This Wednesday ... ---> to vote on a series of criminal justice reform bills, including bipartisan proposals to clear records for prior federal marijuana convictions,
-->provide funding for states that implement systems of automatic expungements and codify retroactive relief for people incarcerated due to on crack-cocaine sentencing disparities.
The House Judiciary Committee, chaired by Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), is holding the markup about five months after the full chamber passed a cannabis legalization bill for the second time that also included expungements provisions.
... But bipartisan and bicameral talk about enacting incremental reform has picked up, with an expectation that the Senate will soon file a package of modest marijuana bills that could include other expungement-related proposals.
---> the fact that House leadership is taking steps to advance the issue in general could provide momentum to the marijuana-focused talks.
Here’s a rundown of what the bills being taken up on Wednesday would accomplish:
HR 2864: The “Clean Slate Act” from Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE) would mandate the automatic sealing of criminal records for certain non-violent, federal marijuana convictions. It would also provide relief to people who have been arrested for other offenses that did not result in a conviction.
The bill has been introduced with bipartisan support in previous sessions, but it’s yet to be enacted. Nadler filed an amendment in the nature of a substitute ahead of this week’s committee hearing to make technical changes and provide funding for a new five-year pilot program under the Justice Department.
That effort would provide $35 million in grants from fiscal years 2023 to 2027 to entities that facilitate automatic record sealing in accordance with the law. DOJ would need to submit a report to Congress about grant recipients and recommendations for how to process the relief. At the end of the program, the attorney general would need to provide lawmakers with a final report on findings and best practices.
The legislation further seeks to create penalties for any official who improperly “accesses or discloses information contained in a sealed record.”
HR 5651: The “Fresh Start Act” sponsored by Rep. David Trone (D-MD) would provide federal funding to states that create their own systems of automated expungements. Though it does not specify the types of crimes that would warrant relief, a growing number of states are taking steps to implement systems of automatic expungement for marijuana convictions, and those states would benefit from the new funding.
Under the proposal, each state would be eligible for $5 million in aid from the U.S. Department of Justice to support covered expungement programs. Those processes could not require a person to pay a fee to receive relief, and each state would need to submit an application to DOJ with information about their program.
The Justice Department grant program would need to be created with input from stakeholders, including law enforcement, organizations with “expertise in justice information systems,” correctional agencies, family advocacy groups and “civil rights and civil liberties” organizations.
Up to 10 percent of the grants could be used “for research or planning for criminal record data infrastructure improvements that will make criminal record expungement or sealing automatic.” The remaining dollars would need to go to implementing the program and any improvements.
Nadler also filed an amendment in the nature of a substitute for the bill that amends the covered years, stipulating that the bill would appropriate $50 million in federal funding annually from fiscal year 2023 to 2027.
HR 5455: The “Terry Technical Correction Act” from Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX) is responsive to a 2021 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that held that a law reducing the federal crack-cocaine sentencing disparity did not apply retroactively in cases that did not trigger a mandatory minimum sentence.
It would amend the law by clarifying that the 2010 Fair Sentencing Act was intended to provide individuals in those cases with relief, and so any motion that was denied on the basis of a court’s interpretation of eligibility under the statute “shall not be considered a denial after a complete review of the motion on the merits within the meaning of this section.”
The purpose and findings section of the bill as filed were removed under an amendment in the nature of a substitute, and the legislation was also revised to make technical changes.
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Marijuana Moment is tracking more than 1,500 cannabis, psychedelics and drug policy bills in state legislatures and Congress this year. Patreon supporters pledging at least $25/month get access to our interactive maps, charts and hearing calendar so they don’t miss any developments.