Bill > S524

This bill, the Eliminating a Quantifiably Unjust Application of the Law Act (EQUAL Act), aims to eliminate the disparity in sentencing for cocaine offenses. The key provisions are: 1. Repealing the increased penalties for cocaine offenses involving cocaine base (commonly known as "crack cocaine") under the Controlled Substances Act and the Controlled Substances Import and Export Act. This will result in the same sentencing for powder cocaine and cocaine base offenses. 2. Applying the changes retroactively, allowing defendants who were previously convicted or sentenced for federal offenses involving cocaine base to have their sentences reduced upon motion of the defendant, the Bureau of Prisons, the government attorney, or the court's own motion, after considering the factors set forth in Section 3553(a) of Title 18 of the United States Code. The goal of this bill is to address the longstanding and widely criticized sentencing disparity between powder cocaine and cocaine base offenses, which has had a disproportionate impact on minority communities.

Justice

https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/senate-bill/524/all-info