COVID–19 Safer Detention Act of 2021
Latest action · Jun 8, 2021 Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 68.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedFeb 12, 2021
- Passed SenateNot reached
- Passed HouseNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
COVID-19 Safer Detention Act of 2021
This bill expands statutory authority for federal prisoners to be released before completing their sentences or to be placed in the community to serve the final portion of their sentences.
First, the bill makes changes to the early release pilot program which authorizes the Bureau of Prisons to release early and place on home confinement elderly offenders and terminally ill offenders who meet eligibility criteria. This bill
- expands eligibility to offenders serving time for an offense under the laws of the District of Columbia,
- reduces the amount of time an offender must serve by the good time credits earned by the offender, and
- creates a judicial review process for prisoners.
Second, the bill modifies the compassionate release process which authorizes federal courts to reduce a prisoner's sentence and impose a term of probation or supervised released in certain circumstances. This bill
- expands eligibility to prisoners sentenced before November 1, 1987; and
- specifies that vulnerability to COVID-19 is a basis for compassionate release.
Regarding the judicial review of these release authorities, the bill also (1) authorizes federal courts to appoint counsel to assist defendants, (2) applies statutory rights for crime victims to these proceedings, and (3) shortens the waiting period during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Additionally, the bill requires the Government Accountability Office to study postrelease, probation, and pretrial services, including recent changes.
Finally, the bill directs the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts to request resources to address staffing needs in each judicial district, including resources that may be necessary as a result of this bill.
Cosponsors 9
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Feb 12, 2021 to May 19, 2022, with 7 there on the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-DE | Christopher A. Coons | Original | Feb 12, 2021 |
| R-IA | Chuck Grassley | Original | Feb 12, 2021 |
| D-NJ | Cory A. Booker | Original | Feb 12, 2021 |
| R-ND | Kevin Cramer | Original | Feb 12, 2021 |
| R-MS | Roger F. Wicker | Original | Feb 12, 2021 |
| D-RI | Sheldon Whitehouse | Original | Feb 12, 2021 |
| R-NC | Thom Tillis | Original | Feb 12, 2021 |
| R-MO | Roy Blunt | Feb 16, 2022 | |
| D-OH | Sherrod Brown | May 19, 2022 |
Actions 5
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Jun 8, 2021Committee on the Judiciary. Reported by Senator Durbin with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. Without written report.
- Jun 8, 2021Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 68.
- May 27, 2021Committee on the Judiciary. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.
- Feb 12, 2021Introduced in Senate
- Feb 12, 2021Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Related bills 2
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| HR 929 | To provide that the amount of time that an elderly offender must serve before being eligible for placement in home detention is to be reduced by the amount of good time credits earned by the prisoner, and for other purposes. | Related bill | Apr 23, 2021 |
| HR 3669 | COVID–19 Safer Detention Act of 2021 | Identical bill | Nov 1, 2022 |
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement.
- Administrative remedies
- Aging
- Cardiovascular and respiratory health
- Congressional oversight
- Correctional facilities and imprisonment
- Crime and Law Enforcement
- Criminal procedure and sentencing
- Department of Justice
- Detention of persons
- Emergency medical services and trauma care
- Government studies and investigations
- Infectious and parasitic diseases
- Judicial procedure and administration
- Judicial review and appeals
- Lawyers and legal services
- Long-term, rehabilitative, and terminal care
Text 2
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Jun 8, 2021Reported to Senate
- Feb 12, 2021Introduced in Senate
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov.