[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 169 (Tuesday, September 28, 2021)]
[House]
[Pages H5477-H5481]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  ELIMINATING A QUANTIFIABLY UNJUST APPLICATION OF THE LAW ACT OF 2021

  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 1693) to eliminate the disparity in sentencing for cocaine 
offenses, and for other purposes, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 1693

       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 ``Eliminating a Quantifiably 
     Unjust Application of the Law Act of 2021'' or the ``EQUAL 
     Act of 2021''.

     SEC. 2. ELIMINATION OF INCREASED PENALTIES FOR COCAINE 
                   OFFENSES WHERE THE COCAINE INVOLVED IS COCAINE 
                   BASE.

       (a) Controlled Substances Act.--The following provisions of 
     the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 801 et seq.) are 
     repealed:
       (1) Clause (iii) of section 401(b)(1)(A) (21 U.S.C. 
     841(b)(1)(A)).
       (2) Clause (iii) of section 401(b)(1)(B) (21 U.S.C. 
     841(b)(1)(B)).
       (b) Controlled Substances Import and Export Act.--The 
     following provisions of the Controlled Substances Import and 
     Export Act (21 U.S.C. 951 et seq.) are repealed:
       (1) Subparagraph (C) of section 1010(b)(1) (21 U.S.C. 
     960(b)(1)).
       (2) Subparagraph (C) of section 1010(b)(2) (21 U.S.C. 
     960(b)(2)).
       (c) Applicability to Pending and Past Cases.--
       (1) Pending cases.--This section, and the amendments made 
     by this section, shall apply to any sentence imposed after 
     the date of enactment of this Act, regardless of when the 
     offense was committed.
       (2) Past cases.--
       (A) In general.--In the case of a defendant who, on or 
     before the date of enactment of this Act, was sentenced for a 
     Federal offense described in subparagraph (B), the sentencing 
     court may, on motion of the defendant, the Bureau of Prisons, 
     the attorney for the Government, or on its own motion, impose 
     a reduced sentence after considering the factors set forth in 
     section 3553(a) of title 18, United States Code.
       (B) Federal offense described.--A Federal offense described 
     in this subparagraph is an offense that involves cocaine base 
     that is an offense under one of the following:
       (i) Section 401 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 
     841).
       (ii) Section 1010 of the Controlled Substances Import and 
     Export Act (21 U.S.C. 960).
       (iii) Section 404(a) of the Controlled Substances Act (21 
     U.S.C. 844(a)).
       (iv) Any other Federal criminal offense, the conduct or 
     penalties for which were established by reference to a 
     provision described in clause (i), (ii), or (iii).
       (C) Defendant not required to be present.--Notwithstanding 
     Rule 43 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, the 
     defendant is not required to be present at any hearing on 
     whether to impose a reduced sentence pursuant to this 
     paragraph.
       (D) No reduction for previously reduced sentences.--A court 
     may not consider a motion made under this paragraph to reduce 
     a sentence if the sentence was previously imposed or 
     previously reduced in accordance with this Act.
       (E) No requirement to reduce sentence.--Nothing in this 
     paragraph may be construed to require a court to reduce a 
     sentence pursuant to this paragraph.

     SEC. 3. DETERMINATION OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS.

       The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of 
     complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, shall 
     be determined by reference to the latest statement titled 
     ``Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation'' for this Act, 
     submitted for printing in the Congressional Record by the 
     Chairman of the House Budget Committee, provided that such 
     statement has been submitted prior to the vote on passage.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New 
York (Mr. Nadler) and the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Gohmert) each will 
control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New York.


