II 111TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 714 To establish the National Criminal Justice Commission. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MARCH 26, 2009 Mr....

II 111 TH CONGRESS 1 ST SESSION S. 714 To establish the National Criminal Justice Commission. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MARCH 26, 2009 Mr. W EBB (for himself, Mr. S PECTER , Mr. R EID , Mr. L EAHY , Mr. D URBIN , Mr. G RAHAM , Mr. S CHUMER , Mrs. M URRAY , Mr. W YDEN , Mr. B ROWN , Mr. W ARNER , Mrs. G ILLIBRAND , Mr. B URRIS , Mr. K ENNEDY , Mr.

C ARDIN , and Mrs. M CCASKILL ) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary A BILL To establish the National Criminal Justice Commission.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Criminal Jus- 4 tice Commission Act of 2009’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress finds the following: 7 (1) The United States has the highest reported 8 incarceration rate in the world, imprisoning a higher 9 percentage of its population than any other country. 10 VerDate Nov 24 2008 03:39 Mar 27, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S714.IS S714rfrederick on PROD1PC67 with BILLS 2 •S 714 IS The American incarceration rate is five times the 1 world’s average incarceration rate. A total of 2 2,380,000 people are in prison. 3 (2) Although criminal justice laws and legal 4 procedures depend heavily on State and local law, 5 and although a majority of those imprisoned in the 6 United States are held in non-Federal institutions, 7 the conditions under which Americans are incarcer- 8 ated and the manner in which former inmates reen- 9 ter society is a compelling national interest that po- 10 tentially affects every American citizen and every lo- 11 cality in the country. 12 (3) The American public and their elected offi- 13 cials at all levels of government overwhelmingly sup- 14 port the punishment and incarceration of violent 15 criminals, as well as those who direct and participate 16 in criminal enterprises. 17 (4) Minorities make up a disproportionately 18 large share of prison populations. Black males have 19 a 32 percent chance of serving time in prison at 20 some point in their lives; Hispanic males have a 17 21 percent chance; white males have a 6 percent 22 chance. 23 (5) The number of persons on probation and 24 parole has been growing along with institutional 25 VerDate Nov 24 2008 03:39 Mar 27, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S714.IS S714rfrederick on PROD1PC67 with BILLS 3 •S 714 IS populations. There are 7,300,000 Americans incar- 1 cerated or on probation or parole, equal to 1 in 2 every 31 adults, an increase of 290 percent since 3 1980. 4 (6) The number of exoffenders returning to 5 their communities from Federal and State prisons 6 rose to 725,000 in 2007, an increase of 19.9 percent 7 since 2000, and a more than doubling in the past 2 8 decades. On average, 2 out of every 3 released pris- 9 oners will be rearrested and 1 in 2 will return to 10 prison within 3 years of release. 11 (7) Spending on corrections consumes an in- 12 creasingly large portion of resources at all levels of 13 government. Corrections expenditures compete with 14 and diminish funding for education, public health, 15 public safety, parks and recreation, and programs 16 specifically designed to reduce the prison population. 17 An analysis by the Pew Charitable Trusts found 18 that over the past 20 years, inflation-adjusted state 19 spending on corrections rose 127 percent while high- 20 er education expenditures rose just 21 percent. 21 (8) The National Gang Threat Assessment re- 22 ports that there are approximately 1,000,000 gang 23 members in the United States. According to report- 24 ing by local law enforcement, gangs commit ‘‘as 25 VerDate Nov 24 2008 03:39 Mar 27, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S714.IS S714rfrederick on PROD1PC67 with BILLS 4 •S 714 IS much as 80 percent of the crime in some locations’’. 1 Gangs are primary retail distributors of illicit drugs, 2 some of which operate at the regional or national 3 level. According to the 2008 National Drug Threat 4 Survey, 58 percent of law enforcement agencies re- 5 port gang involvement in drug distribution. 6 (9) The combination of gang activity and the 7 movement of illegal drugs into the country has re- 8 sulted in unprecedented levels of sophisticated, orga- 9 nized violence along America’s southern border and 10 in hundreds of American communities. More than 11 6,000 people died in Mexico in 2008 alone as a re- 12 sult of drug-related violence. 