Second Chance Act

Floor Speech

Mr. Speaker, I am going to change the tenor a little bit and do a little switching, although I must confess that there is not much more important in this country than trying to make sure that citizens have access to quality, comprehensive health care. And I think that we are much closer to that than we have ever been and look forward to it actually happening.

As I was listening, I was reminded of something that my father used to tell us, that if you keep telling yourself the same thing over and over and over and over again, you will eventually get to the point where you believe it.

Being here to do a Special Order, though, reminds me of my good friend, Representative Major Owens, who was famous for doing Special Orders. I remember when I first came here that you could see Representative Major Owens on the floor late at night, by himself, talking about education and the need to make sure it happened. And I guess the fact that he was a trained librarian may have had something to do with that.

So I wanted to just take a moment and pay tribute to Representative Major Owens for the tremendous work that he did on education, and especially the work that he did that led to the creation of something called PBIs, predominantly black institutions, as a part of the Higher Education Act.

So, Major, many, many students will remember your contribution to the development of what we know as these 75 or so institutions across the country that are called predominantly black institutions, and who now receive special consideration for funds because of that designation.

I also, before I delve into my subject, want to express condolences to the family of Commissioner Devera Beverly, who passed away earlier this week and is known as probably the most profound advocate for public housing and public housing residents in the city of Chicago and, perhaps, throughout the Nation, because she has spent more than 30 years advocating for this population group and was a founding member of the Public Housing Museum, which is well on its way to being developed.

So we express condolences to the family, friends and associates of Commissioner Devera Beverly, who lived in the Abla Homes in Chicago. That is A-B-L-A, Abla Homes. But she was a public housing resident who advocated to the point of being selected by the mayor of the city of Chicago to be a commissioner of the Chicago Housing Authority. So we salute you, Ms. Devera Beverly.

Now I want to talk about something that is near and dear to my heart, but it is also near and dear to the hearts of many, and it is also part of a crisis that actually exists in our country.

Our country is known for many things, as it should be. It is one of the, and perhaps the, wealthiest country on the face of the Earth. It is one of the most technologically proficient countries in the world today. It is one of the most highly educated countries.

But it also is the country that has the distinction of having more people incarcerated, both per capita and in actual numbers, than any other country on the face of the Earth. More than 2.3 million people sit, tonight, in our prisons throughout America.

About 750,000 of those come home every year; and you know, of all the individuals who are incarcerated, most of them will come home, or they will go somewhere. There are numbers of individuals who do, in fact, die in prison. They are lifers, and in many instances they are individuals who have committed horrible crimes, sadistic crimes, crimes that suggest they should never be let out on their own.

But most individuals will return home, or they will return to some community; and when they do, what happens to and with them will often determine whether or not they remain on the outside, or how soon they will return to the inside.

There are some things that we know about this population. We know that if they do not receive any help, many of them, about two-thirds, within a 3-year period of time will have done what we call recidivate, which means that they will have committed some offense for which they could be rearrested and re-incarcerated.

And about 50 percent of them, within 3 years, if nothing happens to or with them, if they don't get any help, will be back in jail or prison, costing the public money, living and being cared for at taxpayer expense. In some instances, these costs have become so high, until some States are just looking for ways that they can release them, some of them, because in some instances they are spending as much money for corrections as they are spending for education, and that is an awful lot of

money.

But there is an alternative, and that alternative is called the Second Chance Act, and that is what I am going to spend some time talking about. As a matter of fact, it was passed into law 5 years ago, signed by President Bush, so it is not a Democratic piece of action. It is not a Republican. It is a joint legislative initiative that had bipartisan, bicameral support, Democrats and Republicans, House and Senate passed.

The interesting thing about it is that all of the reports that we have seen, and there have been a number of them, Justice Center has put out a report called ``Re-Entry Matters.'' Other groups have issued reports, the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights.

And the reports that I have seen all suggest that, while it has not been a panacea, meaning that it certainly has not been able to solve all of the problems or diminish all of the issues surrounding this need, it has, in fact, been very helpful, and there are States who are reporting reductions in recidivism.

Recidivism is one of the factors which contributes to keeping the numbers of people incarcerated as high as it is because, for many of them, they are constantly in and out; and it becomes a cycle of going in and a cycle of getting out and going in again.

But what helps them is when there are programmatic approaches, evidence-based, that actually help them; and we have had about 600 such programs and grants that have been funded under the Second Chance Act. Of course, it has not been as much money or as much funding as would be needed, but 600 groups across the Nation, 600 institutions, 600 research groups, all working towards finding a solution and finding help, has made a difference.

It is time now to re-introduce this legislation, and I am pleased and delighted that on yesterday, in both the House and the Senate, very senior level and prestigious Members of both bodies have introduced, and we have seen the re-introduction of the Second Chance Act.

In the Senate, Senator Leahy, chairman of the Judiciary, Senator Rob Portman, Democrat, Republican; in the House, Representative Jim Sensenbrenner, former chairman of the Judiciary Committee, Republican, myself, Democrat. And so we have Democrats and Republicans on this issue.

There are a lot of things that we are not necessarily agreeing upon right now in Congress. There is a tremendous amount of disagreement, enough that actually shut down the government. But on this issue there appears to be the emergence of tremendous agreement, which makes all of us optimistic that something significant and even more significant can be done.

So I want to highlight some of the organizations and groups that have been actively engaged and seriously involved, groups like the Leadership Conference for Civil and Human Rights, groups like the Justice Center, from the Council of State Governments, groups who have worked fastidiously to demonstrate that people can be helped.

What is it that individuals actually need when they are released from jail or prison? Well, they certainly need more than $20 and a bus ticket. Many of them have no place at all to go. But if they can find somebody waiting in some community who says, We are going to help you get reestablished. We are going to help you find a place to live, a place that you can call your own. Or if you have got a drug problem, we are going to find you a source of treatment. Or maybe, if you are in need of anger management help, we are going to find someone who can provide that.

Perhaps you don't have much in the way of formal education and skill, so maybe we will direct you to a GED program, or maybe we will direct you to a vocational or technical training program so that you can develop the skill that you need in order to find a job or secure employment. Or maybe if you have got some emotional, psychological, or just self-esteem problems, we could direct you to a program that will help you overcome these deficiencies.

And I can tell you that, if these individuals can find a job, a place to work, a place where they know that they can fit and make a contribution, many of them will never, ever see the inside of a jail or prison again because they have evolved into a person who knows that they have self-worth, self-esteem, that they can take care of themselves. They can earn what they need, and they can make a contribution.

But I will tell you, there are many barriers that often prohibit and prevent individuals from finding their rightful place or being able to successfully reenter society as a contributing member. For example, you may not be able to live in public housing if you have a felony conviction. You could just very well be barred. Well, who needs public housing more than individuals who can't find a job?

There are many entities within our society that say to an individual with a record, We don't hire people with records, meaning, if you have been convicted of a felony, there is no point to making an application even if we have ``help wanted'' signs posted. Fortunately, there are some businesses and some companies who are beginning to ease up a little bit and see the futility of that kind of policy because, if these individuals are never able to find a job, they will be a cost to the public for the rest of their natural lives. Somebody's tax dollars will have to go to support them in one way or another.

So some State legislatures are beginning to look at some of the licensing requirements that their States have and say, Maybe you can't get a license to be a barber or a beautician or a cosmetologist, yet you are able to get trained while incarcerated; and now that you have been trained, you cannot work in that profession. Of course that does not appear to be very logical, and so some States are beginning to review their policies as it relates to certain kinds of licensure requirements and whether or not individuals can get what might be called a waiver or whether they can demonstrate that not only do they have the training and expertise to do the job, but they also have the character which will allow them to do it well. So a little bit of progress is being made in that direction. There are some instances where housing authorities are beginning to look to see whether or not there might be some way.

And I don't think anybody is suggesting when they are being asked to provide opportunities, certainly you wouldn't necessarily put a child molester in a day care center. Many of the programs and many of the individuals who try to help erase some of the barriers, they already know that, and that is not the kind of thing that they advocate; but they do believe that people should be given a chance, an opportunity, a chance to demonstrate that they want to be good citizens, that they want to work, that they want to contribute.

So I am asking my colleagues both in the House and the Senate to look at the invitation letters that they have received to become cosponsors of this legislation. It is not asking for as much money as it needs. $100 million is money, but it does not break the bank. That is the appropriation asked.

I think one of the things that we look at is what it has spawned and what it has sparked, not just how much Federal money has gone into it, not just how many Federal dollars. But it has spawned response and reaction from State, local, and county governments who have established their own second chance programs, who have put together their own second chance initiatives.

I certainly want to commend Governor Patrick Quinn of the State of Illinois, my Governor, who, by the way, happens to live in my congressional district and is my constituent, for the State of Illinois' response to this problem.

And I also want to commend and congratulate the president of the Cook County government, the county board, which, of course, is larger than more than 25 States in the Nation. The county of Cook is a very large county, with more than 5 million people in it. I want to commend County President Toni Preckwinkle for how the county government is trying to respond to this need.

And I especially want to commend the sheriff of our county who has more than 13,000 people in his jail. He recognizes that many of them ought not be there because they have got mental health problems and mental health issues, and he is seeking and searching and looking for ways to change that.

I want to commend the mayor of the city of Chicago, our former colleague, Rahm Emanuel, because he has established a number of programs with city agencies and with city government where they are set aside specifically for individuals who have records, individuals who have been incarcerated, individuals who need a second chance with both the city of Chicago, itself, and the Chicago Transit Authority.

So there are bits and pieces of progress being made, and I commend all of those who are helping to make it. But my final ask is for my colleagues in both the House and the Senate to join in this effort, sign on to the Second Chance Act, help us to get it renewed, help us to get it reauthorized, to get it refunded, and get it seriously implemented throughout the United States of America so that these individuals will know that our country does, in fact, believe in a second chance.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

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