First Step Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. GRASSLEY. 3649, a bill to provide for programs to help reduce the risk that prisoners will recidivate upon release from prison, and for other purposes.

FOP Partners With President Trump on Criminal Justice Reform Revised and amended First Step Act to be introduced next week

Chuck Canterbury, National President of the Fraternal Order of Police, announced his support today for legislation developed by the Administration to make important reforms to our nation's criminal justice system.

``The President and his team have been working hard on this issue since Inauguration Day,'' Canterbury said. ``From the outset, they let us know they wanted our input because this effort could not succeed without our support. We are proud to announce that by working together with the Administration and leaders on Capitol Hill we have a bill that will make our streets and neighborhoods safer, our police will be better protected and improve the ability of our criminal justice system to effectively rehabilitate offenders.''

The legislation, entitled the ``First Step Act,'' would establish a comprehensive risk and needs assessment tool to provide an individual profile of all Federal inmates. Those offenders deemed to be at low risk to recidivate would be given incentives and access to evidence-based recidivist reduction programs to better prepare them to return to their neighborhoods and become productive members of the community.

``By individually targeting those offenders with the lowest risk to re-offend, law enforcement and correctional officers can better focus their resources,'' Canterbury explained. ``The FOP played a key role in making sure that truly dangerous offenders, like those who commit crimes while armed and those who traffic in deadly narcotics like fentanyl, are ineligible to participate in the First Step program.''

The legislation also contains certain sentencing reforms. The FOP engaged with our allies on Capitol Hill to make sure these changes are prospective and would not, except in the case of the existing Fair Sentencing Act, be applied retroactively. The bill also contains an FOP-backed provision that would improve the safety of our Federal correctional officers carrying firearms under the auspices of the Law Enforcement Officers' Safety Act.

``We have been proud to be a partner in this effort with President Trump and are grateful for his leadership and for his constant and unwavering support for law enforcement,'' Canterbury said. ``We look forward to working with him and with Congress to get this bill to his desk.''

The Fraternal Order of Police is the largest law enforcement labor organization in the United States with more than 345,000 members. ____ International Association of Chiefs of Police, Alexandria, VA, November 11, 2018. President Donald J. Trump, The White House, Washington, DC.

Dear President Trump: On behalf of the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP), the world's largest organization of law enforcement executives, I am writing in support of the updated version of the First Step Act. We applaud you and your Administration for your commitment to law enforcement and to making lasting reforms to our criminal justice system.

As you are aware, the IACP was supportive of the originally introduced First Step Act, but did have some feedback on changes that would further enhance the legislation. Your Administration worked with the IACP throughout this process to solicit our feedback and we applaud both you and your Administration for ensuring that this legislation achieves a proper balance of maintaining public safety while providing rehabilitation services and early release incentives to qualified federal prisoners.

The First Step Act contains several measures intended to more effectively rehabilitate prisoners so that they are less likely to reoffend after release and, thereby, are less likely to cause additional harm to society. These measures include education, job training, and other personal development programs, along with incentives, such as good time credits, to participate in these opportunities. The proposed legislation includes an expanded list of 49 convictions that would ensure that truly dangerous offenders are ineligible to receive time credits. In addition, the IACP is also pleased that the revised legislation contains provisions that ensure that certain sentencing reform provisions, unrelated to the Fair Sentencing Act, can only be applied prospectively thereby achieving the proper balance between reform and maintaining public safety.

Once introduced in the Senate, the IACP looks forward to working with Congress to continue to fine tune the legislation. A key item that we would like to see addressed is a notification system that will alert state and local law enforcement agencies and their communities when a rehabilitated offender is released into their jurisdiction. Ensuring proper notification will enable law enforcement and our communities to be aware when a rehabilitated offender returns. Additionally, while the IACP agrees that a portion of the savings associated with the reduction in recidivism resulting from this legislation be invested back into the Bureau of Prisons to continue evidence-based recidivism reduction programs, it is also essential that a portion of the savings be invested back into federal, state, and local law enforcement.

In addition, further enhancements could be made to the safety valve language. Before being eligible for any safety valve provision, it is imperative that all pertinent information and most importantly, information from local authorities be reviewed. The facts and circumstances of the original sentencing, including a review of any prior criminal conduct or any other relevant information from federal, state and local authorities should be considered before a determination is made regarding a reduction in sentence.

Finally, and most importantly, the IACP is pleased with the acknowledgement and commitment from the Administration that there is a true need to establish a National Commission on Law Enforcement and the Administration of Justice (Commission) to examine criminal justice issues in a broader and more strategic fashion. While the First Step Act aims to provide a solution to one of the many issues we are currently facing, it is not the ultimate fix to the multitude of issues confronting the criminal justice system. To move forward in a systematic way that provides cross-cutting solutions for multiple disciplines and issues, we need the Commission to serve as the catalyst for a long overdue strategic blueprint. Again, we appreciate the commitment from the White House to work towards the Commission's establishment, which has been one of the IACP's top priorities for more than two decades.

On behalf of our more than 30,000 members, thank you again for working with the IACP on this important issue. We look forward to continuing to work together as this legislation moves through the process. Sincerely, Paul M. Cell, IACP President. ____ National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives, Alexandria, VA, November 11, 2018. The President, The White House, Washington, DC.

