I 
116TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 8161 
To authorize implementation grants to community-based nonprofits to operate 
one-stop reentry centers. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
SEPTEMBER 4, 2020 
Ms. BASS (for herself and Mr. RESCHENTHALER) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To authorize implementation grants to community-based 
nonprofits to operate one-stop reentry centers. 
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 ‘‘The One Stop Shop 
Community Reentry Program Act of 2020’’. 
SEC. 2. COMMUNITY REENTRY CENTER GRANT PROGRAM. 
(a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—The Attorney General 
is authorized to carry out a grant program to make grants 
to eligible entities for the purpose of creating community 
reentry centers. 
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(b) APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS.—Each applica-
tion for a grant under this section shall— 
(1) demonstrate a plan to work with community 
leaders who interact with formerly incarcerated peo-
ple and their families to— 
(A) identify specific strategies and ap-
proaches to providing reentry services; 
(B) develop a needs assessment tool to sur-
vey or conduct focus groups with community 
members in order to identify— 
(i) the needs of individuals returning 
to the community after conviction or incar-
ceration, and the barriers such individuals 
face; and 
(ii) the needs of the families and com-
munities to which such individuals are re-
turning; and 
(C) use the information gathered pursuant 
to subparagraph (B) to determine the reentry 
services to be provided by the community re-
entry center; 
(2) identify the correctional institutions from 
which individuals who are released from incarcer-
ation are likely to reenter the community served by 
the community reentry center, and a plan, if any, to 
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provide transportation for such released individuals 
to the community reentry center, the individual’s 
residence, or to a location where the individual is or-
dered by a court to report; 
(3) demonstrate a plan to provide accessible no-
tice of the location of the reentry intake and coordi-
nation center and the services that it will provide 
(either directly or on a referral basis), including, 
where feasible, within and outside of correctional in-
stitutions identified under paragraph (1); 
(4) demonstrate a plan to provide intake and 
reentry needs assessment that is trauma-informed 
and gender-responsive after an individual is released 
from a correctional institution, or, in the case of an 
individual who is convicted of an offense and not 
sentenced to a term of imprisonment, after such con-
viction, and where feasible, before release, to ensure 
that the individuals served by the center are referred 
to appropriate reentry services based on the individ-
ual’s needs immediately upon release from a correc-
tional institution or after conviction, and continu-
ously thereafter as needed; 
(5) demonstrate a plan to provide the reentry 
services identified in paragraph (1)(C); 
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(6) demonstrate a plan to continue to provide 
services (including through referral) for individuals 
served by the center who move to a different geo-
graphic area to ensure appropriate case manage-
ment, case planning, and access to continuous or 
new services where necessary and based on con-
sistent reevaluation of needs; and 
(7) identify specific methods that the commu-
nity reentry center will employ to achieve perform-
ance objectives among the individuals served by the 
center, including— 
(A) increased access to and participation 
in reentry services; 
(B) reduction in recidivism rates; 
(C) increased numbers of individuals ob-
taining and retaining employment; 
(D) increased enrollment in and degrees 
earned from educational programs, including 
high school, GED, and institutions of higher 
education; 
(E) increased numbers of individuals ob-
taining and maintaining housing; and 
(F) increased self-reports of successful 
community living, including stability of living 
situation and positive family relationships. 
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(c) PREFERENCE.—The Attorney General shall give 
preference to applicants that demonstrate that they seek 
to employ individuals who have been convicted of an of-
fense, or served a term of imprisonment or that, to the 
extent allowable by law, employ such formerly incarcerated 
individuals in positions of responsibility. 
(d) EVALUATION AND REPORT.— 
(1) EVALUATION.—The Attorney General shall 
enter into a contract with a nonprofit organization 
with expertise in analyzing data related to reentry 
services and recidivism to monitor and evaluate each 
recipient of a grant and each community reentry 
center receiving funds under this section on an ongo-
ing basis. 
(2) ADMINISTRATIVE BURDEN.—The nonprofit 
organization described in paragraph (1) shall provide 
administrative support to assist recipients of grants 
authorized by this Act to comply with the conditions 
associated with the receipt of funding from the De-
partment of Justice. 
(3) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the 
date on which grants are initially made under this 
section, and annually thereafter, the Attorney Gen-
eral shall submit to Congress a report on the pro-
gram, which shall include— 
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(A) the number of grants made, the num-
ber of eligible entities receiving such grants, 
and the amount of funding distributed to each 
eligible entity pursuant to this section; 
(B) the location of each eligible entity re-
ceiving such a grant, and the population served 
by the community reentry center; 
(C) the number of persons who have par-
ticipated in reentry services offered by a com-
munity reentry center, disaggregated by type of 
services, and success rates of participants in 
each service to the extent possible; 
(D) the number of persons who have par-
ticipated in reentry services for which they re-
ceived a referral from a community reentry cen-
ter, disaggregated by type of services, and suc-
cess rates of participants in each service; 
(E) recidivism rates within the population 
served by each community reentry center, both 
before and after receiving a grant under this 
section; 
(F) the number of individuals obtaining 
and retaining employment within the population 
served by each community reentry center, both 
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before and after receiving a grant under this 
section; and 
(G) the number of individuals obtaining 
and maintaining housing within the population 
served by each community reentry center, both 
before and after receiving a grant under this 
section. 