                             General Leave

  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include 
extraneous material on H.R. 1693.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from New York?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 1693, the Eliminating a Quantifiably Unjust 
Application of the Law Act of 2021, or the EQUAL Act, would eliminate 
the unjust sentencing disparity between crack cocaine and powder 
cocaine offenses.
  This long overdue bipartisan legislation would allow defendants who 
were previously convicted or sentenced for a Federal offense involving 
crack cocaine to petition for a sentence reduction.
  In 1986, Congress passed the Anti-Drug Abuse Act, which created 
mandatory minimum penalties for drug offenses and introduced the 100:1 
sentencing disparity between crack cocaine and powder cocaine offenses. 
This meant that a person who distributed 5 grams of crack cocaine 
received the same 5-year mandatory minimum sentence as a person who 
distributed 500 grams of the powder cocaine.
  A person who distributed 50 grams of crack cocaine received the same 
10-year mandatory minimum sentence as a person who distributed 5,000 
grams of powder cocaine. It soon became evident that this sentencing 
disparity also created a significant racial disparity.
  Mr. Speaker, 4 years after Congress passed the Anti-Drug Abuse Act, 
the average Federal sentence for Black defendants was 49 percent higher 
than the average sentence for White defendants. In the ensuing decades, 
the Sentencing Commission and many members of the law enforcement 
community strongly and repeatedly criticized the 100:1 ratio and urged 
Congress to address the disparity.
  As early as 1995, the Sentencing Commission began urging Congress to 
rectify this unfairness. Besides the troubling racial disparities in 
sentencing, the Commission also expressed concern over the significant 
differences in punishment between street-level dealers of crack cocaine 
and the powder cocaine suppliers who sold the cocaine in the first 
instance.
  Unfortunately, Congress failed to act on the Commission's proposed 
amendment to the sentencing guidelines to equalize the penalties for 
crack and powder cocaine.
  From 1997 to 2007, the Commission continued to warn Congress about 
the unjustified ratio, noting that ``there is no legislative history 
that explains Congress' rationale for selecting the 100:1 drug quantity 
ratio for powder cocaine and crack offenses.'' It provided evidence for 
its findings that the penalties exaggerated the relative harmfulness of 
crack cocaine, swept too broadly, most often applied to lower-level 
offenders, and mostly impacted communities of color.
  Congress, however, took no action, prompting the Commission to pass 
an amendment to the sentencing guidelines in 2007 as a partial and 
modest remedy to the ``urgent and compelling'' problems associated with 
the ratio. In doing so, the Commission ``unanimously and strongly 
urged'' Congress to take actions on its recommendations and to provide 
a comprehensive solution.
  In 2010, Congress finally acted by passing the Fair Sentencing Act, 
which did not eliminate the disparity, but which significantly reduced 
the ratio from 100:1 to 18:1. But the Fair Sentencing Act applied only 
to pending and future cases, leaving thousands of incarcerated people 
without a path to petition for relief. The First Step Act of 2018 made 
the Fair Sentencing Act retroactive, providing a pathway to relief for 
some, but not all, individuals affected by the sentencing disparity.

[[Page H5478]]

  It is now past time to finish the job. The crack cocaine and powder 
cocaine disparity has greatly contributed to the rise of mass 
incarceration, devastated communities of color, and severely undermined 
public confidence in our criminal justice system.
  The EQUAL Act would finally equalize the treatment of powder cocaine 
and crack cocaine--two forms of the same drug--by eliminating the 
sentencing disparity. It would also provide a path to retroactive 
relief from a disparity that is not rooted in science, does not promote 
public safety, and fosters racial disparities.
  I commend Representative Hakeem Jeffries,  Bobby Scott, Kelly 
Armstrong, and   Don Bacon for introducing this important bipartisan 
legislation, and I urge all Members to support it.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. GOHMERT. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, in the 1980s, as Representative Nadler said, Congress 
enacted harsh penalties for Federal drug offenses, including mandatory 
minimum sentences. In the 1986 act, the Anti-Drug Abuse Act, it did 
create 100:1 sentencing disparity between crack and powder cocaine, 
meaning an individual convicted of selling 5 grams of crack cocaine 
would receive the same sentence as someone convicted of selling 500 
grams of powder cocaine.
  Earlier, years before, Representative Dan Lungren--he had been here 
in the eighties--in 1986, when this was passed, said that Republicans 
were told in 1986--with a Democratic majority--by Representative 
Charley Rangel, that if they did not support the huge disparity, then 
they did not care about Black neighborhoods and the scourge that crack 
cocaine was creating and how it was ruining Black neighborhoods. So it 
easily passed because in 1986, no one wanted to be called a racist. 
This law contributed to the growth of the U.S. Federal prison 
population from the 1990s through 2000s.
  In 2010, Congress passed the Fair Sentencing Act, which reduced the 
sentencing disparity between crack and powder cocaine from 100:1 to 
18:1. And as I recall, at the time, I thought it would be good to go 
1:1; that is what we did in Texas when I was a judge. But if I recall 
correctly, there were some Republicans that said we can't go all the 
way to 1:1, but we will agree to 18:1. If that is not right, the chair 
can correct me, but that is what I recall. Because I didn't see why we 
didn't go ahead and go 1:1 back then and just fix it.

