What This Bill Does
This bill creates a requirement for the government to prepare "minority impact assessments" before certain criminal justice bills become law. These assessments examine whether bills would create unfair outcomes for racial or ethnic minority groups. The bill also requires similar assessments for government rules that affect criminal justice.
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Who It Affects
- Congress members who vote on criminal justice bills
- The Comptroller General of the United States (the head of the Government Accountability Office, which audits federal spending)
- The Sentencing Commission (the agency that sets guidelines for criminal sentences)
- The Administrative Office of the United States Courts
- Federal agencies that create rules affecting the criminal justice system
- Racial and ethnic minority groups who may be impacted by new criminal laws
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Key Provisions
- The Comptroller General must prepare and submit a minority impact assessment to Congress before any criminal justice bill is debated on the House or Senate floor. The assessment must describe how the bill would affect pretrial, prison, probation and post-prison supervision populations broken down by race, ethnicity, disability, gender and sexual orientation (Sec. 3(a)).
- The Comptroller General must prepare minority impact assessments for federal rules that affect criminal justice and publish them in the Federal Register (the official publication of federal regulations) (Sec. 3(b)).
- Any Congress member can request a minority impact assessment, which the Comptroller General must provide within 21 days (Sec. 3(c)).
- The Comptroller General must publish all assessments on the Government Accountability Office website within 30 days and the bill sponsor must submit them for publication in the Congressional Record (the official record of Congress proceedings) (Sec. 3(f)).
- The Comptroller General must prepare an annual assessment each March showing how all criminal justice law changes from the previous year affected different racial and ethnic groups (Sec. 3(e)).
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What Changes
Criminal justice bills would need to be accompanied by detailed assessments before Congress votes on them. These assessments would show how bills might affect different racial and ethnic groups. The government would also have to track how new criminal laws impact incarceration rates by race and ethnicity. This assessment process does not currently exist at the federal level.
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Important Definitions
- **"Covered bill or joint resolution"**: A bill related to crime that either creates a new crime, changes how many people get incarcerated in federal prisons, modifies existing crimes or their penalties, or changes rules for pretrial detention, sentencing, probation or post-prison supervision. This includes bills affecting youth and juveniles (Sec. 3(g)(1)).
- **"Covered rule"**: A federal regulation that could increase or decrease federal incarceration, modify crimes or penalties, or change procedures for pretrial detention, sentencing, probation or post-prison supervision. This includes rules affecting youth and juveniles (Sec. 3(g)(2)).
- **"Minority impact assessment"**: An independent evaluation showing how a bill or rule would affect people of different races and ethnicities, including how many people might be incarcerated, costs to the government, and detailed analysis by race, ethnicity, disability, gender and sexual orientation (Sec. 3(d)).
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Effective Date
Not specified in bill text
I
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 613
To establish a process for the creation of minority impact assessments to
determine whether pending bills, if enacted, are likely to create or exacer-
bate disparate outcomes among racial or ethnic minority groups, and
for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JANUARY 27, 2023
Mr. TORRES of New York (for himself, Ms. KAMLAGER-DOVE, and Ms.
CROCKETT) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on the Judiciary
A BILL
To establish a process for the creation of minority impact
assessments to determine whether pending bills, if en-
acted, are likely to create or exacerbate disparate out-
comes among racial or ethnic minority groups, and for
other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
1
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
2
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
3
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Wayne Ford Racial
4
Impact Statement Act of 2023’’.
5
SEC. 2. FINDINGS; PURPOSE.
6
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following:
7
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•HR 613 IH
(1) Minority impact assessments are a tool for
1
lawmakers to evaluate potential disparities of pro-
2
posed legislation prior to adoption and implementa-
3
tion.
4
(2) There are 5,000 criminal penalties in Fed-
5
eral law and the number of Federal statutes car-
6
rying a criminal penalty has increased by 50 percent
7
since the 1980s.
8
(3) The enactment of criminal laws and pen-
9
alties is a serious matter and the legislative process
10
should reflect the gravity of this process.
11
(4) The United States Sentencing Commission
12
was created to reduce sentencing disparities, which
13
provides a strong foundation for equity action in this
14
branch of Government.
