activities carried out under this section.
(g) Technical Assistance.--The Secretary of Labor may
reserve not more than 4 percent of the amounts appropriated
to carry out this section to provide technical assistance and
for management information systems to assist grantees under
this section.
(h) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized
to be appropriated to the Secretary of Labor to carry out
this section $20,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2009 and
2010.
SEC. 213. BUREAU OF PRISONS POLICY ON MENTORING CONTACTS.
(a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Director of the Bureau of Prisons
shall, in order to promote stability and continued assistance
to offenders after release from prison, adopt and implement a
policy to ensure that any person who provides mentoring
services to an incarcerated offender is permitted to continue
such services after that offender is released from prison.
That policy shall permit the continuation of mentoring
services unless the Director demonstrates that such services
would be a significant security risk to the released
offender, incarcerated offenders, persons who provide such
services, or any other person.
(b) Report.--Not later than September 30, 2009, the
Director of the Bureau of Prisons shall submit to Congress a
report on the extent to which the policy described in
subsection (a) has been implemented and followed.
SEC. 214. BUREAU OF PRISONS POLICY ON CHAPEL LIBRARY
MATERIALS.
(a) In General.--Not later than 30 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Director of the Bureau of Prisons
shall discontinue the Standardized Chapel Library project, or
any other project by whatever designation that seeks to
compile, list, or otherwise restrict prisoners' access to
reading materials, audiotapes, videotapes, or any other
materials made available in a chapel library, except that the
Bureau of Prisons may restrict access to--
(1) any materials in a chapel library that seek to incite,
promote, or otherwise suggest the commission of violence or
criminal activity; and
(2) any other materials prohibited by any other law or
regulation.
(b) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this section shall be
construed to impact policies of the Bureau of Prisons related
to access by specific prisoners to materials for security,
safety, sanitation, or disciplinary reasons.
Subtitle C--Administration of Justice Reforms
CHAPTER 1--IMPROVING FEDERAL OFFENDER REENTRY
SEC. 231. FEDERAL PRISONER REENTRY INITIATIVE.
(a) In General.--The Attorney General, in coordination with
the Director of the Bureau of Prisons, shall, subject to the
availability of appropriations, conduct the following
activities to establish a Federal prisoner reentry
initiative:
(1) The establishment of a Federal prisoner reentry
strategy to help prepare prisoners for release and successful
reintegration into the community, including, at a minimum,
that the Bureau of Prisons:
(A) assess each prisoner's skill level (including academic,
vocational, health, cognitive, interpersonal, daily living,
and related reentry skills) at the beginning of the term of
imprisonment of that prisoner to identify any areas in need
of improvement prior to reentry;
(B) generate a skills development plan for each prisoner to
monitor skills enhancement and reentry readiness throughout
incarceration;
(C) determine program assignments for prisoners based on
the areas of need identified through the assessment described
in subparagraph (A);
(D) ensure that priority is given to the reentry needs of
high-risk populations, such as sex offenders, career
criminals, and prisoners with mental health problems;
(E) coordinate and collaborate with other Federal agencies
and with State, Tribal, and local criminal justice agencies,
community-based organizations, and faith-based organizations
to help effectuate a seamless reintegration of prisoners into
communities;
(F) collect information about a prisoner's family
relationships, parental responsibilities, and contacts with
children to help prisoners maintain important familial
relationships and support systems during incarceration and
after release from custody; and
(G) provide incentives for prisoner participation in skills
development programs.
(2) Incentives for a prisoner who participates in reentry
and skills development programs which may, at the discretion
of the Director, include--
(A) the maximum allowable period in a community confinement
facility; and
(B) such other incentives as the Director considers
appropriate (not including a reduction of the term of
imprisonment).
(b) Identification and Release Assistance for Federal
Prisoners.--
(1) Obtaining identification.--The Director shall assist
prisoners in obtaining identification (including a social
security card, driver's license or other official photo
identification, or birth certificate) prior to release.
(2) Assistance developing release plan.--At the request of
a direct-release prisoner, a representative of the United
States Probation System shall, prior to the release of that
prisoner, help that prisoner develop a release plan.
(3) Direct-release prisoner defined.--In this section, the
term ``direct-release prisoner'' means a prisoner who is
scheduled for release and will not be placed in prerelease
custody.
(c) Improved Reentry Procedures for Federal Prisoners.--The
Attorney General shall take such steps as are necessary to
modify the procedures and policies of the Department of
Justice with respect to the transition of offenders from the
custody of the Bureau of Prisons to the community--
(1) to enhance case planning and implementation of reentry
programs, policies, and guidelines;
(2) to improve such transition to the community, including
placement of such individuals in community corrections
facilities; and
(3) to foster the development of collaborative partnerships
with stakeholders at the national, State, and local levels to
facilitate the exchange of information and the development of
resources to enhance opportunities for successful offender
reentry.
(d) Duties of the Bureau of Prisons.--
(1) Duties of the bureau of prisons expanded.--Section
4042(a) of title 18, United States Code, is amended--
(A) in paragraph (4), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(B) in paragraph (5), by striking the period and inserting
a semicolon; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(D) establish prerelease planning procedures that help
prisoners--
``(i) apply for Federal and State benefits upon release
(including Social Security Cards, Social Security benefits,
and veterans' benefits); and
``(ii) secure such identification and benefits prior to
release, subject to any limitations in law; and
``(E) establish reentry planning procedures that include
providing Federal prisoners with information in the following
areas:
``(i) Health and nutrition.
``(ii) Employment.
``(iii) Literacy and education.
``(iv) Personal finance and consumer skills.
``(v) Community resources.
``(vi) Personal growth and development.
``(vii) Release requirements and procedures.''.
(2) Measuring the removal of obstacles to reentry.--
(A) Coding required.--The Director shall ensure that each
institution within the Bureau of Prisons codes the reentry
needs and deficits of prisoners, as identified by an
assessment tool that is used to produce an individualized
skills development plan for each inmate.
(B) Tracking.--In carrying out this paragraph, the Director
shall quantitatively track the progress in responding to the
reentry needs and deficits of individual inmates.
(C) Annual report.--On an annual basis, the Director shall
prepare and submit to the Committee on the Judiciary of the
Senate and the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of
Representatives a report that documents the progress of the
Bureau of Prisons in responding to the reentry needs and
deficits of inmates.
(D) Evaluation.--The Director shall ensure that--
(i) the performance of each institution within the Bureau
of Prisons in enhancing skills and resources to assist in
reentry is measured and evaluated using recognized
measurements; and
(ii) plans for corrective action are developed and
implemented as necessary.
[[Page H13573]]
(3) Measuring and improving recidivism outcomes.--
(A) Annual report required.--
(i) In general.--At the end of each fiscal year, the
Director shall submit to the Committee on the Judiciary of
the Senate and the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of
Representatives a report containing statistics demonstrating
the relative reduction in recidivism for inmates released by
the Bureau of Prisons within that fiscal year and the 2 prior
fiscal years, comparing inmates who participated in major
inmate programs (including residential drug treatment,
vocational training, and prison industries) with inmates who
did not participate in such programs. Such statistics shall
be compiled separately for each such fiscal year.
(ii) Scope.--A report under this paragraph is not required
to include statistics for a fiscal year that begins before
the date of the enactment of this Act.
(B) Measure used.--In preparing the reports required by
subparagraph (A), the Director shall, in consultation with
the Director of the Bureau of Justice Statistics, select a
measure for recidivism (such as rearrest, reincarceration, or
any other valid, evidence-based measure) that the Director
considers appropriate and that is consistent with the
research undertaken by the Bureau of Justice Statistics under
section 241(b)(6).
(C) Goals.--
(i) In general.--After the Director submits the first
report required by subparagraph (A), the Director shall
establish goals for reductions in recidivism rates and shall
work to attain those goals.
(ii) Contents.--The goals established under clause (i)
shall use the relative reductions in recidivism measured for
the fiscal year covered by the first report required by
subparagraph (A) as a baseline rate, and shall include--
(I) a 5-year goal to increase, at a minimum, the baseline
relative reduction rate of recidivism by 2 percent; and
(II) a 10-year goal to increase, at a minimum, the baseline
relative reduction rate of recidivism by 5 percent within 10
fiscal years.
(4) Format.--Any written information that the Bureau of
Prisons provides to inmates for reentry planning purposes
shall use common terminology and language.
(5) Medical care.--The Bureau of Prisons shall provide the
United States Probation and Pretrial Services System with
relevant information on the medical care needs and the mental
health treatment needs of inmates scheduled for release from
custody. The United States Probation and Pretrial Services
System shall take this information into account when
developing supervision plans in an effort to address the
medical care and mental health care needs of such
individuals. The Bureau of Prisons shall provide inmates with
a sufficient amount of all necessary medications (which will
normally consist of, at a minimum, a 2-week supply of such
medications) upon release from custody.
(e) Encouragement of Employment of Former Prisoners.--The
Attorney General, in consultation with the Secretary of
Labor, shall take such steps as are necessary to educate
employers and the one-stop partners and one-stop operators
(as such terms are defined in section 101 of the Workforce
Investment Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 2801)) that provide
services at any center operated under a one-stop delivery
system established under section 134(c) of the Workforce
Investment Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 2864(c)) regarding
incentives (including the Federal bonding program of the
Department of Labor and tax credits) for hiring former
Federal, State, or local prisoners.