  But that was what happened. It went from 100:1 to 18:1 disparity. But 
in 2018, Congress passed--President Trump signed--the First Step Act, 
which made the Fair Sentencing Act retroactive. This law allowed those 
sentenced for Federal drug offenses relating to cocaine prior to the 
passage of Fair Sentencing Act to move for a resentencing under the new 
law.
  The EQUAL Act before us today truly lives up to the name of 
equalizing sentences for similar crimes and would eliminate the Federal 
sentencing disparity between crack and powder cocaine and allow those 
convicted under the prior law to move for resentencing under this new 
standard.
  At the State level, more than 40 States do not treat crack and powder 
cocaine differently in their sentencing structures. Passage of the 
EQUAL Act now would align Federal sentencing laws with the vast 
majority of States.
  And I would like to also say in a prior hearing Mr. Jeffries 
indicated that he intended to go forward and would try to push a bill, 
as the chair also had hoped, that would finally eliminate the 
sentencing disparity and go 1:1.
  In that hearing, I made the comment that if Mr. Jeffries would draft 
a bill that did just that, then I would support that. And I am very 
pleased that Mr. Jeffries, who is a man of his word, he did exactly 
what he said. He prepared a bill that fixed this problem.
  I am pleased to agree and to be part of what Mr. Jeffries prepared 
and what the chairman has seen through our committee, and glad we are 
finally going to deal with this problem and do right by the people that 
are sentenced under it.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

                              {time}  1300

  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the distinguished 
gentleman from New York (Mr. Jeffries), the sponsor of this bill.
  Mr. JEFFRIES. Mr. Speaker, I thank the distinguished chair of the 
House Judiciary Committee, Jerry Nadler, for yielding, and for his 
extraordinary leadership in moving this important piece of legislation 
forward.
  Mr. Speaker, I also thank Kelly Armstrong, who is the lead Republican 
who has sponsored this legislation, for his advocacy and his efforts to 
advance this critical piece of legislation. And I thank my good friend, 
the distinguished gentleman from Texas (Mr. Gohmert), who indicated 
that we had had a previous conversation with then-Congressman Cedric 
Richmond at a Judiciary Committee hearing about his willingness to be 
supportive of moving forward with a bill to deal with the sentencing 
disparity that relates to crack cocaine and powder cocaine.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1693, the EQUAL Act, 
legislation that will finally eliminate the Federal crack and powder 
cocaine sentencing disparity, which has devastated lives and families 
and communities throughout the country.
  As has been indicated, in 1986, shortly after the tragic death of 
basketball star, Len Bias, the Anti-Drug Abuse Act established a 100:1 
disparity in sentencing for crack cocaine and powder cocaine. As a 
result, 500 grams of powder and 5 grams of crack triggered the same 5-
year mandatory prison sentence.
  Yet, there is no policy justification for punishing crack cocaine 
offenses more harshly than the same offense involving powder cocaine. 
And there is no pharmacological difference between how the body 
processes crack cocaine and how it processes powder cocaine, 
notwithstanding the thinking at the time.
  Where there is a difference is the law's impact on communities of 
color. The burden has disproportionately fallen on African-American 
communities. 77.1 percent of the crack cocaine offenders convicted were 
Black, while most powder cocaine traffickers are non-Black.
  There was an overall impact as well. Our system of mass incarceration 
costs us at least $180 billion per year, money that could otherwise be 
invested in the well-being of everyday Americans in inner-city America, 
rural America, suburban America, small-town America, Appalachia as 
well.
  Policy and this failed war on drugs has not resulted in improved 
public safety, which is why the EQUAL Act is supported by law 
enforcement groups like the Major Cities Chiefs Association, the 
Association of Prosecuting Attorneys, and perhaps most importantly, the 
National District Attorneys Association.
  Recognizing the sentencing disparity as a failure, Congress has acted 
several times to incrementally address this disparity. In 2010, with 
passage of the Fair Sentencing Act, the disparity was reduced from 
100:1 to 18:1, in legislation signed into law by then-President Barack 
Obama. In 2018, with the First Step Act, legislation signed into law by 
then-President Donald Trump, that 18:1 sentencing disparity was made 
retroactive. And now Congress has an opportunity to finish the job.
  Today, the House of Representatives is poised in a bipartisan way to 
get that done.
  Fifty years ago, the failed war on drugs was first launched when the 
President at the time declared drug abuse public enemy number one. At 
the time there were less than 300,000 people incarcerated in America. 
Today, 2.3 million--disproportionately Black and Latino, many of them 
nonviolent drug offenders--who instead of receiving incarceration 
should have received drug treatment.
  It was a failed policy then. And we can't repeat that policy today, 
as so many folks are dealing with the scourge of opioid addiction. That 
is why I am so thankful that we are coming together to pass the EQUAL 
Act to end the disparity and to address the error of mass 
incarceration.
  Mr. GOHMERT. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I appreciate my friend Mr. Jeffries mentioning Cedric 
Richmond and also Kelly Armstrong who were such an important part of 
bringing this bill to this place.
  Of course, Congressman Cedric Richmond has passed on to his just 
reward.