15
(5) Criminal laws conceived and voted on in
16
haste can lead to the enactment of unnecessary, du-
17
plicative, ineffective, or prejudicial criminal pen-
18
alties.
19
(6) In 2008, Iowa was the first State to enact
20
minority impact assessment legislation, authored by
21
former State Representative Wayne Ford, requiring
22
that criminal justice legislation be evaluated with re-
23
spect to whether it will disproportionately impact
24
specified minority groups.
25
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•HR 613 IH
(7) The Iowa law created a measurable decline
1
in Black incarceration rates from 13.6 per 1 White
2
resident to 9 to 1 White residents, demonstrating
3
that minority impact assessments can effectively ad-
4
dress disparities in lawmaking and sentencing.
5
(8) Similar legislation has since been considered
6
or enacted in New York, Arizona, Arkansas, Cali-
7
fornia, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Kentucky, Lou-
8
isiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi,
9
Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma,
10
Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Washington,
11
Wisconsin, Connecticut, Oregon, New Jersey, Colo-
12
rado, Maine, and Virginia.
13
(9) The NAACP and the National Black Cau-
14
cus of State Legislators have adopted resolutions in
15
support of Federal legislation providing for the use
16
of minority impact assessments.
17
(10) Precedent for adopting procedural meas-
18
ures that increase critical deliberation and require
19
independent analysis at the Federal level of racial
20
disparities in criminal justice already exists in the
21
form of scores from the Congressional Budget Of-
22
fice.
23
(11) Deeply rooted discriminatory policies and
24
practices in our legal system fuel systemic inequal-
25
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•HR 613 IH
ities and cycles of poverty and hardship, stigmatize
1
and exclude people with criminal records, and im-
2
pede community integration.
3
(12) Requiring an independent assessment with
4
sobering information on the impact of legislation
5
that adds or increases criminal penalties is one way
6
to level the inequities that disproportionately impact
7
people of color, LGBTQ individuals, individuals with
8
disabilities, and other vulnerable groups in sen-
9
tencing.
10
(13) Congress must institutionalize a more de-
11
liberate and evidence-based process prior to voting to
12
criminalize conduct and impose harsh sentences.
13
(b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to provide
14
a tool for lawmakers and Federal agencies to determine
15
whether pending bills and proposed rules, if enacted, are
16
likely to create or exacerbate disparate outcomes among
17
racial or ethnic minority groups.
18
SEC. 3. MINORITY IMPACT ASSESSMENT REQUIREMENTS.
19
(a) MINORITY IMPACT ASSESSMENTS ON LEGISLA-
20
TION.—The Comptroller General of the United States, in
21
consultation with the Sentencing Commission and the Ad-
22
ministrative Office of the United States Courts, shall pre-
23
pare and submit a minority impact assessment to Con-
24
gress on a covered bill or joint resolution prior to the con-
25
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•HR 613 IH
sideration of such a bill or joint resolution on the floor
1
of the House of Representatives or of the Senate.
2
(b) MINORITY IMPACT ASSESSMENTS ON RULES.—
3
The Comptroller General of the United States, in con-
4
sultation with the Sentencing Commission and the Admin-
5
istrative Office of the United States Courts, shall prepare
6
and publish in the Federal Register along with the general
7
notice of proposed rulemaking required under section 553
8
of title 5, United States Code, a minority impact assess-
9
ment to Congress on a covered rule.
10
(c) MINORITY
IMPACT
ASSESSMENT
PREPARED
11
UPON REQUEST.—A member of Congress may request
12
from the Comptroller General of the United States a mi-
13
nority impact assessment on a covered bill or joint resolu-
14
tion. The Comptroller General of the United States shall
15
prepare and submit to Congress such a minority impact
16
assessment not later than 21 days after receiving such a
17
request.
