Title: Citizens’ Right to Know Act of 2019
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement

Summary:
Citizens' Right to Know Act of 2019
This bill requires a state or local government that receives funds under a Department of Justice (DOJ) grant program and uses such funds for a pretrial services program to annually report to DOJ the amount of money allocated for the pretrial services program and certain information about participating defendants.
DOJ must make the information publicly available.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5320 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 5320

 To require States and units of local government receiving funds under 
 grant programs operated by the Department of Justice, which use such 
funds for pretrial services programs, to submit to the Attorney General 
       a report relating to such program, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            December 5, 2019

   Mr. Higgins of Louisiana introduced the following bill; which was 
               referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To require States and units of local government receiving funds under 
 grant programs operated by the Department of Justice, which use such 
funds for pretrial services programs, to submit to the Attorney General 
       a report relating to such program, 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 ``Citizens' Right to Know Act of 
2019''.

SEC. 2. REPORTING REQUIREMENT FOR DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE GRANT 
              RECIPIENTS USING FUNDS FOR PRETRIAL SERVICES PROGRAMS.

    (a) In General.--For each fiscal year in which a State or unit of 
local government receives funds under any grant program operated by the 
Department of Justice, including the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice 
Assistance grant program under subpart I of part E of title I of the 
Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3750 et 
seq.), and which uses funds received under such program for a pretrial 
services program, the State or unit of local government shall submit to 
the Attorney General a report which contains the following:
            (1) The name of each defendant participating in a pretrial 
        release program administered by the pretrial services program, 
        and whether, as applicable, each occasion on which such 
        defendant failed to make an appearance.
            (2) Information relating to any prior convictions of each 
        defendant participating in the pretrial services program.
            (3) The amount of money allocated for the pretrial services 
        program.
    (b) Publication Requirement.--Subject to any applicable 
confidentiality requirements, the Attorney General shall, on an annual 
basis, make publicly available the information received under 
subsection (a).
    (c) Reduction in Funding.--The Attorney General shall, for State or 
unit of local government which fails to comply with the requirement 
under subsection (a) for a fiscal year, reduce the amount that the 
State or local government would otherwise receive under each grant 
program described in subsection (a) in the following fiscal year by 100 
percent.
    (d) Reallocation.--Amounts not allocated to a State or unit of 
local government under subsection (c) shall be reallocated under each 
such grant program to States and units of local government that comply 
with the requirement under subsection (a).
    (e) Definition.--The term ``failed to make an appearance'' means an 
action whereby any defendant has been charged with an offense before a 
court and who is participating in a pretrial release program for which 
funds received under a grant program referred to in subsection (a) are 
used as a condition of pretrial release--
            (1) does not appear for any court date regarding such 
        charge;
            (2) does not appear for any one appointment with the 
        pretrial services program; or
            (3) does not appear for any post-release appearance the 
        court may require.
                                 <all>