13 (10) Despite high incarceration rates for drug- 14 related offenses, illicit drug availability remains con- 15 sistent. 86 percent of high school students report 16 that it is ‘‘very easy’’ or ‘‘fairly easy’’ to obtain 17 marijuana. 47 percent report the same for cocaine, 18 39 percent for crack, and 27 percent for heroin. 19 (11) Those addicted to and abusive of illicit 20 drugs are an estimated 10 to 20 percent of the drug 21 using population, but account for an estimated half 22 of all illicit drug consumption. Treating addiction 23 will significantly help decrease demand. 24 VerDate Nov 24 2008 03:39 Mar 27, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S714.IS S714rfrederick on PROD1PC67 with BILLS 5 •S 714 IS (12) Drug offenders in prisons and jails have 1 increased 1200 percent since 1980. Nearly a half 2 million persons are in Federal or State prison or 3 local jail for a drug offense, compared to an esti- 4 mated 41,100 in 1980. A significant percentage of 5 these offenders have no history of violence or high- 6 level drug selling activity. 7 (13) Prisons and jails nationwide have become 8 holding facilities for the mentally ill. There are an 9 estimated 350,000 men and women in prisons and 10 jails with serious mental disorders. Approximately 4 11 times as many mentally ill people are in prisons than 12 in mental health hospitals. Prisoners are 2 to 4 13 times more likely than the general population to be 14 schizophrenic, depressed, bipolar, or suffering from 15 post-traumatic stress disorder. Approximately 73 16 percent of mentally ill inmates suffer from a sub- 17 stance abuse disorder. 18 (14) Prisons have become public health risks. 19 The number of State prisoners with HIV is 2.5 20 times greater than the general population. The num- 21 ber of State prisoners with hepatitis C is 9 times 22 that of the general population. 23 (15) Prison administration is uneven, lacking 24 clear, affirmative standards of training and perform- 25 VerDate Nov 24 2008 03:39 Mar 27, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S714.IS S714rfrederick on PROD1PC67 with BILLS 6 •S 714 IS ance, varying greatly from institution to institution, 1 locality to locality, and among Federal, State and 2 local jurisdictions. 3 (16) According to a 2007 Bureau of Justice 4 Statistics survey, an estimated 60,500 inmates (or 5 4.5 percent of all Federal and State inmates) experi- 6 enced 1 or more incidents of sexual victimization in- 7 volving other inmates or staff. Analyses suggest that 8 official records of assault in prison (both physical 9 and sexual) only reflect 10 to 20 percent of all as- 10 saults in prison. 11 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMISSION. 12 There is established a commission to be known as the 13 ‘‘National Criminal Justice Commission’’ (referred to in 14 this Act as the ‘‘Commission’’). 15 SEC. 4. PURPOSE OF THE COMMISSION. 16 The Commission shall undertake a comprehensive re- 17 view of the criminal justice system, make findings related 18 to current Federal and State criminal justice policies and 19 practices, and make reform recommendations for the 20 President, Congress, and State governments to improve 21 public safety, cost-effectiveness, overall prison administra- 22 tion, and fairness in the implementation of the Nation’s 23 criminal justice system. 24 VerDate Nov 24 2008 03:39 Mar 27, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S714.IS S714rfrederick on PROD1PC67 with BILLS 7 •S 714 IS SEC. 5. REVIEW AND FINDINGS. 1 (a) G ENERAL REVIEW .—The Commission shall re- 2 view all areas of Federal and State criminal justice costs, 3 practices, and policies. 4 (b) S PECIFIC FINDINGS .—In conducting the review, 5 the Commission shall make such findings as it deems ap- 6 propriate, including— 7 (1) the statistical areas of increase in the 8 United States incarceration rate compared to histor- 9 ical standards of incarceration in the United States 10 and the reasons for this increase; 11 (2) a comparison of incarceration policies, in- 12 cluding juvenile incarceration policies, in countries 13 with similar political systems including Western Eu- 14 rope and Japan, denoting the different standards 15 applied for types of crime, length of sentences, 16 standards of prison administration, quality of re- 17 entry programs for exoffenders, and recidivism rates; 18 (3) an examination of prison administration 19 policies at the Federal, State, and local levels, to in- 20 clude the availability and quality of preemployment 21 training programs and the availability of meaningful 22 career progression within the profession; 