[[Page H5479]]

Of course, that means going to the White House to work. Mr. Armstrong 
is still here laboring in the field. He was unable to be here and asked 
that I read this statement from him into the Record.
  He said: ``I wish I could be here today, but I am grateful to 
Representative Gohmert for sharing my remarks with the Chamber.
  ``I am proud to support passage of the EQUAL Act, which will finally 
provide sentencing parity for Federal crack and powder cocaine 
offenses.
  ``This bill will also provide relief to those who have been sentenced 
under the previous unequal guidelines. In 1986, the Anti-Drug Abuse Act 
created a 100:1 sentencing disparity for crack cocaine and powder 
cocaine offenses. For instance, the law created a 5-year prison 
sentence for distribution of 5 grams of crack cocaine. At the same 
time, an individual would need to possess 100 times that amount of 
powder cocaine to receive the same sentence.
  ``The Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 reduced the disparity from 100:1 to 
18:1. The First Step Act of 2018 was supposed to make the 18:1 change 
retroactive. The EQUAL Act not only provides sentencing parity for 
crack and powder cocaine offenses, it also solves the retroactivity and 
implementation issues.
  ``This is not being soft on crime. It is being smart on crime. Many 
Americans struggling with addiction are no stranger to the Federal 
prison system. We know that addressing substance use disorder and 
mental health challenges are the most effective way to help these 
individuals as well as improve our communities.

