Concerned Citizens Bill of Rights Act
Bill: H.R.9240 | Sponsor: Rep. Banks, Jim (R-IN)
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement

Summary:
Concerned Citizens Bill of Rights Act
This bill requires state and local governments, as a condition of certain grant funding, to annually (1) report on any of their policies that result in a lack of law enforcement or prosecution of criminal offenses, and (2) certify that they do not have any policies that prohibit money bail for felonies or violent misdemeanors.

To foster transparent crime data, to discourage no-cash bail, and for 
                            other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Concerned Citizens Bill of Rights 
Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act--
            (1) the term ``covered grant'' means--
                    (A) the grant program authorized under section 1701 
                of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe 
                Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10381); or
                    (B) the grant program under subpart 1 of part E of 
                title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets 
                Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10151 et seq.);
            (2) the term ``criminal courts''--
                    (A) means any court of a State or unit of local 
                government having jurisdiction over criminal matters; 
                and
                    (B) includes the judicial officers serving in a 
                court described in subparagraph (A), including judges, 
                magistrate judges, commissioners, justices of the 
                peace, or any other person with decision-making 
                authority;
            (3) the term ``jail'' means any confinement facility of a 
        State or unit of local government, whether administered by such 
        government or by a private organization on behalf of such 
        government;
            (4) the term ``money bail'' means any condition of release 
        from confinement that imposes a financial burden on the person 
        released;
            (5) the term ``prosecution office'' means any public agency 
        charged with direct responsibility for prosecuting criminal 
        offenders, including any component bureau of such an agency; 
        and
            (6) the terms ``State'' and ``unit of local government'' 
        have the meanings given such terms in section 901(a) of the 
        Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 
        10251(a)).

SEC. 3. CRIME WAVE TRANSPARENCY.

    (a) In General.--Each State or unit of local government shall--
            (1) fully and accurately report information required by the 
        National Incident-Based Reporting System of the Federal Bureau 
        of Investigation;
            (2) not later than 30 days after the date of enactment of 
        this Act, and at the end of each fiscal year thereafter, submit 
        to the Attorney General a report describing--
                    (A) any law, rule, policy, or practice in effect in 
                the jurisdiction of the State or unit of local 
                government which requires or results in the 
                nonenforcement of any criminal offenses within such 
                jurisdiction;
                    (B) any law, rule, policy, or practice in effect in 
                the jurisdiction of the State or unit of local 
                government which requires or results in the 
                nonprosecution of any criminal offenses within such 
                jurisdiction;
                    (C) any law, rule, policy, or practice in effect in 
                the jurisdiction of the State or unit of local 
                government which has the effect of withdrawing law 
                enforcement protection from a geographical area or 
                structure that law enforcement officers are lawfully 
                entitled to access;
                    (D) the number of criminal offenses declined to be 
                prosecuted, disaggregated by each criminal offense;
                    (E) average sentences for filed criminal charges 
                which resulted in punishment, disaggregated by length 
                of sentence issued after a plea of guilty or plea of 
                nolo contendere, length of sentence issued after guilt 
                was determined by trial, and obligations placed on a 
                defendant as a result of pretrial diversion; and
                    (F) the average sentences imposed for each crime 
                within the jurisdiction of the State or unit of local 
                government, and the average sentences actually served, 
                disaggregated by each criminal offense;
            (3) not later than 30 days after the date of enactment of 
        this Act, and at the end of each fiscal year thereafter, submit 
        to the Attorney General a report describing efforts to reduce 
        crime within the jurisdiction of the State or unit of local 
        government, which shall include a discussion of--
                    (A) ongoing strategies to reduce the number of 
                criminal offenses committed within the jurisdiction of 
                the State or unit of local government;
                    (B) ongoing efforts to hire and retain law 
                enforcement officers;
                    (C) ongoing strategies to combat anti-police 
                sentiment;
                    (D) ongoing strategies to prevent repeat offenses 
                by violent offenders; and
                    (E) ongoing strategies to increase prosecution of 
                crime within its jurisdiction; and
            (4) not later than 30 days after the date of enactment of 
        this Act, and at the end of each fiscal year thereafter, submit 
        to the Attorney General a report describing the criminal 
        offenses committed by persons who have been released from jail 
        on pretrial release, which shall include crime data, in 
        compliance with the requirements of the National Incident-Based 
        Reporting System, for individuals who have been released from 
        jail on pretrial release that have been arrested or charged 
        with a felony or violent misdemeanor committed after pretrial 
        release.
    (b) Enforcement Through Reduction in Grant Funds.--For any fiscal 
year beginning on or after the date of enactment of this Act, a State 
or unit of local government that fails to comply with subsection (a) 
shall be subject to a 20-percent reduction in the amount that would 
otherwise be made available to the State or unit of local government 
under covered grants.
    (c) Use of Amounts.--Amounts not allocated to a State or unit of 
local government under a covered grant under subsection (b) for failure 
to fully comply with subsection (a) shall be reallocated under the 
applicable covered grant program to States or units of local government 
that have not failed to comply with subsection (a).
    (d) Report.--Not later than 30 days after the date of enactment of 
this Act, and at the end of each fiscal year thereafter, the Attorney 
General shall publish a report listing each State or unit of local 
government that is not in compliance with subsection (a).
    (e) Online Information.--The Attorney General shall maintain a 
public website on which each report required under subsection (a) or 
(d) may be accessed in an electronically searchable format.
    (f) Monitoring.--In order to ensure that the reports required under 
subsection (a) are true and correct, the Attorney General shall monitor 
and assess the accuracy of the reports required under section (a), 
which shall include conducting audits.

SEC. 4. CRIME IDENTIFICATION TECHNOLOGY ACT OF 1998.

    Section 102(b) of the Crime Identification Technology Act of 1998 
(34 U.S.C. 40301(b)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (17), by striking ``and'' at the end;
            (2) in paragraph (18), by striking the period and inserting 
        ``; and''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(19) to assist units of local government that have a 
        population of less than 150,000 in complying with the report 
        requirements under section 3(a) of the Concerned Citizens Bill 
        of Rights Act.''.

SEC. 5. DEFUNDING NO CASH BAIL.

    (a) In General.--In order to be eligible to receive any amounts 
under a covered grant, a State or unit of local government shall, not 
later than 30 days after the date of enactment of this Act, and at the 
end of each fiscal year thereafter, submit to the Attorney General a 
certification that--
            (1) the State or unit of local government does not have in 
        effect a law, rule, policy, or practice that prohibits criminal 
        courts from--
                    (A) imposing money bail for any felony or any 
                violent misdemeanor offense; or
                    (B) taking the criminal history and dangerousness 
                of the defendant into account when setting money bail 
                for any felony or violent misdemeanor offense; and
            (2) prosecution office of the State or unit of local 
        government does not have in effect a law, rule, policy, or 
        practice of prohibiting the imposition of money bail for any 
        felony or violent misdemeanor offense.
    (b) Use of Amounts.--Amounts not allocated to a State or unit of 
local government under a covered grant for failure to fully comply with 
subsection (a) shall be reallocated under the applicable covered grant 
program to States or units of local government that have not failed to 
comply with subsection (a).
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