Criminal Justice

HR 4387, the People's Response Act, establishes a new Division on Community Safety within the Department of Health and Human Services to fund evidence-based, nonpunitive approaches to community safety that reduce reliance on law enforcement and criminal legal systems. The bill creates four grant programs totaling $13.5 billion (2026-2030) to support community-based organizations ($4 billion), local governments ($3.5 billion), states ($3.5 billion), and first responder hiring ($2.5 billion), with specific requirements to prioritize communities disproportionately impacted by the criminal legal system. These grants mandate the use of "qualified approaches to community safety" including crisis intervention, violence prevention, community-led safety planning, and support for survivors of violence, while requiring at least 30% of funds to go to rural areas and staff hired with grant funds to earn at least $17 per hour. The bill requires recipients to submit regular reports on how funds are used and their impact on reducing criminal legal system involvement, with an emphasis on racial equity and community input. It aims to shift resources away from carceral systems toward community-driven safety solutions that address root causes of violence and support marginalized communities.

The RISE from Trauma Act establishes grants for community coordinating bodies to address trauma and build resilience, particularly for children and youth affected by violence, substance use, or other traumatic experiences. These grants (up to $6 million each for 4 years) require diverse community stakeholders - including healthcare providers, schools, law enforcement, and community organizations - to collaborate on identifying local needs and developing trauma-informed strategies. The legislation prioritizes communities with high rates of overdose deaths, violence-related deaths, or involvement in child welfare and juvenile justice systems. It also expands existing programs like the National Child Traumatic Stress Network, creates hospital-based interventions to prevent readmissions after trauma events, and establishes training for schools, law enforcement, and healthcare providers in trauma-informed care. Funding is authorized at $600 million annually from 2026-2033 for these initiatives.

Protection for Reservation Occupants against Trafficking and Evasive Communications Today Act of 2025 or the PROTECT Act of 2025 This bill expands special tribal criminal jurisdiction (STCJ) to include certain controlled substance-related offenses and firearms offenses. It also allows tribal courts to execute warrants for electronic material. STCJ allows participating tribes to investigate, prosecute, convict, and sentence both Indian and non-Indian offenders who commit covered crimes in Indian country against Indian victims. Covered crimes currently include assault of tribal justice personnel, child violence, dating violence, domestic violence, obstruction of justice, sexual violence, sex trafficking, stalking, and a violation of a protection order. The bill expands STCJ to allow participating tribes to prosecute individuals for controlled substance-related offenses (i.e., drug trafficking, unlawful drug possession, or unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia) and firearms offenses (i.e., use or possession of a firearm in furtherance of a covered crime or by a person who has been convicted of domestic violence). Additionally, the bill allows participating tribes to exercise STCJ over a controlled substance-related offense or a firearms offense if neither the defendant nor the alleged victim is an Indian. (Currently, this exception only applies in cases of obstruction of justice or assault of tribal justice personnel.) The bill allows offenders convicted pursuant to STCJ to be incarcerated through the Bureau of Prisons Tribal Prisoner Program. The bill gives tribal courts the same authority as state courts to compel service providers to disclose stored electronic communication information through court-issued warrants, court orders, or administrative subpoenas.

The Election Worker Protection Act of 2025 provides federal grants to states for election worker recruitment, training, and safety. It establishes new criminal penalties for threatening or harassing election workers, with fines up to $100,000 and up to 5 years in prison. The bill creates a grant program to protect election workers' personally identifiable information from public disclosure, including through redaction of personal data in public records. States would receive funding based on their voting age population, with requirements for diversity-focused recruitment and regular reporting on program outcomes.

The Ending PUSHOUT Act of 2025 aims to address discriminatory school discipline practices that disproportionately push students of color, particularly Black, Brown, and Indigenous girls, out of school. It requires schools to collect and report detailed demographic data on discipline practices, including race, gender identity, disability status, and other factors. The bill provides grants to schools to implement trauma-informed alternatives to exclusionary discipline like suspensions and expulsions, while prohibiting certain practices such as out-of-school suspension for young students for minor offenses like grooming policy violations. It also establishes a joint task force with student, parent, and expert representation to study and recommend solutions to end school pushout of girls of color.

S 61 establishes a national database to standardize human trafficking data collection across states. Covered state agencies (like law enforcement or public health departments) must collect anonymized data on prosecutions, hotline reports, survivor services, and anti-trafficking organizations, then report it annually to the Office for Victims of Crime. The database, published online by the Justice Department, will display county-level trafficking rates, organization details, and prosecution statistics while strictly protecting survivor confidentiality. The bill authorizes $50 million annually (2025-2028) for state grants and data management, requiring states to submit initial reports within one year of enactment.

This bill requires the Department of Homeland Security, Justice, and State departments to assess how transnational criminal organizations use social media and messaging platforms for recruitment and illicit activities (like drug trafficking or human smuggling) within 180 days of enactment. It mandates a national strategy within one year to improve interagency coordination, enhance intelligence analysis, and increase outreach to youth in border communities about cartel recruitment tactics. The strategy must prioritize protecting privacy and civil liberties while focusing on cartel activities, not individuals recruited. The bill does not create new penalties or funding but requires regular reports to Congress on implementation progress and civil rights safeguards.

The End Solitary Confinement Act would prohibit most solitary confinement in federal prisons and detention centers, requiring all incarcerated people to have at least 14 hours daily of out-of-cell group interaction in shared spaces. It establishes strict limits on when solitary confinement can be used (only for brief counts, emergencies as a last resort, or medical isolation), with specific protections for vulnerable populations including youth, the elderly, people with disabilities, pregnant people, and LGBTQ+ individuals. The bill creates a community monitoring body to oversee implementation, requires detailed reporting on confinement practices, and provides incentives for states to adopt similar standards through funding adjustments. It also includes due process protections for placement in restrictive housing and prohibits punitive practices like limiting access to services or confiscating personal property.

This bill extends existing federal reentry programs under the Second Chance Act through 2030, continuing funding for services supporting people returning to communities after incarceration. It specifically maintains grants for state/local reentry projects (including substance use treatment, housing, and peer recovery services), family-based substance abuse treatment, prison/jail educational programs, career training, and community mentoring by nonprofits. The bill updates program timelines from their previous 2019-2023 authorization period to 2026-2030 without altering the core services provided. It directly affects state/local agencies, prisons, and nonprofit organizations administering these reentry programs. The legislation focuses solely on extending current funding mechanisms, not changing program requirements or creating new initiatives.

The Quality Defense Act of 2025 establishes a federal grant program to improve public defense systems by requiring states and local jurisdictions to collect detailed data on caseloads, attorney work hours, and case outcomes. It provides two types of grants: data grants to help jurisdictions develop data collection systems, and hiring grants to hire more public defenders, increase compensation to match prosecutors, and provide support staff. The bill mandates collection of information on case types, client demographics, and case resolutions to inform evidence-based reforms. It also requires studies on appropriate caseload limits and compensation levels to ensure constitutional standards for legal representation are met. The legislation directly affects public defenders, panel attorneys, and defendants in state and local court systems.