[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8795 Introduced in House (IH)]
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117th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 8795
To establish a process for the creation of minority impact assessments
to determine whether pending bills, if enacted, are likely to create or
exacerbate disparate outcomes among racial or ethnic minority groups,
and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
September 9, 2022
Mr. Torres of New York introduced the following bill; which was
referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To establish a process for the creation of minority impact assessments
to determine whether pending bills, if enacted, are likely to create or
exacerbate disparate outcomes among racial or ethnic minority groups,
and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Wayne Ford Racial Impact Statement
Act of 2022''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS; PURPOSE.
(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
(1) Minority impact assessments are a tool for lawmakers to
evaluate potential disparities of proposed legislation prior to
adoption and implementation.
(2) There are 5,000 criminal penalties in Federal law and
the number of Federal statutes carrying a criminal penalty has
increased by 50 percent since the 1980s.
(3) The enactment of criminal laws and penalties is a
serious matter and the legislative process should reflect the
gravity of this process.
(4) The United States Sentencing Commission was created to
reduce sentencing disparities, which provides a strong
foundation for equity action in this branch of Government.
(5) Criminal laws conceived and voted on in haste can lead
to the enactment of unnecessary, duplicative, ineffective, or
prejudicial criminal penalties.
(6) In 2008, Iowa was the first State to enact minority
impact assessment legislation, authored by former State
Representative Wayne Ford, requiring that criminal justice
legislation be evaluated with respect to whether it will
disproportionately impact specified minority groups.
(7) The Iowa law created a measurable decline in Black
incarceration rates from 13.6 per 1 White resident to 9 to 1
White residents, demonstrating that minority impact assessments
can effectively address disparities in lawmaking and
sentencing.
(8) Similar legislation has since been considered or
enacted in New York, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Florida,
Hawaii, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan,
Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, Ohio,
Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Washington,
Wisconsin, Connecticut, Oregon, New Jersey, Colorado, Maine,
and Virginia.
(9) The NAACP and the National Black Caucus of State
Legislators have adopted resolutions in support of Federal
legislation providing for the use of minority impact
assessments.
(10) Precedent for adopting procedural measures that
increase critical deliberation and require independent analysis
at the Federal level of racial disparities in criminal justice
already exists in the form of scores from the Congressional
Budget Office.
(11) Deeply rooted discriminatory policies and practices in
our legal system fuel systemic inequalities and cycles of
poverty and hardship, stigmatize and exclude people with
criminal records, and impede community integration.
(12) Requiring an independent assessment with sobering
information on the impact of legislation that adds or increases
criminal penalties is one way to level the inequities that
disproportionately impact people of color, LGBTQ individuals,
individuals with disabilities, and other vulnerable groups in
sentencing.
(13) Congress must institutionalize a more deliberate and
evidence-based process prior to voting to criminalize conduct
and impose harsh sentences.
(b) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to provide a tool for
lawmakers and Federal agencies to determine whether pending bills and
proposed rules, if enacted, are likely to create or exacerbate
disparate outcomes among racial or ethnic minority groups.
SEC. 3. MINORITY IMPACT ASSESSMENT REQUIREMENTS.
(a) Minority Impact Assessments on Legislation.--The Comptroller
General of the United States, in consultation with the Sentencing
Commission and the Administrative Office of the United States Courts,
shall prepare and submit a minority impact assessment to Congress on a
covered bill or joint resolution prior to the consideration of such a
bill or joint resolution on the floor of the House of Representatives
or of the Senate.
(b) Minority Impact Assessments on Rules.--The Comptroller General
of the United States, in consultation with the Sentencing Commission
and the Administrative Office of the United States Courts, shall
prepare and publish in the Federal Register along with the general
notice of proposed rule making required under section 553 of title 5,
United States Code, a minority impact assessment to Congress on a
covered rule.