(f) Medical Care for Prisoners.--Section 3621 of title 18,
United States Code, is further amended by adding at the end
the following new subsection:
``(g) Continued Access to Medical Care.--
``(1) In general.--In order to ensure a minimum standard of
health and habitability, the Bureau of Prisons should ensure
that each prisoner in a community confinement facility has
access to necessary medical care, mental health care, and
medicine through partnerships with local health service
providers and transition planning.
``(2) Definition.--In this subsection, the term `community
confinement' has the meaning given that term in the
application notes under section 5F1.1 of the Federal
Sentencing Guidelines Manual, as in effect on the date of the
enactment of the Second Chance Act of 2007.''.
(g) Elderly and Family Reunification for Certain Nonviolent
Offenders Pilot Program.--
(1) Program authorized.--
(A) In general.--The Attorney General shall conduct a pilot
program to determine the effectiveness of removing eligible
elderly offenders from a Bureau of Prisons facility and
placing such offenders on home detention until the expiration
of the prison term to which the offender was sentenced.
(B) Placement in home detention.--In carrying out a pilot
program as described in subparagraph (A), the Attorney
General may release some or all eligible elderly offenders
from the Bureau of Prisons facility to home detention.
(2) Violation of terms of home detention.--A violation by
an eligible elderly offender of the terms of home detention
(including the commission of another Federal, State, or local
crime) shall result in the removal of that offender from home
detention and the return of that offender to the designated
Bureau of Prisons institution in which that offender was
imprisoned immediately before placement on home detention
under paragraph (1), or to another appropriate Bureau of
Prisons institution, as determined by the Bureau of Prisons.
(3) Scope of pilot program.--A pilot program under
paragraph (1) shall be conducted through a Bureau of Prisons
facility designated by the Attorney General as appropriate
for the pilot program and shall be carried out during fiscal
years 2009 and 2010.
(4) Implementation and evaluation.--The Attorney General
shall monitor and evaluate each eligible elderly offender
placed on home detention under this section, and shall report
to Congress concerning the experience with the program at the
end of the period described in paragraph (3). The
Administrative Office of the United States Courts and the
United States probation offices shall provide such assistance
and carry out such functions as the Attorney General may
request in monitoring, supervising, providing services to,
and evaluating eligible elderly offenders released to home
detention under this section.
(5) Definitions.--In this section:
(A) Eligible elderly offender.--The term ``eligible elderly
offender'' means an offender in the custody of the Bureau of
Prisons who--
(i) is not less than 65 years of age;
(ii) is serving a term of imprisonment that is not life
imprisonment based on conviction for an offense or offenses
that do not include any crime of violence (as defined in
section 16 of title 18, United States Code), sex offense (as
defined in section 111(5) of the Sex Offender Registration
and Notification Act), offense described in section
2332b(g)(5)(B) of title 18, United States Code, or offense
under chapter 37 of title 18, United States Code, and has
served the greater of 10 years or 75 percent of the term of
imprisonment to which the offender was sentenced;
(iii) has not been convicted in the past of any Federal or
State crime of violence, sex offense, or other offense
described in clause (ii);
(iv) has not been determined by the Bureau of Prisons, on
the basis of information the Bureau uses to make custody
classifications, and in the sole discretion of the Bureau, to
have a history of violence, or of engaging in conduct
constituting a sex offense or other offense described in
clause (ii);
(v) has not escaped, or attempted to escape, from a Bureau
of Prisons institution;
(vi) satisfies the requirements for seeking a reduction of
the term of imprisonment under section 3582(c)(1)(A)(i) of
title 18, United States Code, as set forth in regulations
issued by the Attorney General or the Director of the Bureau
of Prisons;
(vii) has been determined by the Bureau of Prisons to be a
person whose release to home detention under this section
will result in a substantial net reduction of costs to the
Federal Government; and
(viii) has been determined by the Bureau of Prisons to be
at no substantial risk of engaging in criminal conduct or of
endangering any person or the public if released to home
detention.
(B) Home detention.--The term ``home detention'' has the
same meaning given the term in the Federal Sentencing
Guidelines as of the date of the enactment of this Act, and
includes detention in a nursing home or other residential
long-term care facility.
(C) Term of imprisonment.--The term ``term of
imprisonment'' includes multiple terms of imprisonment
ordered to run consecutively or concurrently, which shall be
treated as a single, aggregate term of imprisonment for
purposes of this section.
(h) Federal Remote Satellite Tracking and Reentry Training
Program.--
(1) Establishment of program.--The Director of the
Administrative Office of the United States Courts, in
consultation with the Attorney General, may establish the
Federal Remote Satellite Tracking and Reentry Training
(ReStart) program to promote the effective reentry into the
community of high risk individuals.
(2) High risk individuals.--For purposes of this section,
the term ``high risk individual'' means--
(A) an individual who is under supervised release, with
respect to a Federal offense, and who has previously violated
the terms of a release granted such individual following a
term of imprisonment; or
(B) an individual convicted of a Federal offense who is at
a high risk for recidivism, as determined by the Director of
the Bureau of Prisons, and who is eligible for early release
pursuant to voluntary participation in a program of
residential substance abuse treatment under section 3621(e)
of title 18, United States Code, or a program described in
section 231.
(3) Program elements.--The program authorized under
paragraph (1) shall include, with respect to high risk
individuals participating in such program, the following core
elements:
(A) A system of graduated levels of supervision, that uses,
as appropriate and indicated--
(i) satellite tracking, global positioning, remote
satellite, and other tracking or monitoring technologies to
monitor and supervise such individuals in the community; and
(ii) community corrections facilities and home confinement.
(B) Substance abuse treatment and aftercare related to such
treatment, mental and medical health treatment and aftercare
related to such treatment, vocational and
[[Page H13574]]
educational training, life skills instruction, conflict
resolution skills training, batterer intervention programs,
and other programs to promote effective reentry into the
community as appropriate.
(C) Involvement of the family of such an individual, a
victim advocate, and the victim of the offense committed by
such an individual, if such involvement is safe for such
victim (especially in a domestic violence case).
(D) A methodology, including outcome measures, to evaluate
the program.
(E) Notification to the victim of the offense committed by
such an individuals of the status and nature of such an
individual's reentry plan.
(i) Authorization for Appropriations for Bureau of
Prisons.--There are authorized to be appropriated to the
Attorney General to carry out this section, $5,000,000 for
each of fiscal years 2009 and 2010.
SEC. 232. BUREAU OF PRISONS POLICY ON RESTRAINING OF FEMALE
PRISONERS.
Not later than one year after the date of enactment of this
Act, the Attorney General shall submit to Congress a report
on the practices and policies of agencies within the
Department of Justice relating to the use of physical
restraints on pregnant female prisoners during pregnancy,
labor, delivery of a child, or post-delivery recuperation,
including the number of instances occurring after the date of
enactment of this Act in which physical restraints are used
on such prisoners, the reasons for the use of the physical
restraints, the length of time that the physical restraints
were used, and the security concerns that justified the use
of the physical restraints.
CHAPTER 2--REENTRY RESEARCH
SEC. 241. OFFENDER REENTRY RESEARCH.
(a) National Institute of Justice.--The National Institute
of Justice may conduct research on juvenile and adult
offender reentry, including--
(1) a study identifying the number and characteristics of
minor children who have had a parent incarcerated, and the
likelihood of such minor children becoming adversely involved
in the criminal justice system some time in their lifetime;
(2) a study identifying a mechanism to compare rates of
recidivism (including rearrest, violations of parole,
probation, post-incarceration supervision, and
reincarceration) among States; and
(3) a study on the population of offenders released from
custody who do not engage in recidivism and the
characteristics (housing, employment, treatment, family
connection) of that population.
(b) Bureau of Justice Statistics.--The Bureau of Justice
Statistics may conduct research on offender reentry,
including--
(1) an analysis of special populations (including prisoners
with mental illness or substance abuse disorders, female
offenders, juvenile offenders, offenders with limited English
proficiency, and the elderly) that present unique reentry
challenges;
(2) studies to determine which offenders are returning to
prison, jail, or a juvenile facility and which of those
returning offenders represent the greatest risk to victims
and community safety;
(3) annual reports on the demographic characteristics of
the population reentering society from prisons, jails, and
juvenile facilities;
(4) a national recidivism study every 3 years;
(5) a study of parole, probation, or post-incarceration
supervision violations and revocations; and
(6) a study concerning the most appropriate measure to be
used when reporting recidivism rates (whether rearrest,
reincarceration, or any other valid, evidence-based measure).
SEC. 242. GRANTS TO STUDY PAROLE OR POST-INCARCERATION
SUPERVISION VIOLATIONS AND REVOCATIONS.
(a) Grants Authorized.--From amounts made available to
carry out this section, the Attorney General may make grants
to States to study and to improve the collection of data with
respect to individuals whose parole or post-incarceration
supervision is revoked, and which such individuals represent
the greatest risk to victims and community safety.
(b) Application.--As a condition of receiving a grant under
this section, a State shall--
(1) certify that the State has, or intends to establish, a
program that collects comprehensive and reliable data with
respect to individuals described in subsection (a), including
data on--
(A) the number and type of parole or post-incarceration
supervision violations that occur with the State;
(B) the reasons for parole or post-incarceration
supervision revocation;
(C) the underlying behavior that led to the revocation; and
(D) the term of imprisonment or other penalty that is
imposed for the violation; and
(2) provide the data described in paragraph (1) to the
Bureau of Justice Statistics, in a form prescribed by the
Bureau.
(c) Analysis.--Any statistical analysis of population data
under this section shall be conducted in accordance with the
Federal Register Notice dated October 30, 1997, relating to
classification standards.
SEC. 243. ADDRESSING THE NEEDS OF CHILDREN OF INCARCERATED
PARENTS.
(a) Best Practices.--
(1) In general.--From amounts made available to carry out
this section, the Attorney General may collect data and
develop best practices of State corrections departments and
child protection agencies relating to the communication and
coordination between such State departments and agencies to
ensure the safety and support of children of incarcerated
parents (including those in foster care and kinship care),
and the support of parent-child relationships between
incarcerated (and formerly incarcerated) parents and their
children, as appropriate to the health and well-being of the
children.
(2) Contents.--The best practices developed under paragraph
(1) shall include information related to policies,
procedures, and programs that may be used by States to
address--
(A) maintenance of the parent-child bond during
incarceration;
(B) parental self-improvement; and
(C) parental involvement in planning for the future and
well-being of their children.
(b) Dissemination to States.--Not later than 1 year after
the development of best practices described in subsection
(a), the Attorney General shall disseminate to States and
other relevant entities such best practices.
(c) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that
States and other relevant entities should use the best
practices developed and disseminated in accordance with this
section to evaluate and improve the communication and
coordination between State corrections departments and child
protection agencies to ensure the safety and support of
children of incarcerated parents (including those in foster
care and kinship care), and the support of parent-child
relationships between incarcerated (and formerly
incarcerated) parents and their children, as appropriate to
the health and well-being of the children.
SEC. 244. STUDY OF EFFECTIVENESS OF DEPOT NALTREXONE FOR
HEROIN ADDICTION.
(a) Grant Program Authorized.--From amounts made available
to carry out this section, the Attorney General, through the
National Institute of Justice, and in consultation with the
National Institute on Drug Abuse, may make grants to public
and private research entities (including consortia, single
private research entities, and individual institutions of
higher education) to evaluate the effectiveness of depot
naltrexone for the treatment of heroin addiction.
(b) Evaluation Program.--An entity described in subsection
(a) desiring a grant under this section shall submit to the
Attorney General an application that--
(1) contains such information as the Attorney General
specifies, including information that demonstrates that--
(A) the applicant conducts research at a private or public
institution of higher education, as that term is defined in
section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C.
1101);
(B) the applicant has a plan to work with parole officers
or probation officers for offenders who are under court
supervision; and
(C) the evaluation described in subsection (a) will measure
the effectiveness of such treatments using randomized trials;
and
(2) is in such form and manner and at such time as the
Attorney General specifies.
(c) Reports.--An entity that receives a grant under
subsection (a) during a fiscal year shall, not later than the
last day of the following fiscal year, submit to the Attorney
General a report that describes and assesses the uses of that
grant.
SEC. 245. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR RESEARCH.
There are authorized to be appropriated to the Attorney
General to carry out sections 241, 242, 243, and 244 of this
chapter, $10,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2009 and
2010.
CHAPTER 3--CORRECTIONAL REFORMS TO EXISTING LAW
SEC. 251. CLARIFICATION OF AUTHORITY TO PLACE PRISONER IN
COMMUNITY CORRECTIONS.
(a) Prerelease Custody.--Section 3624(c) of title 18,
United States Code, is amended to read as follows:
``(c) Prerelease Custody.--
``(1) In general.--The Director of the Bureau of Prisons
shall, to the extent practicable, ensure that a prisoner
serving a term of imprisonment spends a portion of the final
months of that term (not to exceed 12 months), under
conditions that will afford that prisoner a reasonable
opportunity to adjust to and prepare for the reentry of that
prisoner into the community. Such conditions may include a
community correctional facility.
``(2) Home confinement authority.--The authority under this
subsection may be used to place a prisoner in home
confinement for the shorter of 10 percent of the term of
imprisonment of that prisoner or 6 months.
``(3) Assistance.--The United States Probation System
shall, to the extent practicable, offer assistance to a
prisoner during prerelease custody under this subsection.
``(4) No limitations.--Nothing in this subsection shall be
construed to limit or restrict the authority of the Director
of the Bureau of Prisons under section 3621.
``(5) Reporting.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
the enactment of the Second Chance Act of 2007 (and every
year thereafter), the Director of the Bureau of Prisons shall
transmit to the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and
the Committee on
[[Page H13575]]
the Judiciary of the House of Representatives a report
describing the Bureau's utilization of community corrections
facilities. Each report under this paragraph shall set forth
the number and percentage of Federal prisoners placed in
community corrections facilities during the preceding year,
the average length of such placements, trends in such
utilization, the reasons some prisoners are not placed in
community corrections facilities, and any other information
that may be useful to the committees in determining if the
Bureau is utilizing community corrections facilities in an
effective manner.
``(6) Issuance of regulations.--The Director of Bureau of
Prisons shall issue regulations pursuant to this subsection
not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of the
Second Chance Act of 2007, which shall ensure that placement
in a community correctional facility by the Bureau of Prisons
is--
``(A) conducted in a manner consistent with section 3621(b)
of this title;
``(B) determined on an individual basis; and
``(C) of sufficient duration to provide the greatest
likelihood of successful reintegration into the community.''.
(b) Courts May Not Require a Sentence of Imprisonment to Be
Served in a Community Corrections Facility.--Section 3621(b)
of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the
end the following: ``Any order, recommendation, or request by
a sentencing court that a convicted person serve a term of
imprisonment in a community corrections facility shall have
no binding effect on the authority of the Bureau under this
section to determine or change the place of imprisonment of
that person.''.
SEC. 252. RESIDENTIAL DRUG ABUSE PROGRAM IN FEDERAL PRISONS.
Section 3621(e)(5)(A) of title 18, United States Code, is
amended by striking ``means a course of'' and all that
follows and inserting the following: ``means a course of
individual and group activities and treatment, lasting at
least 6 months, in residential treatment facilities set apart
from the general prison population (which may include the use
of pharmocotherapies, where appropriate, that may extend
beyond the 6-month period);''.
SEC. 253. CONTRACTING FOR SERVICES FOR POST-CONVICTION
SUPERVISION OFFENDERS.
Section 3672 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by
inserting after the third sentence in the seventh
undesignated paragraph the following: ``He also shall have
the authority to contract with any appropriate public or
private agency or person to monitor and provide services to
any offender in the community authorized by this Act,
including treatment, equipment and emergency housing,
corrective and preventative guidance and training, and other
rehabilitative services designed to protect the public and
promote the successful reentry of the offender into the
community.''.
CHAPTER 4--MISCELLANUOUS PROVISIONS
SEC. 261. EXTENSION OF NATIONAL PRISON RAPE ELIMINATION
COMMISSION.
Section 7(d)(3)(A) of the Prison Rape Elimination Act of
2003 (42 U.S.C. 15606(d)(3)(A)) is amended by striking ``3
years'' and inserting ``5 years''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Michigan (Mr. Conyers) and the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Goodlatte)
each will control 20 minutes.
Mr. GOHMERT. Mr. Speaker, I ask to manage the time on behalf of the
opposition since I am opposed to the bill in its current form.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is the gentleman from Virginia (Mr.
Goodlatte) opposed to the motion?
Mr. GOODLATTE. Not in its current form.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 1(c) of rule XV, the
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Gohmert) will control 20 minutes in
opposition.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Michigan.
General Leave
Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include
extraneous material on the bill under consideration and on H.R. 3461.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Michigan?
There was no objection.
Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, Members of the House, as the prison population has grown
over the past two decades, so has the number of prisoners completing
their sentencing and returning to the general population. More than
half a million, some 650,000 men and women, are leaving the Federal and
State prisons each year. While the vast majority of the prisoners are
committed to abiding by the law and becoming productive members of
society, they often encounter the same pressures, the same environment,
the same temptations that they faced before prison, and with
insufficient resources to assist them in dealing with those pressures
and temptations, sometimes, despite their best intentions at the time
of release, too many of them commit new crimes and end up back in
prison. More than two-thirds of them are arrested for new crimes within
3 years of their release. This exacts a terrible cost in financial
terms as well as in human terms.
Congress has been very active over the years in strengthening our
criminal laws and our investigative and prosecutorial tools against
crime. The bipartisan legislation we are considering today, aptly named
the Second Chance Act, complements those efforts by helping give ex-
offenders the tools they need to stay out of trouble. It's a very
commonsense piece of legislation and it recognizes that too many ex-
offenders lack the education, job skills and stable living
arrangements, the substance abuse treatment and health services that
they need to successfully reintegrate into our society.
Many have trouble finding a job and some have trouble holding a job.
Many move straight from their prison cell to a homeless shelter. Many
entered prison with alcohol and drug habits, and the pull remains hard
to resist once they reemerge in our society. Many are physically or
mentally disabled. Some have chronic disease; others need psychological
treatment. Many left spouses and young children behind when they
entered prison. While these family relationships can be of tremendous
value in helping an ex-
offender build a stable life outside prison, it can be very difficult
to rekindle these ties after a long and painful absence.
The Second Chance Act will help provide these men and women with the
education, training, counseling and other support needed to help them
obtain and hold steady jobs; to kick their drug and alcohol habits, if
they have one; address medical and dental needs; rebuild their
families; and deal with the many other challenges that they face in
their efforts to successfully rejoin society. These kinds of programs
have been tested on a smaller scale, to be sure, where they have
already made a measurable difference in reducing recidivism. The Second
Chance Act builds on these efforts in a measured but significant way to
reduce recidivism, increase public safety, and help ex-offenders lead
productive and law-abiding lives.
