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-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Wayne Ford Racial 
Impact Statement Act of 2023’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS; PURPOSE. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 
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(1) Minority impact assessments are a tool for 
lawmakers to evaluate potential disparities of pro-
posed legislation prior to adoption and implementa-
tion. 
(2) There are 5,000 criminal penalties in Fed-
eral law and the number of Federal statutes car-
rying a criminal penalty has increased by 50 percent 
since the 1980s. 
(3) The enactment of criminal laws and pen-
alties is a serious matter and the legislative process 
should reflect the gravity of this process. 
(4) The United States Sentencing Commission 
was created to reduce sentencing disparities, which 
provides a strong foundation for equity action in this 
branch of Government. 
(5) Criminal laws conceived and voted on in 
haste can lead to the enactment of unnecessary, du-
plicative, ineffective, or prejudicial criminal pen-
alties. 
(6) In 2008, Iowa was the first State to enact 
minority impact assessment legislation, authored by 
former State Representative Wayne Ford, requiring 
that criminal justice legislation be evaluated with re-
spect to whether it will disproportionately impact 
specified minority groups. 
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(7) The Iowa law created a measurable decline 
in Black incarceration rates from 13.6 per 1 White 
resident to 9 to 1 White residents, demonstrating 
that minority impact assessments can effectively ad-
dress disparities in lawmaking and sentencing. 
(8) Similar legislation has since been considered 
or enacted in New York, Arizona, Arkansas, Cali-
fornia, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Kentucky, Lou-
isiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, 
Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma, 
Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Washington, 
Wisconsin, Connecticut, Oregon, New Jersey, Colo-
rado, Maine, and Virginia. 
(9) The NAACP and the National Black Cau-
cus of State Legislators have adopted resolutions in 
support of Federal legislation providing for the use 
of minority impact assessments. 
(10) Precedent for adopting procedural meas-
ures that increase critical deliberation and require 
independent analysis at the Federal level of racial 
disparities in criminal justice already exists in the 
form of scores from the Congressional Budget Of-
fice. 
(11) Deeply rooted discriminatory policies and 
practices in our legal system fuel systemic inequal-
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ities and cycles of poverty and hardship, stigmatize 
and exclude people with criminal records, and im-
pede community integration. 
(12) Requiring an independent assessment with 
sobering information on the impact of legislation 
that adds or increases criminal penalties is one way 
to level the inequities that disproportionately impact 
people of color, LGBTQ individuals, individuals with 
disabilities, and other vulnerable groups in sen-
tencing. 
(13) Congress must institutionalize a more de-
liberate and evidence-based process prior to voting to 
criminalize conduct and impose harsh sentences. 
(b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to provide 
a tool for lawmakers and Federal agencies to determine 
whether pending bills and proposed rules, if enacted, are 
likely to create or exacerbate disparate outcomes among 
racial or ethnic minority groups. 
SEC. 3. MINORITY IMPACT ASSESSMENT REQUIREMENTS. 
(a) MINORITY IMPACT ASSESSMENTS ON LEGISLA-
TION.—The Comptroller General of the United States, in 
consultation with the Sentencing Commission and the Ad-
ministrative Office of the United States Courts, shall pre-
pare and submit a minority impact assessment to Con-
gress on a covered bill or joint resolution prior to the con-
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tion that is referred to the Subcommittee on 
Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security of 
the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of 
Representatives or the Subcommittee on Crimi-
nal Justice and Counterterrorism of the Com-
mittee on the Judiciary of the Senate and 
that— 
(i) establishes a new crime or offense; 
(ii) could increase or decrease the 
number of persons incarcerated in Federal 
penal institutions; 
(iii) modifies a crime or offense or the 
penalties associated with a crime or offense 
established under current law; or 
(iv) modifies procedures under current 
law for pretrial detention, sentencing, pro-
bation, and post-prison supervision. 
Such term includes a bill or joint resolution 
that applies to youth or juveniles. 
(B) TREATMENT OF CERTAIN BILLS CON-
SIDERED UNDER RULE.—A bill or joint resolu-
tion which, upon introduction in the House of 
Representatives, is not referred to the Sub-
committee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland 
Security of the Committee on the Judiciary 
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shall be treated as a covered bill or joint resolu-
tion under this Act if— 
(i) the bill or joint resolution is con-
sidered in the House of Representatives 
pursuant to a rule reported by the Com-
mittee on Rules; and 
(ii) the bill or joint resolution would 
have been referred to such subcommittee 
upon introduction if the text of the bill or 
joint resolution as introduced in the House 
were identical to the text of the bill or joint 
resolution as considered in the House pur-
suant to the rule. 
(2) COVERED RULE.—The term ‘‘covered rule’’ 
means a rule (as such term is defined in section 551 
of title 5, United States Code) that— 
(A) could increase or decrease the number 
of persons incarcerated in Federal penal institu-
tions; 
(B) modifies a crime or offense or the pen-
alties associated with a crime or offense estab-
lished under current law; or 
(C) modifies procedures under current law 
for pretrial detention, sentencing, probation, 
and post-prison supervision. 
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Such term includes a rule that applies to youth or 
juveniles. 
Æ 
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