  ``The answer isn't to lock people up for crimes of addiction. We 
tried that method for decades, it does not work. In an increasingly 
partisan time, the EQUAL Act is an example of how commonsense 
legislation can receive bipartisan support from across the political 
spectrum. You don't have to look further than the prime sponsors of 
this bill.
  ``I am a conservative Republican from North Dakota. Congressman 
Jeffries is a Democrat from New York City. We disagree on a lot of 
issues, but we have come together to support this bill because it is 
the right thing to do. It is also why this bill has broad support from 
across the ideological spectrum.
  ``The House Judiciary Committee reported the EQUAL Act favorably by a 
vote of 36-5. The bill also is supported by dozens of group ranging 
from the ACLU to Americans for Prosperity.
  ``Thank you to everyone who has worked so hard to bring us to this 
point. I urge everyone to support the EQUAL Act.''
  That ends the statement by Mr. Kelly Armstrong.
  Let me just say in conclusion--and I appreciated the comments of Mr. 
Jeffries regarding treatment--what I saw during my decade on the bench 
was, whether it was crack cocaine or powder cocaine, it was incredibly 
additive. And every now and then somebody might be able to deal with 
their addiction in a 30-day program, but normally it took a lot longer 
than 30 days.
  Something I thought Texas did right was have an up to 12 months 
substance abuse felony punishment facility. Some thought it was strange 
that a strong conservative, like myself, used that as much as I did. I 
saw that this is so additive and it needs a length of time to help 
people change their lives for such a time that they have got a better 
chance of making it out, understanding just how addictive those 
substances are, all coming from cocaine.
  I know the second checks act dealt with some of those issues, but it 
might be something else we can do in the future, where if you are 
convicted of an offense where you are an addict, then a long-term 
substance abuse facility where you are only with people with your same 
problem. And it is a lockdown facility, you don't have a choice of 
going anywhere.
  And as I have sat and watched some of the encounters in the meetings, 
like AA, that you have there in those facilities, boy, they have a BS-
detector. They don't let people get away with anything. They have been 
there. They know, and it had a better success rate than any other 
program that I had seen.
  So this is a great start toward getting the right thing done, and I 
appreciate Mr. Jeffries, and in the past, Mr. Richmond--I know it was 
his desire--and Chairman Nadler, for making this happen.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the distinguished 
gentleman from Rhode Island (Mr. Cicilline).
  Mr. CICILLINE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the EQUAL Act 
which eliminates the discriminatory sentencing disparity between crack 
and powder cocaine.
  I want to thank Chairman Nadler for his leadership in bringing this 
bill before our committee and its quick passage. And, of course, I 
thank Chairman Jeffries and Mr. Armstrong and Chairman Scott for their 
leadership on this issue.
  As you know, Mr. Speaker, 35 years ago, Congress passed the Anti-Drug 
Abuse Act, which created this drastic sentencing disparity between two 
types of cocaine; the same substance, just in a different form. And as 
has been explained, under the disparity you needed 100 times the amount 
of powder cocaine than crack cocaine to get the same sentence.
  There was no scientific basis for this, no empirical evidence that 
there was any difference. The harm that this caused was devastating to 
so many. For more than three decades defendants have suffered under 
this disparity with highly disproportionate impacts on communities of 
color. That has led to mass incarceration and, as I said, the 
destruction of so many lives unnecessarily.
  In 2010, Congress changed the sentencing disparity from a 100:1 to 
18:1. And while that was some progress, in 2018, we improved on that 
even more under the extraordinary leadership of Mr. Jeffries by making 
it retroactive. But while it was a step in the right direction, making 
the disparity smaller did not make the sentencing fair. And today we 
finally do that.
  I served as a public defender and a criminal defense lawyer for many 
years, and I have seen, unfortunately, how often our criminal justice 
systems fails to deliver justice. And this disparity is just one of 
those examples. This vital legislation will at last fully resolve the 
discriminatory sentencing disparities between crack and powder cocaine 
and correct this injustice for so many.
  Our prisons are overcrowded and lives are unfairly harmed every day, 
especially in communities of color, because of unjust and 
discriminatory sentencing laws resulting in mass incarceration and 
other harms.
  The EQUAL Act is one important step of so many that we have to take 
to end this cycle. I want to end again by thanking Mr. Jeffries for his 
extraordinary leadership on this bill. I thank Mr. Nadler for bringing 
this bill to the floor, and I am delighted it is bipartisan.
  And if Mr. Gohmert is right, that Texas did this some years ago, 1:1, 
I will say words that I never expected to say on the House floor in my 
life: We need to follow the lead of Texas.