We have the support of current and former chairmen and ranking
members of the Judiciary Committee and the crime subcommittee, chaired
by Bobby Scott of Virginia, as well as a wide range of national, State
and local law enforcement and rehabilitative organizations.
I submit for the Record a new section-by-section analysis reflecting
some of the revisions to the bill reported in response to suggestions
by members of the Committee on the Judiciary. I urge my colleagues to
give careful consideration in their support of this measure.
Changes to Second Chance Act of 2007 (Reported Version to Suspension
Version)
Added Rule of Construction to confirm Act does not create a
right or entitlement to assistance or services, and to
promote transfer of programs to programs not funded under
this Act.
Reduced number of new Federal programs from 18 to 10 by
consolidating or eliminating programs.
Reduce authorized spending from $427 million to $330
million over two fiscal years.
Reduced permissible uses under reauthorized reentry
demonstration programs from 21 to 9.
Added measurable goals for programs--reducing recidivism
rate by 50 percent over 5 years, and 10 percent over 2 years.
Prohibited Bureau of Prisons from Preventing Access to
Chapel Library Materials.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. GOHMERT. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I am sure glad my friend, the chairman of Judiciary,
sought time for people to revise and extend their remarks, because they
are going to need it. This thing keeps changing. I mean, I reviewed
this bill last week. I spent a long time going line by line, only to
find yesterday there's still a new version, and today I was provided a
98-page bill. I can't tell you the pages of the issues that I am most
concerned about because the version keeps changing.
{time} 1530
Now, this bill includes $330 million in authorizations. Normally,
suspensions
[[Page H13576]]
are noncontroversial, but the fact that this bill keeps changing is
absolute evidence that this is not noncontroversial. It keeps changing
because people can't figure out what is the best thing to do.
I would submit there is a good reason for that. The bill that this
seeks to renew and programs that are sought to be renewed are ones we
don't have information on how successful they were, and that was the
original purpose of this bill. Back when it expired in 2005, we still
did not have the information on what worked and what didn't.
I can tell you from my days as a judge, there was some anecdotal
evidence that it looked like faith-based programs did a better job of
dramatically reducing recidivism. In one case I was shown results from
a prison in Texas where it dropped down to about 8 percent from over 80
percent because of faith-based programs and mentoring.
This new version, I haven't even been through it. I haven't had time
to go through it. But the one that I saw and reviewed on Friday, it
included reentry programs allowing payment for housing and health care.
I know our military members who are leaving after less than 20 years in
the service with honorable discharges would love to have that kind of
help reentering.
There are some provisions that allow for too much administration, in
my opinion; 11 percent at one point, 15 percent at another. That is not
going to help people. That is going to build a bigger bureaucracy.
Dismissing all charges if someone completes drug rehab under another
provision I think is outrageous. You are going to remove the hammer
that would allow you to keep people in line? It is one thing to say we
are going to remove you and not have you go to prison and instead send
you to drug rehab, and then if you get through there, before you have a
chance to go out and do cocaine again, we are going to drop all charges
so we have no hammer over your head. I don't know if this is in the
final bill. It was in there last I saw on Friday.
There is a provision that allows payments through the Department of
Labor for support. There are military members, and I went to another
funeral Saturday, a gentleman who was not killed in Iraq, he was killed
during surgery, but I know his family would love to have the kind of
support being provided in here for felons.
We also have a provision in here, we are going to pay people through
these grants to teach inmates how they can go about getting the most
welfare before they leave prison and go out on their own. There is also
a provision that moves inmates to home detention without approval of
the judge who sentenced the individual.
In this bill, the elderly, for purposes of moving to home detention,
is defined as 65. I guess apparently under this bill, without any
underlying evidence or research to support it, we have arbitrarily
picked 65 as deciding that is when people are harmless. But I know from
my own experience around this Chamber, there are people in Congress
that are 65 or older that are certainly not harmless. In any event, I
think that is a little bit too young to classify people as harmless.
There is a provision that assistance will be provided by the United
States probation system and it ``shall'' be done. I don't know, I can't
find from the bill what kind of assistance that will be. But I think we
have all got the same goal. I think one of the worst atrocities in the
justice system has been our lack of rehabilitating and educating and
preparing people to go out into the world and become productive
citizens and finally reach the God-given potential that every one of
them has. I couldn't agree more with the proposition, and I know that
is the heart of my colleagues across the aisle. But we don't have the
information on which programs are successful and which aren't.
I want to work together on a program. I've kind of been cut out of
this process. The National Summit on Prisoner Reentry is coming up in
Los Angeles on November 27 and 28, but we are going to rush this
through on a suspension bill for $330 million without even having a
chance to really review the most recent document.
Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. GOHMERT. Yes, I will be glad to yield, and if you can show that
we have gotten the recent version----
Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Let me say for the record my name is Stephanie
Tubbs Jones. I am the Congresswoman from Cleveland, Ohio. I served for
10 years as a judge in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, 8 years as the elected
prosecutor in Cuyahoga County. And, Mr. Gohmert, your remarks are just
outrageous.
Mr. GOHMERT. Claiming back my time, I am not yielding for you to
criticize me.
Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Very well. I will talk to you when I get my own.
Mr. GOHMERT. I appreciate yielding to the gentlelady to come down and
call me outrageous. But what is outrageous is this process, this
process of taking something so important and rushing it in here without
having the proper input and the proper information. The National
Institute of Justice has got their biggest study program in its history
ongoing, and we don't have the results, and yet my colleagues want to
rush in and throw $330 million at a process that is unproven and
untried.
I just don't think that is the way to go. We have got honest people
involved in the process, but the process itself here has not been
honest.
With that, I would reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, here we are the day after Veterans Day. We come back in
comity and goodwill. We are trying to finish off the last week before
the Thanksgiving recess. And I want Judge Louie Gohmert, my dear friend
from Texas, to understand as much as I can explain to him about the
reservations that he has raised thus far.
I want him to know this is not a partisan bill at all and that the
changes that have been made to the bill were made before Friday when
you examined it. So if you were examining this measure on Friday, that
is the last, that is all she wrote, because we haven't been in since
then.
So, please understand that, first of all, this is a bipartisan bill.
We had the hearings. We had a markup in which you participated rather
actively. We had a record vote. We went to the Rules Committee.
Everything is working I think very smoothly, according to the chairman
of the Subcommittee on Crime, Bobby Scott, and the author of this bill
for three Congresses, Congressman Danny Davis of Illinois.
Please know that we have been working on this bill. You are right, it
has been through a lot of changes. The changes started before you
graced us with your presence in the Judiciary Committee as a very
important member of it. We have been working on this all the time. We
think it is in an improved state.
I would just like you to know that we have 212 organizations, and
because we are on a rather fast schedule here this afternoon, I won't
bother you with them, but none of them are political. They are all
community organizations. They are all organizations concerned with the
reentry of people who have served their time and are now coming out.
We are trying to deal, Judge Gohmert, with this huge problem of
people returning from their terms in prison. They come out and
sometimes in my State, I hate to say this, they don't even have a bus
ticket or a suit of new clothing to get to where they are supposed to
be going. Many of them don't know where they are going. It is that
dislocation that creates the situation of so many of them returning
back.
One of the most distressing things I ever heard when I was visiting
one of these places is that the guard tells the exiting prisoner,
former prisoner who serves his term, ``I'll see you when you get
back.'' Nothing tells the story more than I know there is nothing for
you out in society. You're not trained for anything, you're not fit for
anything, there are no jobs for you, so you're going to go back into
your old ways and we're going to get you back in our clutches again.
What we are trying to do, Judge Gohmert, is to change that. I know in
your court you have seen your share of this kind of process even in
Texas.
So I urge you to join with us in trying to be as constructive as you
normally are, to help make everybody understand that we are trying to
make
[[Page H13577]]
rehabilitation mean something besides just the phrase used in the
criminal justice system.
Mr. GOHMERT. Mr. Speaker, would the gentleman yield for a question?
Mr. CONYERS. Of course.
Mr. GOHMERT. Was there no version of the bill filed today? Was there
no version of the Second Chance Act filed today?
Mr. CONYERS. Absolutely, yes, it was.
Mr. GOHMERT. Thank you.
Mr. CONYERS. You're welcome.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. GOHMERT. May I inquire how much time I've got.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Texas has 13 minutes.
Mr. GOHMERT. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Nothing would please me more than to be involved in the process of
constructively working on these issues. When I think about the
gentlelady saying that my comments were outrageous, everything that I
have said is documented. Everything I have said comes from reading
through this bill, as well as my own experience from my days of being a
judge.
I wholeheartedly agree, we should do a better job of rehabilitating
and educating. In fact, I just get concerned when we get so anxious to
try to do something good that we end up throwing money at a problem
just so we can say we worked on it, something had to be done.
But it was the National Institute of Justice Award to RTI
International, a nonprofit research organization, to evaluate the
programs funded by the Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Initiative.
This is one of the largest evaluation studies funded by the NIJ, and it
is doing this research. The Urban Institute, a nonpartisan economic and
social policy research organization in D.C., is the collaborator on the
project. I am really looking forward to getting that information. I am
wondering why we throw more money at a situation before we get the
information that tells me how and tells us how to be most effective?
