No Free Pass for Felons Act

Summary#

This bill would change who can get certain federal public safety and law enforcement grants. It would require states, local governments, and some transit agencies to certify they have rules that limit pretrial release for people charged with violent offenses. Those rules must bar release on personal recognizance or an unsecured appearance bond for covered defendants unless a court first holds a dangerousness hearing and writes on the record that release will ensure the person returns to court and will not endanger others. The bill also requires a system to collect and publish annual data on judge decisions to release people charged with covered violent offenses, any rearrests for covered violent offenses, and failures to appear, broken down by type of pretrial release. The bill changes parts of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 and the 9/11 Commission Act's transit security grant rules. It lets the Attorney General reduce certain grant awards to 85 percent for jurisdictions that fail to meet the new application requirements after notice and an opportunity to fix the problem. For transit grants, the Department Secretary may temporarily waive the requirement if needed for an acute, site-specific security threat.

What it means for you#

  • State and local governments that apply for Byrne Justice Assistance Grants or COPS grants would need to certify they have the required pretrial rules and data systems. Failure to certify or to maintain certification can affect grant status and funding.
  • Public transportation agencies applying for transit security grants must certify their State meets the same pretrial and data requirements; a short-term waiver is possible for urgent security needs.
  • The bill defines "covered defendant" (people charged with covered violent offenses or certain repeat offenders) and "covered violent offense" (an offense that includes use, attempted use, or threatened use of physical force). It requires a "dangerousness hearing" consistent with parts of 18 U.S.C. 3142.
  • The rule changes would apply to grant applications submitted in the first fiscal year beginning 18 months after the bill becomes law. The Attorney General must issue implementing rules within 180 days after enactment.

Expenses#

  • No publicly available information on overall federal budgetary costs or savings is included in the bill text.
  • The bill does specify a penalty for noncompliance: the Attorney General may allocate no more than 85 percent of the normal Byrne JAG allotment to a State or local government that fails to meet the new application requirements after notice and an opportunity to cure.
  • No other specific funding changes or cost estimates are provided in the bill text.

Proponents' View#

The bill's findings state that violent offenders released on unsecured or cashless bail pose a risk to public safety, and that federal funds should not subsidize policies that release repeat violent offenders without meaningful judicial review. The bill cites the Supreme Court decision United States v. Salerno (1987) as upholding preventive detention and describes conditioning federal grants on minimum public safety standards as a valid use of Congress's spending power.

Opponents' View#

No publicly available information.