                              {time}  1315

  Mr. GOHMERT. I continue to reserve the balance of my time, Mr. 
Speaker.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the distinguished 
gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee).
  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the distinguished chairman of 
the Judiciary Committee for yielding and with the distinguished 
gentleman from Rhode Island, Judge Gohmert knows, and we know that 
Texas knows how to lead. So I thank them so very much for bringing that 
to our attention.
  Let me take just a moment to turn and say thank you to Chairman 
Jeffries for leading us on and providing the energy and the engine for 
doing something that is and will continue to be lifesaving.
  It is my life's work to use the criminal justice system as a reform 
mechanism to save lives and to ensure that it is not a system that 
unequally prides itself on supporting the rights sometimes of the 
offender without acknowledging the rights of the victim.
  In many instances in addiction, Mr. Speaker, you will find persons 
who go awry of the criminal justice system as victims because they then 
are not given the treatment that they should get, or they are not given 
the recognition of the question of how you can

[[Page H5480]]

fairly address these laws. They are, in fact, becoming victims. They 
are victims of the system. They become incarcerated. They lose their 
right to vote. Their families are separated from them. They are 
stigmatized. They may lose their life's dream of being a teacher or a 
police officer or a lawyer.
  We don't know what lives we lost in the so-called war on drugs and 
how many fell by the wayside. So I am proud to support H.R. 1693, the 
EQUAL Act of 2021, which will finally eliminate the sentencing 
disparity between crack cocaine and powder cocaine offenses and provide 
retroactive relief to thousands of people who received harsh and unfair 
sentences based on this disparity.
  The crack and powder cocaine sentencing disparity is another 
byproduct of our country's failed war on drugs. I have long championed 
for the equalization of crack cocaine and powder cocaine offenses. The 
evidence of the statement of support and comments of our co-manager, 
Mr. Gohmert from Texas, and as well the letter from Mr. Armstrong 
showed the bipartisan recognition of where we are today.
  I want to thank the members of the Crime, Terrorism and Homeland 
Security Subcommittee who collectively have had a vision along with all 
the members of the Judiciary Committee.
  What are we doing there?
  Yes, we are there to uphold laws to promote the legal process under 
the system called criminal justice, but we are surely there to ensure 
that criminal justice works.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Carter of Louisiana). The time of the 
gentlewoman has expired.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentlewoman from Texas an 
additional 1 minute.
  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Beginning in 2007 I introduced legislation that 
would have ended the disparity, because we had learned that most of the 
assumptions on which the 100-to-1 ratio was based turned out to be 
unfounded. Those unfounded assumptions damaged communities of color for 
generations. A higher percentage of Black Americans are convicted of 
crack cocaine versus powder cocaine offenses and receive significantly 
longer sentences for comparable offenses, and the percentage of 
individuals serving unreasonably long sentences is because that 
disparity exists.
  Let me also indicate, I was happy to introduce an amendment to allow 
the courts to grant sentence reductions absent the defendant's presence 
as required today. This will eliminate the court's logjam, and some of 
these individuals are, in fact, incarcerated still. Individuals like 
William Underwood, Matthew Charles, and Cynthia Shank all testified 
before the House and Senate Judiciary Committees about the devastating 
impact that sentencing disparity and mandatory minimum laws have had on 
them, their families, and countless others.
  I can assure you, Mr. Speaker, this legislation is long overdue. I am 
excited that the introduction of my legislation now today will become 
reality, and I am excited to be a partner and working with Chairman 
Jeffries on this important legislation.
  Finally, to conclude, I want just to say that race has been a factor, 
and we are glad that we are moving beyond that. We must pass the EQUAL 
Act.
  Mr. GOHMERT. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my 
time.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the distinguished 
gentlewoman from Michigan (Ms. Tlaib).
  Ms. TLAIB. Mr. Speaker, as someone who grew up in a community on the 
front line of the racist so-called war on drugs, I am proud to stand 
here today in support of the EQUAL Act to eliminate racial disparities 
in crack and powder cocaine possession.
  The war on drugs was designed as a racist project to target Black and 
Brown Americans--my neighbors--and the obvious racial disparities in 
enforcement show us that it still is at its core a racist effort 
targeting communities of color through over-policing, criminalization, 
and mass incarceration.
  Simply put, addiction is a health condition not a crime. Giving 
incarcerated people an opportunity to be resentenced will transform 
lives immediately. We need to be doing more to make reparations to 
those impacted by the so-called war on drugs. While this bill is a 
great step on the road to comprehensive drug and criminal justice 
reform, we must go further. Our goal must be to end this country's 
militarized ``jail first, ask questions later'' approach to addiction 
and stop trying to solve social problems with policing.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentlewoman has expired.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentlewoman from Michigan an 
additional 1 minute.
  Ms. TLAIB. Mr. Speaker, I look forward to supporting the future 
legislation aimed at comprehensive decriminalization of possession for 
personal use of these substances and strongly encourage my colleagues 
to support this commonsense bill.