23 (4) the costs of current incarceration policies at 24 the Federal, State and local level, including the rel- 25 evant costs of law enforcement, the proportion of 26 VerDate Nov 24 2008 03:39 Mar 27, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S714.IS S714rfrederick on PROD1PC67 with BILLS 8 •S 714 IS that cost associated with gangs and drug enforce- 1 ment, the costs of constructing and administering 2 prison facilities, the costs of post-incarceration su- 3 pervision and reentry programs, and the cost of lost 4 economic opportunities associated with the stigma of 5 incarceration; 6 (5) an examination of the impact of gang activi- 7 ties in the United States, including the proportion of 8 these activities that are directed by foreign-based 9 gangs and syndicates, and outlining the impact of 10 these activities in terms of violence, intimidation, 11 and all areas of criminal activity; 12 (6) an examination of current drug policy and 13 its impact on incarceration, crime and violence, sen- 14 tencing, and reentry programs, to include an anal- 15 ysis of the general availability of drugs in our soci- 16 ety, the impact and effectiveness of current policies 17 on reducing that availability and on the incidence of 18 crime, and in the case of criminal offenders, the 19 availability of drug treatment programs before, dur- 20 ing, and after incarceration; 21 (7) an examination of the legal and administra- 22 tive changes in policies regarding those who suffer 23 from mental illness, including mandatory and vol- 24 untary commitment to institutional care, the effec- 25 VerDate Nov 24 2008 03:39 Mar 27, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S714.IS S714rfrederick on PROD1PC67 with BILLS 9 •S 714 IS tiveness and availability of alternative methods of 1 treatment, the impact of these policy changes on in- 2 carceration, and the availability of government spon- 3 sored or assisted programs to address mental illness; 4 (8) an examination of the historic role of the 5 military (active duty, National Guard, Coast Guard, 6 and reserve forces), in the prevention of crime, the 7 apprehension of criminals, the protection of Amer- 8 ican citizens, and the maintenance of stability along 9 the national borders; and 10 (9) any other area that the Commission in its 11 judgment believes relevant to a full understanding of 12 the present criminal justice system in the United 13 States. 14 SEC. 6. DUTIES OF THE COMMISSION. 15 (a) R ECOMMENDATIONS .—After conducting a review 16 of the United States criminal justice system and making 17 findings as required by section 5, the Commission shall 18 make recommendations for changes in policies and laws 19 designed to— 20 (1) refocus incarceration policies to reduce the 21 overall incarceration rate while preserving public 22 safety, cost-effectiveness, and societal fairness; 23 VerDate Nov 24 2008 03:39 Mar 27, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S714.IS S714rfrederick on PROD1PC67 with BILLS 10 •S 714 IS (2) decrease prison violence, with particular ref- 1 erence to protecting those incarcerated from physical 2 abuse; 3 (3) improve prison administration, including 4 Federal standards of competence and the creation of 5 a career path for prison administrators; 6 (4) institute the use of policies and practices 7 proven effective throughout the spectrum of criminal 8 behavior; 9 (5) establish a system for the reintegration of 10 exoffenders that provides productive skills and op- 11 portunities and improves communities’ ability to as- 12 similate former offenders; 13 (6) restructure the approach to criminalization 14 of, and incarceration as a result of the possession or 15 use of illegal drugs, decreasing the demand for illicit 16 drugs, and improving the treatment for addiction; 17 (7) improve and streamline the treatment of 18 mental illness, both in our society and in the crimi- 19 nal justice system; 20 (8) improve Federal and local responses to 21 international and domestic criminal activity and vio- 22 lence carried out by gangs, cartels, and syndicates, 23 particularly in relation to drug smuggling and dis- 24 tribution; and 25 VerDate Nov 24 2008 03:39 Mar 27, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S714.IS S714rfrederick on PROD1PC67 with BILLS 11 •S 714 IS (9) improve and reform any other aspect of the 1 United States criminal justice system the Commis- 2 sion determines is required. 3 (b) C OORDINATION W ITH INTERNATIONAL AND D O- 4 MESTIC GOVERNMENT AND N ONGOVERNMENT REP - 5 RESENTATIVES .