[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 4]
[Senate]
[Page 4614]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



  (At the request of Mr. Reid, the following statement was ordered to 
be printed in the Record.)

                       SECOND CHANCE ACT OF 2007

 Mr. OBAMA. Mr. President, I wish to speak in favor of the 
Second Chance Act of 2007, a bill to strengthen community safety by 
improving the reintegration of people returning from prison. The Senate 
recently passed this measure, and I am proud to have worked over the 
past few years with Senators Biden, Brownback, and Specter to see this 
important bill reach this point. Having passed in the House as well, 
the Second Chance Act is now ready for President Bush's signature, and 
I urge him to sign this bill into law as soon as possible.
  We have a broken criminal justice system and too many people are 
caught in its web, especially African-American men, nearly a third of 
whom will enter State or Federal prison during their lives. What is 
equally tragic is that nearly two-thirds of the 1,800 people released 
from prison every day return to jail within 3 years.
  The stark reality is that most communities where prisoners go upon 
release already struggle with highly concentrated poverty, 
unemployment, fragile families, and a dearth of jobs. And even if 
released prisoners do find a promising job opportunity, they often face 
employer resistance to hiring people with criminal backgrounds. In many 
cases, they will fail to become fully rehabilitated and go on to commit 
more crimes.
  We must end this revolving door of failure. We must create a pathway 
for people coming out of jail to get the jobs, skills, and education 
they need to reject a life of crime in favor of honest contributions to 
their communities.
  There is no question that breaking the law should have consequences. 
And it is true that we have to do more as parents to teach our children 
that violence is always wrong. But if convicted offenders are not given 
the tools they need to become constructive members of our communities 
after they serve their time, we all suffer the consequences.
  That is why the passage of the Second Chance Act is so important. 
This measure will support faith- and community-based organizations 
working with State and local authorities to give former prisoners a 
second chance at a meaningful life. It makes funding available for 
transitional jobs programs and housing, for support health services, 
and educational needs. Moreover, priority is given to projects that 
serve communities with large ex-prisoner populations and to those that 
do a good job of reintegrating their participants.
  Again, I commend my colleagues in the Senate and House of 
Representatives, Democrats and Republicans, who supported the Second 
Chance Act. I urge the President of the United States to act quickly to 
enact this bill into law.

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