Announcement for 03/21/07
Second Chance Act Reintroduced in House of Representatives
Federal prisoner reentry legislation, The Second Chance Act of 2007, was reintroduced yesterday in the U.S. House of Representatives by Rep. Danny Davis (D - IL) and Chris Cannon (R-UT). The bill, H.R. 1593, which has broad bipartisan support, will help states and communities better address challenges associated with reentry by authorizing grants to support state and local reentry initiatives focused on employment, housing, substance abuse and mental health treatment, and children and family services.The same day the House Judiciary Committee Crime Subcommittee held a hearing on the bill to discuss the multiple challenges related to the return of people who are incarcerated from prisons to their communities. The majority of members on the Crime Subcommittee are original cosponsors of the bill, which builds on the work from the last two sessions of Congress, and plan to move the bill quickly through the House this year.
Cosponsors include Judiciary Chairman John Conyers (D - MI), Ranking Member Lamar Smith (R - TX), former Judiciary Chairman James Sensenbrenner (R - WI), current Chair of the Crime Subcommittee Bobby Scott (D - VA) and Ranking Member Randy Forbes (R - VA), former Crime Subcommittee Chair Howard Coble (D - NC), and Judiciary Committee members Reps. Chris Cannon (D - UT), Steve Chabot (R - OH), Sheila Jackson-Lee (D - TX), Hank Johnson (D - GA), and Adam Schiff (D - CA). To view the list of original cosponsors, please click here.
"There is a growing need to address rising prison populations and high recidivism rates," said Massachusetts State Representative Mike Festa, chair of the Council of State Governments Justice Center Charter Group. "The reintroduction of the Second Chance Act sends a strong message of federal support for reentry initiatives that have already begun to develop at the state and local levels."
The hearing focused on the importance of community-based reentry services and substance abuse treatment for people returning from prisons and jails. Witnesses included Stefan LoBuglio, Chief, Pre-Release and Reentry Services for Montgomery County, MD; Dr. Roger Peters, Chairman and Professor, Department of Mental Health Law and Policy, University of South Florida; George McDonald, President of the Doe Fund, Inc.; Steve Lufburrow, President and CEO of Goodwill Industries; and Jack Cowley, National Director, Alpha for Prisons and Reentry. To view the full witness list and submitted testimony, click here.
Witnesses all provided an overview of the impact of reentry programs in their states, particularly those targeted at individuals with mental illnesses or co-occuring disorders, and emphasized the importance of modest federal support through legislation like the Second Chance Act in encouraging states to implement or expand such work.
"Wardens, parole officers, Sheriffs, line officers, community groups – we are ready to work on reentry. All we need is assistance and good models," said LoBuglio.
Chairman Scott commended witnesses for working to improve prisoner reentry processes in their states and requested that other members of Congress pay attention to this issue moving forward.
"This is an important issue that affects public safety, state spending, and the well-being of the individuals who cycle in and out of our corrections systems," said Rep. Scott. "The Second Chance Act offers a common sense, smart on crime approach to giving states the tools to slow and, we hope, one day end this cycle."
For more information on the Second Chance Act, please click here or email scainfo@csg.org.