Title: End of Debtors Prison Act of 2017
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement

Summary:
End of Debtors Prison Act of 2017
This bill amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to prohibit the Department of Justice from allocating Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant program funding to a state or local government that has a contract with a person (e.g., a private probation company) who: (1) collects unpaid debt (i.e., state- or court-imposed fines or fees) from an individual placed on probation for failing to pay such debt; and (2) charges separate fees (e.g., monthly fees) to the probationer with respect to the collection.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1724 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1724

 To amend title V of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 
 1968 to prohibit Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grants from 
being made available to a State or unit of local government that has a 
contract with a person that charges a fee to pay-only probationers, and 
                          for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 24, 2017

Mr. Takano (for himself, Mr. Ellison, Mr. McGovern, Ms. Schakowsky, Ms. 
Moore, Ms. Norton, Mr. Cohen, Mr. Grijalva, and Mr. Nadler) introduced 
    the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the 
                               Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend title V of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 
 1968 to prohibit Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grants from 
being made available to a State or unit of local government that has a 
contract with a person that charges a fee to pay-only probationers, 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 ``End of Debtors Prison Act of 2017''.

SEC. 2. CONTRACTS WITH PROBATION COMPANIES.

    (a) Limitation on Byrne Justice Assistance Grants.--
            (1) In general.--Section 501 of the Omnibus Crime Control 
        and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3750) is amended by 
        adding at the end the following:
    ``(h) Prohibited Recipients of Funds.--
            ``(1) In general.--No Federal funds may be made available 
        under this subpart, including through subawards, to any State 
        or unit of local government that has a contract with a person 
        who--
                    ``(A) under such contract, collects fees and fines 
                imposed by a State or local court on a pay-only 
                probationer; and
                    ``(B) collects from such probationer a fee that is 
                imposed with respect to such collection.
            ``(2) Pay-only probationer defined.--The term `pay-only 
        probationer' means an individual who is placed on probation due 
        to the failure of the individual to pay any part of a fine or 
        fee imposed by a State or local court.''.
            (2) Effective date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) 
        shall apply with respect to grants made in or after the fiscal 
        year which begins after the date of the enactment of this Act.
    (b) Reporting Requirement.--
            (1) In general.--Section 522(a) of the Omnibus Crime 
        Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3766b(a)) is 
        amended--
                    (A) in paragraph (4), by striking ``and'' at the 
                end;
                    (B) by redesignating paragraph (5) as paragraph 
                (6); and
                    (C) by inserting after paragraph (4) the following:
            ``(5) for the State and each unit of local government in 
        the State for such year, a list of the persons with which such 
        State or unit of local government had a contract under which 
        the person assisted in administering a probation ordered by a 
        State or local court during such year and, for each such 
        person--
                    ``(A) the amount payable by the State or unit of 
                local government to such person for such assistance 
                during such year; and
                    ``(B) whether the person collected a fee from a 
                pay-only probationer (as such term is defined in 
                section 501(h)(2)) with respect to such assistance; 
                and''.
            (2) Effective date.--The amendments made by paragraph (1) 
        shall apply with respect to reports submitted for years 
        beginning after the date of the enactment of this Act.
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