When my good friend the chairman, and I do think the world of him,
talks about comity and goodwill, that is what I would love to have. But
when we have such trouble getting copies of the latest versions, and
then the chairman says, gee, I had the latest version on Friday, I was
notified by the committee staff that there was a new version as of
yesterday and then the new version was filed today. So, I didn't have
everything Friday. That has been one of the problems here. This is too
important of an issue to just be throwing good money after bad.
I would also point out that in the interests of comity and goodwill,
the bills that follow this, H.R. 3845, PROTECT Our Children Act of
2007, I indicated before that sounded like something I would want to be
part of and helping with, but we never did get a final version that we
could say, yes, I want to cosponsor that.
Keeping the Internet Devoid of Sexual Predators Act of 2007 sounds
like another good bill, but we haven't seen it. And talking to the
Judiciary staff, that and the Effective Child Pornography Prosecution
Act, H.R. 4120, that follows that, we are still trying to get updated
versions of those things. So that doesn't sound to me like comity and
goodwill, when we are struggling over here to even get copies.
We don't know what requests had been granted. There were things
requested by the Department of Justice, in the interest of justice,
please get these provisions put in this bill. We don't know what was
put in and what wasn't. That, to me, does not indicate comity and
goodwill. It creates all kinds of problems.
Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. GOHMERT. I yield to the gentleman from Michigan.
Mr. CONYERS. I thank the gentleman for yielding.
I am being told that we have been working with the minority in
Judiciary on an ongoing basis, and I just wonder if you are aware that
four of your changes in particular have been accepted and incorporated
into the measure that is before us now?
Mr. GOHMERT. I am not sure which four things the chairman is
referring to.
Mr. CONYERS. I will bring them out for you and be happy to show them
to you.
Mr. GOHMERT. I thank the chairman.
Reclaiming my time, I have been over here in the 20 minutes or so
before I came up to speak talking to Judiciary staff who, unless they
are changing their story now, have not been able to get the latest
information on this bill. Well, they have got it on this bill. We have
the final copy. I haven't had a chance to review it since it has been
filed today. Most of us were out doing what we should have been doing
yesterday, paying tribute to veterans all over our districts. But these
subsequent bills, these are still a problem that I have been having
with the Second Chance Act, getting the latest information on this.
{time} 1545
My dear friend, Mr. Coble, we serve together on the Judiciary, had
asked for time, and at this time I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman
from North Carolina.
Mr. COBLE. I thank the gentleman from Texas for yielding.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the bill before us. The cost of
maintaining our Federal, State and local prisons is ballooning out of
control. We must continue to enforce our criminal laws, but we cannot
ignore the fact that most of the people who are released from
incarceration are likely to return. The Second Chance Act will support
programs that help prisoners reenter society which is essential to
reducing recidivism.
We can expect, Mr. Speaker, over half of the adult prisoners who are
to be released around the country this year will be rearrested again
and likely will return to prison. This cycle is overwhelming our
criminal system, it is overwhelming our prisons, and it is costing more
than $90 billion every year, $50 billion as far as Federal institutions
are concerned.
I am in agreement that stiff sentences serve a good purpose.
Criminals must know if they violate the law, they will be punished. But
when we seeing growing numbers of ex-offenders returning to our
prisons, something in the system is not working. Something, Mr.
Speaker, is flawed.
The Second Chance Act is endorsed by the Council of State
Governments, the National Sheriffs Association, the American Bar
Association, and countless religious organizations from around the
Nation. For some time many of you have heard me express alarm and
concern about the dangers of prison overcrowding. It is a ticking bomb
waiting to explode.
In my district, in fact, there is a county jail that is bursting at
the seams. We can begin to defuse this bomb today by passing the Second
Chance Act and supporting programs that reduce recidivism.
Now, much has been said about the cost. And I will stipulate, I will
say to my friend from Texas, it is costly. But if the Second Chance Act
proves to be effective, I believe it is realistic for us to conclude it
will result in saving taxpayer money because to house prisoners is a
costly operation.
Rarely do I disagree with my colleague from Texas, but on this
occasion we are going to disagree agreeably. I think this is a good
proposal. I heartily endorse it.
Chairman Scott, you remember I chaired, along with you, two hearings
in the last Congress, and I believe this is the third time it has
passed the House Judiciary Committee, if the gentleman from Michigan
will corroborate that.
Mr. CONYERS. That is correct.
Mr. COBLE. I thank Mr. Gohmert for yielding, and I urge passage of
the Second Chance Act.
Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to recognize the Chair of the
Subcommittee on Crime of the House Judiciary Committee, the gentleman
from Virginia (Mr. Scott) for 2 minutes.
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the Second
Chance Act and would like to commend Mr. Davis from Illinois and the
gentleman from Utah (Mr. Cannon) for their continued leadership on this
bill and also acknowledge the dedication and tireless efforts of many
members of the diverse coalition of national, State and local
organizations referred to by Chairman Conyers.
[[Page H13578]]
While our national crime rates may have fallen significantly over the
last decade, we have seen an unprecedented explosion in our prison and
jail populations. Today, over 2.2 million people are incarcerated in
Federal and State jails and prisons, a 10-fold increase since 1980 and
at a present cost of $65 billion.
As a result of this focus on incarceration, the United States leads
the world in per capita incarceration rates, over 700 per 100,000
population. While most of the world locks up about 50 to 200 per
100,000, the United States is first in the world at over 700 per
100,000. And as a result, more than 650,000 people will be released
from Federal and State prisons to communities nationwide, along with 9
million people leaving local jails.
Unfortunately, the Department of Justice's Bureau of Justice
Statistics estimates that two-thirds of the offenders leave State and
Federal prisons are rearrested in 3 years. If we are to reduce the
number of inmates returning to prison, we need to provide our ex-
offenders with the education and training necessary for them to obtain
and hold steady jobs. They also need drug treatment, and medical and
mental health services to decrease the chances they will come back to
prison.
The Second Chance Act will provide these investments, and every study
shows it will not only reduce crime but also save money in the process.
Mr. Speaker, it is very infrequent that we have the opportunity to
reduce crime and save money. I hope we will take that opportunity today
and pass this bill.
Mr. GOHMERT. Mr. Speaker, how much time remains?
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Texas has 5 minutes
remaining.
Mr. GOHMERT. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
We heard moments ago that there are 212 organizations supporting the
bill. I have talked to many of them over the course of our discussions
on the Second Chance Act, great, noble, wonderful organizations. I
couldn't find but one out of numerous ones that I talked to that
actually read the bill. They all have the same goals. They all want to
see adequate education and rehabilitation, cutting down on recidivism.
We all want to see that. I want to see that. I think we have got to do
that as a civilized society. There are many that support this goal.
But, again, many haven't seen the bill.
And I have checked with the staff in the interim. For example, H.R.
719 is file-stamped November 13 at 1:11 today, and the Judiciary got it
for the first time just before 3 p.m. so that you know.
But if we really want to help the situation, doesn't it make sense to
get the information on one of the biggest-funded programs NIJ has ever
had so we put the money where it works and take it away from where it
doesn't work?
Mr. Speaker, in responding to the chairman's comment, I would have to
say I noticed in reviewing the bill on Friday, it is a better bill than
it was, in my opinion; but we still have a little ways to go. That is
why I just think this is a bill in its present form, as it continues to
morph, that should not be on the Suspension Calendar, but should come
up under a regular rule where we have a chance to work on these other
issues.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time so the gentleman from
Michigan has the time to respond.
Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, I am glad that you find we are making
progress; that is very encouraging. How much time do you think we would
need to arrive at a point where your observations about the bill and
the needed improvement and our position would intersect so we could get
it before the body?
I yield to the gentleman.
Mr. GOHMERT. I appreciate the chairman yielding. I think we are
getting closer, actually.
Mr. CONYERS. How about tomorrow? If I gave you 24 hours, what would
happen differently?
Mr. GOHMERT. I would like to see the information that is being
prepared to come forth on November 27 and 28, the newest information
that is being brought to bear, all of these groups coming together. I
would think then by December we ought to be able to have something.
Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, I am going to recognize the distinguished
whip of the majority, the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Clyburn),
for 2 minutes, and maybe within his comments he can help us frame some
kind of time line.
Mr. CLYBURN. I thank the chairman for yielding me the time.
I want to thank Chairman Scott and especially Congressman Danny Davis
for not giving up on this legislation.
We have been here for approximately 6 years now, Mr. Speaker; and if
we are ever going to make progress in the crime that is crippling our
communities, we cannot give up on any human being, because it is not
enough to say we are just going to lock up every offender and throw
away the key. Such narrow-mindedness does nothing to prevent our
vulnerable youth from being indefinitely trapped in our Nation's
correctional system.
In order to stop crime, Mr. Speaker, we have to eliminate the
criminal mindset. And we help to eliminate this mindset by offering
alternatives for the offenders in their lives of crime. We do this by
enrolling them in programs that provide them with an education, help
them find employment, and remind them constantly of the consequences of
antisocial behavior.
I am happy to say that the Second Chance Act does all of this. It
reaches out to offenders by increasing their access to vocational
education. It also goes a long ways in helping many of our juvenile
offenders understand the dangers associated with crime and providing
them with counseling services.
Many of the individuals currently incarcerated in this country are
young, nonviolent, first-time offenders who made stupid mistakes. These
kids should not be denied the opportunity to reposition their paths in
a more stable and law-abiding direction.