(e) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) The term ‘‘eligible entity’’ means a commu-
nity-based nonprofit organization that— 
(A) has expertise in the provision of re-
entry services; and 
(B) is located in a geographic area that 
has disproportionately high numbers of resi-
dents who— 
(i) have been arrested; 
(ii) have been convicted of a criminal 
offense; and 
(iii) return to such geographic area 
after incarceration. 
(2) The term ‘‘community reentry center’’ 
means a center that— 
(A) offers intake, reentry needs assess-
ments, case management, and case planning for 
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reentry services for individuals returning to the 
community after conviction or incarceration; 
(B) provides the reentry services identified 
under subsection (b)(1)(C) at a single location; 
and 
(C) provides referrals to appropriate serv-
ice providers based on the assessment of needs 
of the individual. 
(3) The term ‘‘reentry services’’ means com-
prehensive and holistic services that improve out-
comes for individuals returning to the community 
after conviction or incarceration, and may include— 
(A) seeking and maintaining employment, 
including through assistance with drafting re-
sumes, establishing emails accounts, locating 
job solicitations, submission of job applications, 
and preparation for interviews; 
(B) placement in job placement programs 
that partner with private employers; 
(C) obtaining free and low-cost job skills 
classes, including computer skills, technical 
skills, vocational skills, and any other job-re-
lated skills; 
(D) locating and maintaining housing, 
which may include counseling on public housing 
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opportunities, assistance with applications for 
public housing benefits, and locating and secur-
ing temporary or long-term shelter; 
(E) obtaining identification cards and driv-
er’s licenses; 
(F) registering to vote, and applying for 
voting rights to be restored, where permitted by 
law; 
(G) applying for or accessing GED 
courses; 
(H) applying for loans for and admission 
to institutions of higher education; 
(I) financial counseling; 
(J) legal assistance or referrals for record 
expungement, forfeiture of property or assets, 
family law and custody matters, legal aid serv-
ices (including other civil legal aid services), 
and relevant civil matters including housing and 
other issues; 
(K) retrieving property or funds retained 
by the arresting agency or facility of incarcer-
ation, or retrieving property or funds obtained 
while incarcerated; 
(L) transportation, including through pro-
vision of transit fare; 
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(M) familial counseling; 
(N) problem-solving, in coordination with 
counsel where necessary, any difficulties in 
compliance with court-ordered supervision re-
quirements, including restrictions on living with 
certain family members, contact with certain 
friends, bond requirements, location and resi-
dency restrictions, electronic monitoring compli-
ance, court-ordered substance abuse, and other 
court-ordered requirements; 
(O) communication needs, including pro-
viding a mobile phone, mobile phone service or 
access, or internet access; 
(P) applying for State or Federal govern-
ment benefits, where eligible; 
(R) life skills assistance; 
(S) mentorship; 
(T) medical and mental health services, 
and cognitive-behavioral programming; 
(U) substance abuse treatment; and 
(V) reactivation, application for, and main-
taining professional or other licenses. 
(4) The term ‘‘community leader’’ means an in-
dividual who serves the community in a leadership 
role, including— 
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(A) a school official; 
(B) a faith leader; 
(C) a social service provider; 
(D) a member of a neighborhood associa-
tion; 
(E) a public safety representative; 
(F) an employee of an organization that 
provides reentry services; 
(G) a member of a civic or volunteer group 
related to the provision of reentry services; 
(H) a health care professional; and 
(I) an employee of a State, local, or tribal 
government agency with expertise in the provi-
sion of reentry services. 
(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be 
appropriated $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 
2021 through 2025 to carry out this section. 
(2) EQUITABLE DISTRIBUTION.—The Attorney 
General shall ensure that grants awarded under this 
section are equitably distributed among the geo-
graphical regions and between urban and rural pop-
ulations, including Indian Tribes, consistent with the 
objective of reducing recidivism. 
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SEC. 3. GRANTS FOR REENTRY SERVICES ASSISTANCE HOT-
LINES. 
(a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General is au-
thorized to make grants to States and units of local 
government to operate reentry services assistance 
hotlines that are toll-free and operate 24 hours a 
day, 7 days a week. 
(2) GRANT
PERIOD.—A grant made under 
paragraph (1) shall be for a period of not more than 
5 years. 
(b) HOTLINE REQUIREMENTS.—A grant recipient 
shall ensure, with respect to a hotline funded by a grant 
under subsection (a), that— 
(1) the hotline directs individuals to local re-
entry services (as such term is defined in section 
2(e)); 
(2) any personally identifiable information that 
an individual provides to an agency of the State 
through the hotline is not directly or indirectly dis-
closed, without the consent of the individual, to any 
other agency or entity, or person; 
(3) the staff members who operate the hotline 
are trained to be knowledgeable about— 
(A) applicable Federal, State, and local re-
entry services; and 
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(B) the unique barriers to successful re-
entry into the community after a person has 
been convicted or incarcerated; 
(4) the hotline is accessible to— 
(A) individuals with limited English pro-
ficiency, where appropriate; and 
(B) individuals with disabilities; 
(5) the hotline has the capability to engage with 
individuals using text messages. 
(c) BEST PRACTICES.—The Attorney General shall 
issue guidance to grant recipients on best practices for im-
plementing the requirements of subsection (b). 
(d) PREFERENCE.—The Attorney General shall give 
preference to applicants that demonstrate that they seek 
to employ individuals to operate the hotline who have been 
convicted of an offense, or served a term of imprisonment. 
(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 
authorized to be appropriated $1,500,000 for each of fis-
cal years 2021 through 2025 to carry out this section. 
Æ 
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