Dear Mr. President: On behalf of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE), our Executive Board, local chapters, and members, I am writing to express support for the FIRST STEP Act (S. 2795/H.R. 5682). We applaud the White House and Congress for soliciting feedback from NOBLE and the law enforcement community in finalizing the content of this very important legislation. We feel the FIRST STEP Act strikes a balance between maintaining public safety while improving re-entry, rehabilitation, workforce training programs, and sentencing.

It is NOBLE's hope that this legislation strengthens bi- partisan efforts in reforming this nation's criminal justice system to ensure equity in the administration of justice. Our organization joins many law enforcement leaders in the belief that America can reduce incarceration levels while also reducing crime.

Lastly, we encourage the White House and Congress to continue to explore the establishment of a National Criminal Justice Commission. The purpose of this commission would be to undertake a comprehensive review of the criminal justice system.

We thank all parties who helped in the development of the FIRST STEP Act (S. 2795/H.R. 5682) and look forward to working collaboratively in ensuring equal protection under the law for all Americans. Sincerely, Vera Bumpers, National President, NOBLE. ____ November 13, 2018. Re Police Perspective: FIRST STEP Act (S. 2795) & Sentencing Reform. Hon. Donald J. Trump, The White House, Washington, DC.

Dear President Trump: I write to you today as Executive Director of Law Enforcement Leaders to Reduce Crime & Incarceration, a bipartisan group of more than 200 current and former law enforcement officials.

Today, our nation faces new criminal justice challenges, including a rise in opioid overdoses, an uptick in homicides in some cities, and strained police-community relations. While there is no one-size-fits-all solution, we as leaders in law enforcement feel compelled to share our views on how passing prison and sentencing reform together is vital to keeping our nation safe.

First, I wanted to share our briefing memo explaining how the FIRST STEP Act and sentencing reform will improve public safety. Americans trust us, as law enforcement officers, to both secure the safety of their communities and advise policymakers on how to advance that goal. We hope this information helps ease any concerns surrounding the bill Our position is also in line with that of the Fraternal Order of Police, which recently endorsed bipartisan efforts toward justice reform.

Second, I wanted to share our previous letter supporting the FIRST STEP Act and sentencing reform sent to leaders in Congress, explaining the necessity of passing sentencing and prison reform together to reduce recidivism and increase fairness. Over 60 of our members signed onto this letter, writing everywhere from Virginia to New Orleans to Iowa, to share their views. I have expressed similar views in the The Hill, with Washington Police Chief Peter Newsham.

We are grateful for your unwavering leadership in prioritizing public safety and the critical issues facing law enforcement. I hope we can work together toward bipartisan reforms. Respectfully yours,

Ronal Serpas,

Executive Director, Law Enforcement Leaders to Reduce Crime & Incarceration.

Former Police Superintendent, New Orleans, Louisiana.

Former Police Chief, Nashville, Tennessee. ____ National District Attorneys Association, November 13, 2018. President Donald J. Trump, The White House, Washington, DC.

Dear President Trump: On behalf of the National District Attorneys Association (NDAA), the largest prosecutor organization in the country representing 2,500 elected and appointed District Attorneys as well as 40,000 Assistant District Attorneys, who collectively prosecute around 95 percent of the crime in the United States, I write to support the revised First Step Act. This legislation is a bipartisan effort to address front-end sentencing reform and back-end prison reform, and our association is appreciative of your efforts to partner with the Nation's prosecutors on this important matter.

NDAA previously supported the Sentencing Reform & Corrections Act (SRCA) during the last Congress as a carefully crafted bipartisan compromise. After weeks of discussions with White House and Senate Judiciary Committee staff, our organization is confident that the revised First Step Act strikes an appropriate balance between addressing the needs of the current Federal prison population while ensuring criminals are penalized appropriately.

Tasked with the constitutional duty of protecting the communities we serve from bad actors while seeking justice for victims of crime and protecting the innocent, our members are acutely aware of the need for reforms to our criminal justice system. As currently written, the revised First Step Act includes much needed prison reform provisions that will provide the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) with the guidance and resources to assist in lowering recidivism rates for low-risk prisoners. Further, the addition of four sentencing reform provisions takes a precision-like approach to sentencing guidelines associated with certain crimes. Absent meaningful sentencing reform, where the truly dangerous are locked up for an appropriate period of time and those with addiction or mental health issues have the chance for treatment and rehabilitation, rising recidivism rates will continue to persist.

While the legislation makes its way to the Senate, NDAA plans to continue engaging with your staff and law enforcement stakeholders to improve the language in the revised First Step Act. Specifically, our organization is working to ensure any reinvestment of savings generated because of front-end sentencing reform provisions is invested back into state and local law enforcement and prosecutor agencies to prevent crime, target drug trafficking operations, train law enforcement and prosecutors in the field and respond to other emerging issues within the criminal justice system.

Our members continue to call for a new commission to explore issues across the criminal justice system to ensure law enforcement and prosecutors can protect the communities they serve and respond to emerging issues in the field. In partnership with your administration, we hope to make that call a reality. As part of that commission, it is imperative that the local prosecutor perspective is represented as the legal end of the criminal justice system continuum. Without it, a comprehensive review of the broader stakeholder system is incomplete. NDAA looks forward to having one of our members bring the state and local prosecutor's valuable perspective to the table once the commission is established.

We appreciate your efforts, as well as the efforts of a bipartisan group of Members of Congress and staff, to ensure the American criminal justice system is continually improved upon and seen as a model for innovative and cutting-edge programming that we see in our own members' offices every day. Thank you for working with the Nation's prosecutors and NDAA on this historic effort. Sincerely, Jonathan Blodgett, President.

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