This bill makes tremendous strides in protecting the public and
rehabilitating offenders, and I urge my colleagues to vote for its
passage.
Mr. GOHMERT. Might I inquire, I don't have any other speakers, if I
can find out where the chairman is with regard to additional speakers.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Texas has 3 minutes and
the gentleman from Michigan has 5 minutes.
Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize now the author of
this bill, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis). We said it started
three Congresses ago, but Danny Davis started it many years before
three Congresses ago, and I am proud to yield 2 minutes to him.
(Mr. DAVIS of Illinois asked and was given permission to revise and
extend his remarks.)
Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, first of all, let me thank
Chairman John Conyers and Ranking Member James Sensenbrenner of the
Judiciary Committee for their unrelenting commitment to passing this
landmark legislation. I also extend my appreciation to Senator Leahy
and the Judiciary Committee in the Senate for their hard work,
cooperation, and sensitivity.
I also want to commend Congressman Chris Cannon of Utah who was the
chief Republican sponsor on this legislation. I want to thank
Congressmen Bobby Scott and Howard Coble and all of the cosponsors who
signed on. I want to express appreciation to former Congressman Rob
Portman, who was very instrumental in moving this legislation to this
point.
I want to thank Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick and all of the members of
the Congressional Black Caucus, all of the organizations who have
worked unceasingly to try and bring us to this point.
I want to thank what we call the working group under the leadership
of Gene Guerro. I don't know about them not reading this stuff. They
have read it time and time and time again. As a matter of fact, they
know it backwards, forwards, crossways, and sideways.
I want to thank the staffs of all Members who have worked extremely
hard, and thank especially the members of my advisory committee back in
Chicago, Dennis Deer and George Williams and Tumia Romero, who helped
orchestrate all of the activity. I thank Dr. Caleb Gilchrist, Bernard
Moore, and Helen Mitchell in my office here.
{time} 1600
I also want to thank, Mr. Chairman, Steny Hoyer, the majority leader,
and
[[Page H13579]]
Mr. Blunt, the minority whip, who have been working on this now for
months, bringing us to this point, and the President of the United
States supported this when it was first introduced, and I want to thank
him for his interest.
Mr. GOHMERT. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the distinguished Member from
Ohio, a former jurist and prosecutor herself, Stephanie Tubbs Jones,
for 1 minute.
Mrs. JONES of Ohio. I won't do all the thank-you's that Mr. Davis has
already done.
I want to say to you, Judge, if I offended you, I apologize. But you
know as well as I do that it is so important for us to have programs
for ex-offenders. In the time that I was a judge and prosecutor, it was
those young people that we helped, that we gave a second chance to,
that we said to them, all right, you made a mistake, let's make a
difference in your life.
I can't tell you how many times I have walked down the street, Judge
Gohmert, and young people have walked up to me and said, ``Judge, you
gave me a break and I thank you.'' ``Judge, you gave me an
opportunity.'' And more than those young people need an opportunity.
They need a second chance. This is the program.
We can't study anymore. We have studied. There are all kinds of
studies that have shown that community reentry works. There is all kind
of programs that say diversion works. And there is a lot of young
people out here who don't have a mother or father that is a judge or a
prosecutor or a Congresswoman or a State Representative to call and say
I am a good person. They need us to say in the world that young people,
older people, whatever their age, who have been involved in the
criminal justice system, paid their dues. They need a chance, and we
ought to give them the second chance.
Last week we were talking about reading the Bible, the week of the
Bible and how important it was to follow God's word. What more
important? God said you visited me when I was sick, when I was in jail.
Second Chance can do that.
And, Judge, all I am saying to you, and I didn't mean to offend you,
but if I did I want you to know, your comments that fuel the fire make
it hard for us to do a second chance.
Mr. Speaker, I have been waiting nearly 30 years for Congress to
enact meaningful reentry legislation, as I have been deeply involved in
prisoner reentry issues since my days as a judge and county prosecutor
in Cleveland, Ohio, before serving in Congress. While Cuyahoga County
prosecutor, I helped establish the Pretrial Diversion Program, as well
as the Municipal Drug Court. Both programs, I am proud to say, still
exist and continue to help ex-offenders move on with their lives and
become productive citizens of society.
Prisoner reentry is not a Democratic or Republican issue. It is a
common sense issue. The facts are clear--meaningful reentry programs
significantly diminish the chances that ex-offenders will return to
prison. That saves taxpayer dollars and increases public safety. So why
not invest in enhancing reentry programs in order to end the cycle of
recidivism? That is exactly what the Second Chance Act does.
In 2002, 2 million people were incarcerated in all Federal and State
prisons. Each year, nearly 650,000 people are released from prison to
communities nationwide. Nearly two-thirds of released prisoners are
expected to be re-arrested for a felony or serious misdemeanor within
three years of their release.
The State of Ohio has one of the largest populations of ex-offenders
re-entering the community, with about 24,000 ex-offenders returning to
their respective communities annually. Of those ex-offenders, about
6,000 will return to Cuyahoga County and almost 5,000 will re-enter in
the city of Cleveland. Statewide, about 40 percent of ex-offenders will
return to prison. In Cuyahoga County, about 41 percent will return to
prison. Such high recidivism rates translate into thousands of new
crimes each year and wasted taxpayer dollars, which can be averted
through improved prisoner reentry efforts.
This legislation is critical to successful re-entry of offenders. The
bill provides as a beginning the essential ingredients necessary to
assure public safety and recovery. It will help begin the process of
breaking down barriers to successful re-entry and allow offenders and
their families the tools necessary to break the cycle of criminality.
I would like to thank my colleague Danny Davis for all of his hard
work on this issue as well as former Congressman Rob Portman who was
the first to introduce the legislation. I encourage my colleagues to
support this very important legislation.
Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, I am proud now to yield to Gwen Moore, the
gentlelady from Wisconsin, 1 minute.
Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin. I thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Speaker, I
rise today in strong support of the Second Chance Act.
According to the 2001 census, Wisconsin had the highest incarceration
rate for African American males in the country, and I can tell you that
this legislation represents a second chance for these convicted felons.
You know, becoming a felon is akin to the civic death penalty. Ex-
offenders are often lacking a high school diploma, lacking vocational
skills. They are drug and alcohol dependent. They are estranged from
families. They are homeless. But this legislation not only is a second
chance for those felons, but it is a second chance for our communities.
Those communities, our States that are tethered to these billion dollar
budgets for incarcerating particularly African American men and can't
use those billions of dollars for more constructive and productive
purposes like job creation and job training, educational and vocational
training, and strengthening our families and communities.
Please support this Second Chance Act.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today In strong support of the Second Chance Act.
I would like to thank Congressman Danny Davis for his hard work on this
vitally important legislation. In my community, according to 2001,
census data, Wisconsin had the highest incarceration rate of African
Americans in the nation.
In 2005, there were over 2 million people incarcerated in Federal or
State prisons. Nearly 650,000 people are released from prison to our
communities each year.
Nearly two-thirds of released prisoners are expected to be rearrested
for a felony or serious misdemeanor within three years of release.
It is no secret that high recidivism rates translate into thousands
of new crimes each year, many of which can be averted through improved
prisoner reentry efforts.
In my district alone, there were approximately 10,308 Milwaukee
County Residents incarcerated as of June 2006.
Since 1993 Milwaukee County has experienced nearly a four-fold
increase in its recently released incarcerated population.
In 1993 2,191 prisoners were released, compared to 8,147 in 2005.
32 percent of offenders released to Milwaukee County are under the
age of 25 at the time of release from prison.
31 percent of the offenders released to Milwaukee County have less
than a High School education.
We are seeing an increased use of imprisonment to address the ``War
on drugs'' :
We are now incarcerating people at an alarming rate who have never
been convicted of violent crimes and who have had no prior convictions.
24 percent of the offenders released to Milwaukee County are in
prison for Property crimes; 18 percent Drug crimes; 14 percent violent
crimes; 4 percent Sex crimes and 3 percent Other Non-Violent crimes.
Ex-offenders face an automatic uphill battle when released from
prison. As a result of being incarcerated, they are denied:
The right to vote:
The U.S has the most restrictive felony voting rights in the World.
In Wisconsin, those in prison, probation or parole are restricted
from voting.
Access to public assistance:
Those with felony drug convictions are ineligible for food stamps and
TANF services.
Some are not eligible at all for subsidized housing, while all face
significant barriers when applying for public housing and subsidies.
Some can't apply for financial aid to get an education:
Felons with drug-related convictions are denied financial aid to
attend vocational education classes, college, and other postsecondary
education programs.
It is beneficial for an entire community when we provide proper
resources and services to ex-offenders.
The Second Chance Act will do just that by:
Directing the Bureau of Prisons to create a Federal Re-Entry program
to assist prisoners in successfully returning to their communities.
Authorizing new grant programs to assist states and local governments
with drug abuse treatment for those convicted of or facing criminal
charges.
Authorizing a new educational program that will improve vocational
education programs in prisons, jails and juvenile detention facilities.
Mr. Speaker, it is high time that we change our focus from catching
ex-offenders violating
[[Page H13580]]
parole or probation to providing the adequate resources and programs to
help them successfully integrate back into society.
I urge my colleagues to vote for the Second Chance Act.
Mr. GOHMERT. Mr. Speaker, I do appreciate Mrs. Tubbs Jones' comments.
And I guess calling me or my comments outrageous was somewhat
offensive, but as an old judge I was used to that. In fact, I have been
called all kinds of names.
