Clemency Board Waiver Authority Congressional Review Emergency Amendment Act of 2026
This bill allows the District of Columbia Clemency Board to waive the standard five-year waiting period for individuals seeking a pardon, but only under specific conditions. The waiver can be granted if the applicant has already received a waiver of the waiting period from the U.S. Pardon Attorney or the President, provided the applicant is not currently on probation, parole, or supervised release. The Clemency Board retains the authority to decline the waiver even when the federal waiver exists, and the applicant's application will be paused until the Board decides on the waiver request. The law is set to expire within 90 days after it takes effect, as it is an emergency measure tied to congressional review.
Bill status
signed
all 4 stages cleared
Introduction
Mar 2026
Committee Review
Council Passage
Mar 2026
Signed into Law
Apr 2026
Introduced Mar 30, 2026
Signed Apr 10, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison
What changed between versions
Introduction
→
Enrollment
·
3 edits
MINOR
The bill text was reorganized to reflect its final enrolled status, moving from a draft introduction format to a formal enacted document with signatures. The core policy content regarding the Clemency Board's authority to waive the 5-year waiting period for pardons remains unchanged, but the document now includes the Mayor's signature and official enrollment markings.
Scope change
The scope of the bill's applicability remains the same; it still authorizes the Clemency Board to waive the 5-year waiting period for pardon applicants under specific conditions.
TECHNICAL
Added official enrollment markings, including the Mayor's signature line and 'ENROLLED ORIGINAL' headers, indicating the bill has been formally approved and signed.
Removed draft formatting elements such as the Councilmember's name line and placeholder underscores used during the legislative process.
Reordered the text to place the enacted body of the law before the signatures, aligning with the standard format for final legislative documents.
Floor votes · Council Mar 31, 2026
How they voted
13–0
Passed
Total votes 13
Mar 31, 2026
D
Democratic11
100% Yea
I
Independent2
100% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea
All Nay
Mixed
No data
Full legislative history
Actions timeline
Total actions
8
Key actions
1
Committee
0
Mar 31, 2026
Council · Passed
Council Vote: pass (13-0)
council
Mar 30, 2026
Introduced
B26-0649 Introduced by Councilmember Pinto at Office of the Secretary
legislature
1 primary · 0 co-sponsors
Sponsors
Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
Brooke Pinto
DDemocratic
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