—The Commission shall— 6 (1) consult with government and nongovern- 7 mental leaders, including State and local law en- 8 forcement officials; and 9 (2) include in its final report required by sub- 10 section (c) summaries of the input and recommenda- 11 tions of these leaders based on the recommendations 12 required by subsection (a). 13 (c) R EPORT .— 14 (1) R EPORT .—Not later than 18 months after 15 the selection of the chair and the Executive Director 16 of the Commission, the Commission shall prepare 17 and submit a final report that contains a detailed 18 statement of findings, conclusions, and recommenda- 19 tions of the Commission to Congress and the Presi- 20 dent. 21 (2) P UBLIC AVAILABILITY .—The report sub- 22 mitted under this subsection shall be made available 23 to the public. 24 VerDate Nov 24 2008 03:39 Mar 27, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S714.IS S714rfrederick on PROD1PC67 with BILLS 12 •S 714 IS SEC. 7. MEMBERSHIP. 1 (a) I N GENERAL .—The Commission shall be com- 2 posed of 11 members, as follows: 3 (1) One member shall be appointed by the 4 President, who shall serve as Chairman of the Com- 5 mission. 6 (2) Two members appointed by the majority 7 leader of the Senate, in consultation with the Chair- 8 man of the Committee on Judiciary. 9 (3) Two members appointed by the minority 10 leader of the Senate, in consultation with the rank- 11 ing member of the Committee on Judiciary. 12 (4) Two members appointed by the Speaker of 13 the House of Representatives, in consultation with 14 the Chairman of the Committee on Judiciary. 15 (5) Two members appointed by the minority 16 leader of the House of Representatives, in consulta- 17 tion with the ranking member of the Committee on 18 Judiciary. 19 (6) One member appointed by the Chairman of 20 the Republican Governors Association. 21 (7) One member appointed by the Chairman of 22 the Democratic Governors Association. 23 (b) M EMBERSHIP .— 24 (1) Q UALIFICATIONS .—The individuals ap- 25 pointed from private life as members of the Commis- 26 VerDate Nov 24 2008 03:39 Mar 27, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S714.IS S714rfrederick on PROD1PC67 with BILLS 13 •S 714 IS sion shall be individuals who are nationally recog- 1 nized for expertise, knowledge, or experience in such 2 relevant areas as— 3 (A) law enforcement; 4 (B) criminal justice; 5 (C) national security; 6 (D) prison administration; 7 (E) prisoner reentry; 8 (F) public health, including drug addiction 9 and mental health; 10 (G) victims’ rights; and 11 (H) social services. 12 (2) D ISQUALIFICATION .—An individual shall 13 not be appointed as a member of the Commission if 14 such individual possesses any personal or financial 15 interest in the discharge of any of the duties of the 16 Commission. 17 (3) T ERMS .—Members shall be appointed for 18 the life of the Commission. 19 (c) A PPOINTMENT ; I NITIAL M EETING .— 20 (1) A PPOINTMENT .—Members of the Commis- 21 sion shall be appointed not later than 45 days after 22 the date of the enactment of this Act. 23 VerDate Nov 24 2008 03:39 Mar 27, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S714.IS S714rfrederick on PROD1PC67 with BILLS 14 •S 714 IS (2) I NITIAL MEETING .—The Commission shall 1 hold its initial meeting on the date that is 60 days 2 after the date of the enactment of this Act. 3 (d) M EETINGS ; Q UORUM ; V ACANCIES .— 4 (1) M EETINGS .—The Commission shall meet at 5 the call of the chair or a majority of its members. 6 (2) Q UORUM .—Six members of the Commis- 7 sion, including at least one member chosen by the 8 minority leader of the Senate, minority leader of the 9 House of Representatives, or Chairman of the Re- 10 publican Governors Association, shall constitute a 11 quorum for purposes of conducting business, except 12 that 2 members of the Commission shall constitute 13 a quorum for purposes of receiving testimony. 14 (3) V ACANCIES .—Any vacancy in the Commis- 15 sion shall not affect its powers, but shall be filled in 16 the same manner in which the original appointment 17 was made. If vacancies in the Commission occur on 18 any day after 45 days after the date of the enact- 19 ment of this Act, a quorum shall consist of a major- 20 ity of the members of the Commission as of such 21 day, so long as at least one Commission member 22 chosen by a member of each party, Republican and 23 Democratic, is present. 24 (e) A CTIONS OF COMMISSION .— 25 VerDate Nov 24 2008 03:39 Mar 27, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S714.IS S714rfrederick on PROD1PC67 with BILLS 15 •S 714 IS (1) I N GENERAL .