18
(d) MINORITY IMPACT ASSESSMENT.—A minority
19
impact assessment shall include—
20
(1) detailed projections of the impact of the
21
covered bill or joint resolution or covered rule on
22
pretrial, prison, probation, and post-prison super-
23
vision populations, including—
24
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•HR 613 IH
(A) whether the covered bill or joint resolu-
1
tion or covered rule would have a negative im-
2
pact, no impact, a positive impact, a minimal
3
impact, or an unknown impact on such popu-
4
lations;
5
(B) the impact of the covered bill or joint
6
resolution or covered rule on correctional facili-
7
ties and services, including any changes to the
8
operation costs for correctional facilities, and
9
any decrease or increase in the populations of
10
individuals incarcerated in correctional facili-
11
ties; and
12
(C) a statistical analysis of how the cov-
13
ered bill or joint resolution or covered rule
14
would impact pretrial, prison, probation, and
15
post-prison
supervision
populations,
16
disaggregated by race, ethnicity, disability, gen-
17
der, and sexual orientation;
18
(2) an estimate of the fiscal impact of the cov-
19
ered bill or joint resolution or covered rule on Fed-
20
eral expenditures, including expenditures on con-
21
struction and operation of correctional facilities for
22
the current fiscal year and 5 succeeding fiscal years;
23
(3) an analysis of any other significant factor
24
affecting the cost of the covered bill or joint resolu-
25
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•HR 613 IH
tion or covered rule and its impact on the operations
1
of components of the criminal justice system; and
2
(4) a detailed and comprehensive statement of
3
the methodologies and assumptions utilized in pre-
4
paring the minority impact assessment.
5
(e) ANNUAL ASSESSMENT.—The Comptroller Gen-
6
eral of the United States shall prepare and transmit to
7
the Congress, by March 1 of each year, a minority impact
8
assessment reflecting the cumulative effect of all relevant
9
changes in the law taking effect during the preceding cal-
10
endar year.
11
(f) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—Not later than 30 days
12
after preparing a minority impact statement under sub-
13
section (a) or (c)—
14
(1) the Comptroller General of the United
15
States shall publish such minority impact statement
16
on the website of the Government Accountability Of-
17
fice; and
18
(2) the sponsor of such covered bill or joint res-
19
olution shall submit such minority impact statement
20
for publication in the Congressional Record.
21
(g) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:
22
(1) COVERED BILL OR JOINT RESOLUTION.—
23
(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘covered bill
24
or joint resolution’’ means a bill or joint resolu-
25
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•HR 613 IH
tion that is referred to the Subcommittee on
1
Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security of
2
the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of
3
Representatives or the Subcommittee on Crimi-
4
nal Justice and Counterterrorism of the Com-
5
mittee on the Judiciary of the Senate and
6
that—
7
(i) establishes a new crime or offense;
8
(ii) could increase or decrease the
9
number of persons incarcerated in Federal
10
penal institutions;
11
(iii) modifies a crime or offense or the
12
penalties associated with a crime or offense
13
established under current law; or
14
(iv) modifies procedures under current
15
law for pretrial detention, sentencing, pro-
16
bation, and post-prison supervision.
17
Such term includes a bill or joint resolution
18
that applies to youth or juveniles.
19
(B) TREATMENT OF CERTAIN BILLS CON-
20
SIDERED UNDER RULE.—A bill or joint resolu-
21
tion which, upon introduction in the House of
22
Representatives, is not referred to the Sub-
23
committee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland
24
Security of the Committee on the Judiciary
25
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•HR 613 IH
shall be treated as a covered bill or joint resolu-
1
tion under this Act if—
2
(i) the bill or joint resolution is con-
3
sidered in the House of Representatives
4
pursuant to a rule reported by the Com-
5
mittee on Rules; and
6
(ii) the bill or joint resolution would
7
have been referred to such subcommittee
8
upon introduction if the text of the bill or
9
joint resolution as introduced in the House
10
were identical to the text of the bill or joint
11
resolution as considered in the House pur-
12
suant to the rule.
13
(2) COVERED RULE.—The term ‘‘covered rule’’
14
means a rule (as such term is defined in section 551
15
of title 5, United States Code) that—
16
(A) could increase or decrease the number
17
of persons incarcerated in Federal penal institu-
18
tions;
19
(B) modifies a crime or offense or the pen-
20
alties associated with a crime or offense estab-
21
lished under current law; or
22
(C) modifies procedures under current law
23
for pretrial detention, sentencing, probation,
24
and post-prison supervision.
25
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Such term includes a rule that applies to youth or
1
juveniles.
2
Æ
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