And, yes, even 2 days ago when I was buying some potting soil back
home, I had a guy come up to me with his father and said if it were not
for me, he would never have straightened his life up.
Those are not uncommon comments. And what it came from was being
fair, but also having tough love. Because, as those who have been
involved in dealing with people who have been addicted to drugs or
alcohol, it does take tough love. And you do want to help them get out
of the cycle rather than becoming an enabler. And that is my number one
concern, is that we do not want to be enablers.
And when we talk about Scripture, absolutely, there are all kinds of
verses that apply to us for those that believe the teachings of Jesus
as I do. They are entirely appropriate. Those are directed to
individuals. If you get over to Romans 13, that is directed to the
government. And where it says if you do evil, you need to be afraid,
because God does not give the government the sword in vain, that is
part of the role of government; if you do evil, then there are
consequences.
But it is a worthy goal to want to try to stop the cycle of
recidivism. We all, I think, want that. No, I don't think; I know, we
all want that same goal. But I am very concerned that we may be
enabling by throwing money at a problem.
One of the saddest words and lines I ever heard came at a hearing
when the wealthiest people in my home county, they had the courtroom
packed so that they were hoping that I would put her on probation yet
again, and they knew she had had it too many times and it wasn't going
to happen under me. And it didn't. And it turns out she had a huge
trust fund every month. She never had to work, she never had to study,
and she had spent all her money on drugs. And the last thing she said
before I sentenced her was, ``I wish somebody had told me `no' before
today and meant it.''
She has now gotten out. Her mother, when I was walking neighborhoods,
I went up to her door and her mother said, ``Come in and sit down.''
She said, ``You know, my husband and I just hated you at one point, but
you saved our daughter's life.''
Sometimes it is the tough love things that turn things around. We
want the same goal. I don't want to throw good money after bad in
renewed programs that shouldn't be. And I hope that if this fails on
suspension, we can get the new data that is going to be forthcoming and
work toward the same goal with additional, more helpful information.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, I yield to close the debate on our side to
Eleanor Holmes Norton, who has been not just a trial lawyer but has
been before the Supreme Court on numerous occasions.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Capuano). The gentlewoman from the
District of Columbia is recognized for 1 minute.
Ms. NORTON. I thank the gentleman for his important work. Two
thousand five hundred ex-felons return to the District of Columbia
every year. They are a microcosm of who is coming home to every
community in this country.
There is a special benefit and a special burden that has to be spoken
of on this bill. Twelve percent of our population is African American;
40 percent of those in Federal prison are African Americans. Most of
these are nonviolent drug offenders. It is the sentencing guidelines,
the mandatory minimums that have done this. All of us here have played
a major role in destroying the African American family and their
children, because these have been drug peddlers, not kingpins.
The disparities have been recently relaxed. Justices, beginning with
Justice Rehnquist, have spoken to the injustice. These inmates are now
coming home. They have been in Federal prisons. Let's not make it any
worse than it was in condemning them disproportionately under the crack
cocaine guidelines. We owe it to their communities to help them return
and become good citizens. That is all this bill aims to do.
I thank the gentleman for all of his work on this bill, and
particularly the sponsor, Mr. Davis.
Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of
H.R. 1593, the Second Chance Act of 2007. I would like to thank my dear
colleague Mr. Danny Davis of Illinois for sponsoring this very
important legislation that addresses the prison warehousing crisis in
this country. H.R. 1593, a bill of which I am an original co-sponsor,
addresses the very serious concerns about the compromised state of
warehousing prisoners.
Earlier this year, the Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and
Homeland Security of which I am a member, held hearings to address the
state of certain conditions within the United States prison system. In
one of those hearings, my colleagues and I considered the merits of The
Second Chance Act, and my amendment which I offered in the last
Congress was included in the base bill this year.
The Second Chance Act is designed to reduce recidivism, increase
public safety, and help State and local governments better address the
growing population of ex-offenders returning to their communities. The
bill focuses on four areas: development and support of programs that
provide alternatives to incarceration, expansion of the availability of
substance abuse treatment, strengthening families and the expansion of
comprehensive re-entry services.
Nearly two-thirds of released state prisoners are expected to be re-
arrested for a felony or serious misdemeanor within 3 years of their
release. Such high recidivism rates translate into thousands of new
crimes each year and wasted taxpayer dollars, which can be averted
through improved prisoner reentry efforts.
The ``Second Chance Act of 2007'' allocates funding towards a variety
of reentry programs. One of the main components of the bill is the
funding of demonstration projects that would provide ex-offenders with
a coordinated continuum of housing, education, health, employment, and
mentoring services. This broad array of services would provide
stability and make the transition for ex-offenders easier, in turn
reducing recidivism.
Another reason why I strongly support this legislation is because it
includes a provision contained in an amendment I offered during the
Judiciary Committee markup of this bill in the 109th Congress. That
amendment, incorporated in H.R. 1593 as Section 243 of the bill,
requires that the:
Attorney General shall collect data and develop best practices of
State corrections departments and child protection agencies relating to
the communication and cordination between such State departments and
agencies to ensure the safety and support of children of incarcerated
parents, including those in foster care and kinship care, and the
support of parent-child relationships between incarcerated, and
formerly incarcerated, parents and their children, as appropriate to
the health and well-being of the children.
My amendment provides for a systematic means of ensuring the safety
and support of children of incarcerated parents and the support of
children of release for non-violent offenders who have attained the age
of at least 45 years of age, have never been convicted of a violent
crime, have never escaped or attempted to escape from incarceration,
and have not engaged in any violation, involving violent conduct, of
institutional disciplinary regulations.
The Second Chance Act seeks to ensure that in affording offenders a
second chance to turn around their lives and contribute to society, ex-
offenders are not too old to take advantage of a second chance to
redeem themselves. A second benefit of the legislation is that it would
relieve some of the strain on Federal, State, and local government
budgets by reducing considerably government expenditures on warehousing
prisoners.
Mr. Speaker, some of those who are incarcerated face extremely long
sentences, and this language would help to address this problem.
Releasing rehabilitated, middle-aged, non-violent offenders from an
already overcrowded prison population can be a win-win situation for
society and the individual who, like the Jean Valjean made famous in
Victor Hugo's Les Miserables, is redeemed by the grace of a second
chance. The reentry of such individuals into the society will enable
them to repay the community through community service and obtain or
regain a sense of self-worth and accomplishment. It promises a
reduction in burdens to the taxpayer, and an affirmation of the America
value that no non-violent offender is beyond redemption.
[[Page H13581]]
Mr. Speaker, the number of Federal inmates has grown from just over
24,000 in 1980 to 173,739 in 2004. The cost to incarcerate these
individuals has risen from $330 million to $4.6 billion since 2004. At
a time when tight budgets have forced many States to consider the early
release of hundreds of inmates to conserve tax revenue, early release
is a common-sense option to raise capital.
The rate of incarceration and the length of sentence for first-time
non-violent offenders have become extreme. Over the past two decades,
no area of State government expenditures has increased as rapidly as
prisons and jails. According to data collected by the Justice
Department, the number of prisoners in America has more than tripled
over the last two decades from 500,000 to 1.8 million, with States like
California and Texas experiencing eightfold prison population increases
during that time. Mr. Chairman, there are more people in the prisons of
America than there are residents in States of Alaska, North Dakota, and
Wyoming combined.
Over 1 million people have been warehoused for nonviolent, often
petty crimes. The European Union, with a population of 370 million, has
one-sixth the number of incarcerated persons as we do, and that
includes violent and nonviolent offenders. This is one-third the number
of prisoners which America, a country with 70 million fewer people,
incarcerates for nonviolent offenses.
The 1.1 million nonviolent offenders we currently lock up represents
5 times the number of people held in India's entire prison system, even
though its population is 4 times greater than the United States.
As the number of individuals incarcerated for nonviolent offenses has
steadily risen, African-Americans and Latinos have comprised a growing
percentage of the overall number incarcerated. In the 1930s, 75 percent
of the people entering State and Federal prison were white (roughly
reflecting the demographics of the Nation). Today, minority communities
represent 70 percent of all new admissions and more than half of all
Americans behind bars.
This is why for the last several years I have introduced the H.R.
261, the Federal Prison Bureau Nonviolent Offender Relief Act. H.R. 261
directs the Bureau of Prisons, pursuant to a good time policy, to
release a prisoner who has served one-half or more of his or her term
of imprisonment if that prisoner: (1) has attained age 45; (2) has
never been convicted of a crime of violence; and (3) has not engaged in
any violation, involving violent conduct, of institutional disciplinary
regulations.
Over 2 million offenders are incarcerated in the nation's prisons and
jails. At midyear 2002, 665,475 inmates were held in the Nation's local
jails, up from 631,240 at midyear 2001. Projections indicate that the
inmate population will unfortunately continue to rise over the years to
come.
To illustrate the impact that The Second Chance Act will potentially
have on Texas, the Federal prison population for the years 2000, 2001,
and 2002 reached 39,679, 36,138 and 36,635 persons respectively; the
State prison population for the same years reached 20,200, 20,898, and
23,561 persons. These numbers have grown since 2002, so the impact is
indeed significant and the State of Texas is an important stakeholder.