—The Commission— 1 (A) shall act by resolution agreed to by a 2 majority of the members of the Commission 3 voting and present; and 4 (B) may establish panels composed of less 5 than the full membership of the Commission for 6 purposes of carrying out the duties of the Com- 7 mission under this title— 8 (i) which shall be subject to the review 9 and control of the Commission; and 10 (ii) any findings and determinations 11 made by such a panel shall not be consid- 12 ered the findings and determinations of the 13 Commission unless approved by the Com- 14 mission. 15 (2) D ELEGATION .—Any member, agent, or staff 16 of the Commission may, if authorized by the chair 17 of the Commission, take any action which the Com- 18 mission is authorized to take pursuant to this Act. 19 SEC. 8. ADMINISTRATION. 20 (a) T RAVEL EXPENSES .—Members shall receive trav- 21 el expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, in 22 accordance with sections 5702 and 5703 of title 5, United 23 States Code, while away from their homes or regular 24 VerDate Nov 24 2008 03:39 Mar 27, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00015 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S714.IS S714rfrederick on PROD1PC67 with BILLS 16 •S 714 IS places of business in performance of services for the Com- 1 mission. 2 (b) S TAFF .— 3 (1) E XECUTIVE DIRECTOR .—The Commission 4 shall have a staff headed by an Executive Director. 5 The Executive Director shall be paid at a rate equiv- 6 alent to a rate established for the Senior Executive 7 Service under section 5382 of title 5, United States 8 Code. 9 (2) S TAFF APPOINTMENT .—With the approval 10 of the Commission, the Executive Director may ap- 11 point such personnel as the Executive Director de- 12 termines to be appropriate. 13 (3) E XPERTS AND CONSULTANTS .—With the 14 approval of the Commission, the Executive Director 15 may procure temporary and intermittent services 16 under section 3109(b) of title 5, United States Code. 17 (4) D ETAIL OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES .— 18 Upon the request of the Commission, the head of 19 any Federal agency may detail, without reimburse- 20 ment, any of the personnel of such agency to the 21 Commission to assist in carrying out the duties of 22 the Commission. Any such detail shall not interrupt 23 or otherwise affect the civil service status or privi- 24 leges of the Federal employee. 25 VerDate Nov 24 2008 03:39 Mar 27, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00016 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S714.IS S714rfrederick on PROD1PC67 with BILLS 17 •S 714 IS (5) O THER RESOURCES .—The Commission 1 shall have reasonable access to materials, resources, 2 statistical data, and other information such Commis- 3 sion determines to be necessary to carry out its du- 4 ties from the Library of Congress, the Office of Na- 5 tional Drug Control Policy, the Department of 6 State, and other agencies of the executive and legis- 7 lative branches of the Federal Government. The 8 chair of the Commission shall make requests for 9 such access in writing when necessary. The Office of 10 National Drug Control Policy shall make office 11 space available for day-to-day Commission activities 12 and for the scheduled quarterly full Commission 13 meetings. 14 (c) O BTAINING OFFICIAL D ATA .—The Commission 15 may secure directly from any agency of the United States 16 information necessary to enable it to carry out this Act. 17 Upon the request of the Chair of the Commission, the 18 head of that department or agency shall furnish that infor- 19 mation to the Commission. 20 (d) M AILS .—The Commission may use the United 21 States mails in the same manner and under the same con- 22 ditions as other departments and agencies of the United 23 States. 24 VerDate Nov 24 2008 03:39 Mar 27, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00017 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S714.IS S714rfrederick on PROD1PC67 with BILLS 18 •S 714 IS SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 1 (a) I N GENERAL .—There are authorized to be appro- 2 priated for fiscal years 2009 and 2010 such sums are as 3 necessary to carry out the purposes of this Act. 4 (b) A VAILABILITY .—Any sums appropriated under 5 the subsection (a) shall remain available, without fiscal 6 year limitation, until expended. 7 SEC. 10. SUNSET. 8 The Commission shall terminate 60 days after it sub- 9 mits its report to Congress. 10 Æ VerDate Nov 24 2008 03:39 Mar 27, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00018 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\S714.IS S714rfrederick on PROD1PC67 with BILLS