  Lastly, it is a personal honor to support and uplift Kandia Milton 
who approached me about this bill and who is with Dreams Corps JUSTICE 
in Detroit.
  Mr. Speaker, I am grateful for Kandia's work. It allows me to also 
fight for all of us today.
  Mr. GOHMERT. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I am 
prepared to close.
  Mr. GOHMERT. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the chairman's efforts in 
regard to this bill.
  Mr. Speaker, at this time, I urge my colleagues to support this bill, 
and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, the EQUAL Act of 2021 represents an 
important step in our efforts to reform the criminal justice system. I 
thank Representatives Jeffries, Scott, Armstrong, and Bacon for their 
leadership in introducing this important legislation and for assembling 
a broad and bipartisan coalition of stakeholders in support of the 
bill, including the Department of Justice and advocacy groups that span 
the entire ideological spectrum.
  Mr. Speaker, I strongly urge my colleagues to join me in supporting 
this bipartisan bill today, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 
1693, the EQUAL Act, which would eliminate the sentencing disparity 
between crack and powder cocaine. I would like to thank my colleagues 
Representatives Jeffries, Bacon, and Armstrong for their work to bring 
this bill to the floor today.
  In 1986, the Anti-Drug Abuse Act created a 100-to-1 sentencing 
disparity between the amount of crack cocaine that triggered an 
automatic 5-year mandatory minimum sentence and the amount of powder 
cocaine that would trigger the same punishment. This sentencing 
disparity had a racially disparate impact on Black communities, did 
nothing to change personal behaviors, and has been a tremendous waste 
of taxpayer money and resources. There are no pharmacological 
differences between these two substances. Yet more than 80 percent of 
people convicted in federal court for crack offenses are Black, while 
only 27 percent of those convicted of powder cocaine offenses are 
Black.
  The crack cocaine sentencing disparity has forced judges to impose 
higher penalties for very small amounts of crack cocaine. This also had 
the bizarre effect of punishing those individuals lower in the drug 
distribution chain much more severely than the actual drug kingpins for 
two reasons: the kingpins generally distribute powder from which the 
crack is produced, and lower level defendants often lack information on 
the drug operation that they can turn over to prosecutors in order to 
obtain sentencing credit for cooperation.
  Mandatory minimums, whether they are equal or not, must be 
eliminated. The ``tough on crime'' policies based on slogans and sound 
bites have failed, and mandatory minimums have been studied 
extensively--they fail to reduce crime, they waste taxpayers' money and 
often require judges to impose sentences that violate common sense. 
Instead of arguing about whether someone should receive a five-year 
mandatory minimum, we should be investing in early education, workforce 
training, and our communities.
  The EQUAL Act is the next step on the long road toward eliminating 
this unfair sentencing disparity. In 2009, I led the effort in the 
House to eliminate this disparity in the Fairness in Cocaine Sentencing 
Act. That effort eventually led to the 2010 passage of the Fair 
Sentencing Act, which reduced the crack/powder cocaine disparity from 
100:1 to 18:1. That was a hard-fought compromise, and the EQUAL Act 
will finally end this disparity. This is an important step toward 
fixing our criminal justice system and making it fairer. I urge my 
colleagues to support this bill and hope the Senate moves quickly to 
send this bill to the President's desk.

[[Page H5481]]

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from New York (Mr. Nadler) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 1693, 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 SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to section 3(s) of House Resolution 
8, the yeas and nays are ordered.
  Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further proceedings on this motion 
are postponed.

                          ____________________