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eNewsletter - August 14, 2007
Second Chance Act Advances
Thanks to the advocacy of a broad coalition of organizations and advocates around the country, the Second Chance Act continues to gain momentum in Congress this summer. The Senate Judiciary committee has approved the bill and the next steps are votes in the full House and Senate.
On August 2nd, the Senate Judiciary Committee approved S. 1060, the Second Chance Act of 2007, by a voice vote. The bill seeks to help States and localities better address the needs of individuals reentering the community from the criminal justice system. It is intended to reduce recidivism rates by helping former prisoners obtain housing, employment, education and health care. It was introduced by Senators Joe Biden (D-DE), Arlen Specter (R-PA), Sam Brownback (R-KS), and Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT). The House version of the Second Chance Act, H.R. 1593, was approved by the House Judiciary Committee in March.
When the Senate Judiciary committee was considering the bill, Senator Coburn (R-OK) and Chairman Leahy discussed the link between crime and drug and alcohol addiction. During his remarks, Senator Coburn noted the large number of people in the criminal justice system with drug problems and, speaking of the success of drug addiction treatment, he advocated for drug incarceration centers with a focus on addiction treatment instead of incarcerating people with drug problems in prison. Following these comments, Senator Coburn asked Chairman Leahy to hold hearings on this topic in the fall.
Chairman Leahy responded by thanking Senator Coburn for his comments and expressing that he, too, was very interested in better addressing the treatment needs of people in the criminal justice system with drug and alcohol problems. Speaking about the intersection between crime and addiction, Chairman Leahy stated that many crimes were committed because of an addiction to alcohol or other drugs and that, by helping individuals get the addiction treatment services they need, less crime would be committed. Chairman Leahy also stated that he would speak with Senator Biden, Chair of the Senate Judiciary Crime Subcommittee, about this connection and work that the Committee could do.
Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL) also spoke in strong support of the Second Chance Act. Speaking of the Chicago, Illinois based Safer Foundation and its work helping people obtain safe housing and secure good jobs following release from the criminal justice system, Senator Durbin expressed the need to support organizations and communities doing this work. Senator Sessions (R-AL) acknowledged there is no magic bullet to reducing recidivism but that if programs such as those authorized by the Second Chance Act could reduce recidivism between twenty and twenty-five percent, it would be tremendous progress. Senator Sessions also said that he hoped the Second Chance Act could focus even more on the deeper, more entrenched causes of crime and that he would work with the bill’s sponsors to possibly offer floor amendments to the legislation that would address these problems.
There are 92 bi-partisan co-sponsors of H.R. 1593 and 27 bi-partisan co-sponsors of S. 1060. For text and status of both the House and Senate versions of the Second Chance Act click here.
Thanks to the Legal Action Center for the information above.