I am also concerned about the rehabilitation and treatment of
juvenile offenders in my home State of Texas as it appears that the
administrators of TYC have neglected their duties. The April 10, 2007
``Dallas Morning News'', reported that ``two former Texas Youth
Commission administrators were indicted on charges that they sexually
abused teenage inmates at the state juvenile prison in Pyote''. The
same article also cited the 2005 investigative report by Texas Rangers'
Sgt Burzynski which found that the two indicted TYC administrators,
Brookins and Hernandez, had repeatedly molested inmates in the Pyote
prison. The report is cited as saying that Mr. Brookins, who during
some periods was the top official, had shown sex toys and pornography
in his office, while Mr. Hernandez molested inmates in classrooms and
closets.
I hope that all of my colleagues would join me in supporting the
Second Chance Act. Passage of H.R. 1593 would be the start of a long
overdue process to eliminate unnecessary costs that result from
warehousing prisoners.
Ms. LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 1593, The
Second Chance Act. I thank Congressman Danny Davis for introducing this
important legislation and thank him for his leadership in support of
formerly incarcerated persons making a successful transition back into
their communities.
We must all begin to recognize the unique needs of those on the path
of re-entry. I believe that there needs to be a comprehensive system of
support to reduce the rates of recidivism and wasted tax dollars.
Today, our prisons and jails are filled beyond capacity, mostly with
non-violent drug offenders, at enormous cost to the taxpayer. The
politics of locking people up are easy. Not enough lawmakers have given
much thought to the hard part: the inconvenient fact that more than 95
percent of the people who got to prison or jail will return at some
point to our communities, with little or no preparation to succeed when
they do.
The reality is, recidivism rates continue to rise with nearly 70
percent of those released from incarceration returning to prison within
3 years. By releasing the formerly incarcerated back into our
communities without arming them with the necessary tools for survival,
we are condemning them to repeat their past mistakes. This does nothing
to reduce the crime rate or provide for safer communities.
We need to put the rehabilitation back into our penal system, to
prepare people for reentry with job training and to send people with
drug problems to treatment, not jail.
Today, we can change the landscape of re-entry programs for the
formerly incarcerated in this country. We need to make rehabilitation a
reality not just an abstract proposal. By providing all formerly
incarcerated individuals with greater access to education, health care,
job placement, and drug treatment we will reduce recidivism rates
across the board.
Mr. Speaker, this legislation is especially important to me because
over 14,000 formerly incarcerated persons return to our community every
year. The State of California had over 500,000 adults on parole or
probation in 2005.
Comprehensive re-entry programs are critical to safely and
productively returning the formerly incarcerated into the communities
that they came from. Up to 60 percent are unemployed a year after
release and up to 30 percent go directly to homeless shelters upon
their release. The incidence of drug use among ex-offenders is over 80
percent, twice the rate of the United States population. It's more than
clear that something needs to be done.
Following the lead of my colleague from Illinois, I host an annual
Clean Slate Summit, which we held on November 3, to help those who
qualify to legally clean up their records so that they can access the
employment, education, housing and civic opportunities they need. We
work to coordinate the efforts of community groups like the East Bay
Community Law Center and All of Us or None, with local and county
government leaders like Assemblymember Sandre Swanson and Alameda
County Supervisor Keith Carson as well as local judges and the district
attorney's office. It is only through this comprehensive and
cooperative approach that we can successfully assist those who are so
often completely cut off from their communities.
We have a vested interest in making sure that people reentering our
community do so successfully. Help with cleaning their records provides
and opportunity for a second chance to read an application, get a job
or go back to school.
Booker T. Washington once said that ``Success is to be measured not
so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the
obstacles which he, or she, has overcome.''
Mr. Speaker, we must end the cycle of injustice that is perpetuated
by a system that continues to punish people, long after they have paid
their debt to society. H.R. 1593, the Second Chance Act, is a critical
step forward. No one condones criminal activity but once one serves
their time, they should be free to feed their family and move on with
their lives.
Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the ``Second
Chance Act of 2007.'' I commend Chairman Conyers, Crime Subcommittee
Chairman Scott, along with Ranking Member Mr. Forbes, and
Representatives Chris Cannon, Danny Davis, Howard Coble, and Stephanie
Tubbs-Jones for their commitment to the issue of prisoner re-entry.
I also want to thank Minority Whip Roy Blunt for his tireless
dedication to this legislation. Congressman Blunt and his staff devoted
countless hours to bicameral and bipartisan negotiations to reach a
consensus on this important legislation. The new bill, which is modeled
on prior versions, is an excellent example of bipartisan cooperation on
important criminal justice matters.
This bill represents a common sense approach to addressing the
problems posed by prisoner reentry.
President Bush stated in his 2004 State of the Union address: ``We
know from long experience that if [former prisoners] can't find work,
or a home, or help, they are much more likely to commit more crimes and
return to prison. . . . America is the land of the second chance, and
when the gates of the prison open, the path ahead should lead to a
better life.''
The Second Chance Act of 2007 implements the President's initiative.
I believe in tough enforcement of our criminal laws. Public safety is
essential to a free society, and criminals must be aggressively
prosecuted and incarcerated to protect our communities. However, once
criminals are incarcerated, we have an obligation to make sure they are
rehabilitated and treated humanely.
[[Page H13582]]
The Second Chance Act creates a framework of strategic policy
innovations to provide effective re-entry services.
The demand for innovative solutions is obvious--it is conservatively
estimated that approximately 650,000 inmates will be released from
State prisons in the next year. In the absence of action, 67 percent of
these individuals will be rearrested and over half will return to
prison in the 3 years following their release from prison. States are
being crushed by an overwhelming financial burden of correctional
costs.
We need to help State and local governments implement innovative
programs to ease the transition for offenders, to bring families
together once again, and to make sure that offenders get the necessary
support so that they can truly have a second chance to live a law-
abiding life.
Successful reentry protects those who might otherwise be crime
victims. It also improve the likelihood that individuals released from
prison, jail or juvenile detention facilities can pay fines, fees,
restitution, and provide family support.
The Second Chance Act expands existing demonstration programs to
improve coordination among service providers, supervision services and
re-entry task forces, and between State substance abuse agencies and
criminal justice agencies. The Act also strengthens reentry services
and authorizes grants to operate State and local reentry courts, and to
establish local re-entry task forces to develop comprehensive reentry
plans during each phase of transition--from incarceration, to
transitional housing, to release in the community.
I urge my colleagues to support the bill.
Mr. CANNON. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the Second Chance Act.
This is an important bill not only to ex-offenders but to our
communities and families.
This bill is a modest, commonsense response to the increasing number
of offenders returning to our communities each year.
The Second Chance Act is a bipartisan approach to prisoner reentry
that will better coordinate Federal agencies and policies on prisoner
reentry with an eye towards less crime and taxpayer savings.
The Second Chance Act addresses important areas for offenders and
communities, including: jobs, housing, substance abuse, mental health
treatment, and support for families.
This legislation brings together State and local governments to work
together on the problem of prisoner reentry.
A modest expenditure to help transition offenders back into their
communities can save taxpayers millions of dollars in the long run
because the cost of paying for inmates is a serious burden to our
citizens.
The average cost to house a Federal inmate is over $25,000 a year. If
we can reduce recidivism we can save taxpayers millions of dollars.
I supported the Second Chance Act when our former colleague
Representative Rob Portman introduced the bill in 2004. He should be
acknowledged for his diligent work on this important issue and paving
the way for us to be here today.
After Mr. Portman left Congress, I took over as the primary sponsor
and this Congress I cosponsored this legislation for the reasons I have
stated.
I believe there are some fundamental ideas that we hold as Americans.
The first is that there is a God and that we will all at some point
face divine judgment.
You don't have to believe in God to be an American, but most
Americans, believers or not, when given a choice will support limiting
government to promote the welfare of their fellow man.
For believers like me, this legislation does that.
It is part of our Judeo-Christian ethics that we have a
responsibility to care for widows, orphans and those less fortunate,
including, always and explicitly, prisoners.
The issues addressed in the Second Chance Act are not only safety and
cost savings but reflect a moral imperative.
The President laid out in his State of the Union Address in 2004 the
need for this bill, stating, ``America is the land of second chance and
when the gates of prison open, the path should lead to a better life.''
This bill will give those released from prison a better chance to
improve their circumstances by turning away from crime and turning into
productive contributing citizens.
I want to thank Congressman Danny Davis, Chairman Conyers, Judiciary
Ranking Member Lamar Smith and Congressman Sensenbrenner, Congressman
Forbes, and Congressman Coble for their work and leadership on this
legislation.
I urge my colleagues to support the Second Chance Act of 2007.
Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Speaker, as a cosponsor of H.R. 1593, I am pleased we
are considering this legislation today.
The fact is this bill will save taxpayers money by breaking the
expensive cycle of sending people back to prison. This bill authorizes
$65 million in fiscal year 2008 for Department of Justice, DoJ, grants
to boost programs that provide newly released prisoners with housing,
drug treatment, counseling, job training and literacy and education
services.
The bill would improve residential drug treatment programs and
follow-up care, and would expand family-based treatment centers. It
would also authorize the Bureau of justice Statistics to study
substance abusers' re-entry into society.
Our goal needs to be helping offenders successfully re-enter society.
According to DoJ statistics, nearly two-thirds of those released from
prison are likely to be re-arrested within 3 years. This is troubling,
but the good news is Congress has recognized the problem and is
implementing an innovative strategy to address it.
Mr. Speaker, I urge support of this legislation.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Conyers) that the House suspend the rules
and pass the bill, H.R. 1593, as amended.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Mr. GOHMERT. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be
postponed.
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