Kentuckians at heart of federal prison reform
Led by an Elizabethtown woman, Kentucky is at the heart of federal prison reform legislation expected to be voted on in the current Congressional lame-duck session.
As executive director of the bipartisan Justice Action Network, Holly Harris has been working three years to relax state and federal sentencing guidelines considered outdated, harsh and, in some cases, discriminatory. The announcement Tuesday that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., will schedule a floor vote on the First Step Act was a critical victory in the process.
Getting the Senate to vote has been “the greatest hurdle” facing the reform effort, Harris said.
If the Senate bill passes at a vote now expected this week, Harris feels confident about support in the House of Representatives, which she described as less “politically acidic.” She also said outgoing House Speaker Paul Ryan considers the First Step Act as “a piece of legacy legislation,” which he wants to see enacted before retiring from Congress.
President Donald Trump has endorsed the concept and personally called on McConnell to schedule a vote. His adviser and son-in-law, Jared Kushner, has been working closely with advocates of the legislation at the president’s request.
Another key Kentuckian in the reform effort is U.S. Senator Rand Paul, who Harris calls a “pioneering voice” for justice reform. She credits Paul’s persistence and additional support from his wife, Kelley, who frequently has campaigned for the change, as making a difference.
“Their advocacy is fierce and unmatched, and this bill would never have made it to this point without their advocacy,” Harris said.
The federal justice system accounts for about 181,000 imprisoned people, a fraction of the U.S. jail and prison population, which exceeds 2 million.
A rare bipartisan coalition has formed around the First Step Act as it received endorsements from advocacy groups on both sides of the political spectrum.
The bill would ease mandatory minimum sentences under federal law and provide federal judges with more flexibility in sentencing, particularly related to drug offenses. It would increase “good time credits,” which inmates can earn by avoiding disciplinary problems and establishes “earned time credits” for participating in vocational and rehabilitative programs. It also rolls back some elements of the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 related to drug offenses.
The bill has languished for months while McConnell considered concerns of some Republican opponents and accessed its possibility of passage. Before the midterm elections last month, McConnell indicated he would consider calling a vote if it had the support of more than 60 senators. Backers reportedly believe more than 70 senators now support it, including more than half of the Senate Republicans.
Harris said scheduling a vote now, before a new Congress takes office next year, was critical.
“It’s been a long time getting the numbers just right,” she said. “We would have had to start all over with a new Congress. It would have taken a long time to get to this consensus spot again.”
Reform momentum has been seen as a dozen state legislatures have passed reform measures backed by the Justice Action Network and other advocacy groups.
Harris acknowledges that “we’ve seen a lot of success,” but considers the First Step Act a critical reform.
“It’s the civil rights legislation of my generation,” she said
By Ben Sheroan
The News Enterprise
