Bill > S697

This bill, the Next Step Act of 2019, proposes a wide range of reforms to sentencing, prisons, re-entry of prisoners, and law enforcement practices. Key provisions include: - Eliminating the increased penalties for crack cocaine offenses where the cocaine involved is cocaine base. - Descheduling marijuana at the federal level and prohibiting funds for states with disproportionate arrest or incarceration rates for marijuana offenses. - Modifying sentencing for certain drug offenses and directing the U.S. Sentencing Commission to review and amend sentencing guidelines accordingly. - Allowing courts to reduce sentences for individuals convicted as adults for offenses committed before age 18. - Establishing a grant program to assist states in reducing crime rates and incarceration. - Requiring federal prisons to provide various accommodations and services for primary caretaker parents and others, including access to parenting classes, trauma-informed care, and free healthcare products. - Prohibiting federal agencies and contractors from inquiring about criminal history before a conditional job offer. - Sealing criminal records for certain nonviolent offenses and expanding expungement of juvenile records. - Requiring reporting on use of force incidents by law enforcement and establishing grant programs to assist with compliance. - Prohibiting racial profiling by federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies and establishing procedures and programs to address it. The bill aims to address issues of mass incarceration, racial disparities in the criminal justice system, and the collateral consequences of conviction.

Justice

https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/senate-bill/697/all-info