(c) Minority Impact Assessment Prepared Upon Request.--A member of
Congress may request from the Comptroller General of the United States
a minority impact assessment on a covered bill or joint resolution. The
Comptroller General of the United States shall prepare and submit to
Congress such a minority impact assessment not later than 21 days after
receiving such a request.
(d) Minority Impact Assessment.--A minority impact assessment shall
include--
(1) detailed projections of the impact of the covered bill
or joint resolution or covered rule on pretrial, prison,
probation, and post-prison supervision populations, including--
(A) whether the covered bill or joint resolution or
covered rule would have a negative impact, no impact, a
positive impact, a minimal impact, or an unknown impact
on such populations;
(B) the impact of the covered bill or joint
resolution or covered rule on correctional facilities
and services, including any changes to the operation
costs for correctional facilities, and any decrease or
increase in the populations of individuals incarcerated
in correctional facilities; and
(C) a statistical analysis of how the covered bill
or joint resolution or covered rule would impact
pretrial, prison, probation, and post-prison
supervision populations, disaggregated by race,
ethnicity, disability, gender, and sexual orientation;
(2) an estimate of the fiscal impact of the covered bill or
joint resolution or covered rule on Federal expenditures,
including expenditures on construction and operation of
correctional facilities for the current fiscal year and 5
succeeding fiscal years;
(3) an analysis of any other significant factor affecting
the cost of the covered bill or joint resolution or covered
rule and its impact on the operations of components of the
criminal justice system; and
(4) a detailed and comprehensive statement of the
methodologies and assumptions utilized in preparing the
minority impact assessment.
(e) Annual Assessment.--The Comptroller General of the United
States shall prepare and transmit to the Congress, by March 1 of each
year, a minority impact assessment reflecting the cumulative effect of
all relevant changes in the law taking effect during the preceding
calendar year.
(f) Public Availability.--Not later than 30 days after preparing a
minority impact statement under subsection (a) or (c)--
(1) the Comptroller General of the United States shall
publish such minority impact statement on the website of the
Government Accountability Office; and
(2) the sponsor of such covered bill or joint resolution
shall submit such minority impact statement for publication in
the Congressional Record.
(g) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Covered bill or joint resolution.--
(A) In general.--The term ``covered bill or joint
resolution'' means a bill or joint resolution that is
referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and
Homeland Security of the Committee on the Judiciary of
the House of Representatives or the Subcommittee on
Criminal Justice and Counterterrorism of the Committee
on the Judiciary of the Senate and that--
(i) establishes a new crime or offense;
(ii) could increase or decrease the number
of persons incarcerated in Federal penal
institutions;
(iii) modifies a crime or offense or the
penalties associated with a crime or offense
established under current law; or
(iv) modifies procedures under current law
for pretrial detention, sentencing, probation,
and post-prison supervision.
Such term includes a bill or joint resolution that
applies to youth or juveniles.
(B) Treatment of certain bills considered under
rule.--A bill or joint resolution which, upon
introduction in the House of Representatives, is not
referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and
Homeland Security of the Committee on the Judiciary
shall be treated as a covered bill or joint resolution
under this Act if--
(i) the bill or joint resolution is
considered in the House of Representatives
pursuant to a rule reported by the Committee on
Rules; and
(ii) the bill or joint resolution would
have been referred to such Subcommittee upon
introduction if the text of the bill or joint
resolution as introduced in the House were
identical to the text of the bill or joint
resolution as considered in the House pursuant
to the rule.
(2) Covered rule.--The term ``covered rule'' means a rule
(as such term is defined in section 551 of title 5, United
States Code) that--
(A) could increase or decrease the number of
persons incarcerated in Federal penal institutions;
(B) modifies a crime or offense or the penalties
associated with a crime or offense established under
current law; or
(C) modifies procedures under current law for
pretrial detention, sentencing, probation, and post-
prison supervision.
Such term includes a rule that applies to youth or juveniles.
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