A September Senate hearing on crack sentencing

I just received an e-gram from FAMM highlighting that the US Senate appears poised to have hearing on crack sentencing.  Here is the FAMM's account:

Senate to hold first-ever hearing on crack cocaine: For the first time in 20 years, crack cocaine sentencing is a major issue in Congress.  Three bills in the U.S. Senate and two bills in the House of Representatives are vying for support.  The Senate bills would all reduce the sentence for crack cocaine, and so much interest has been generated that the Senate will hold the first ever hearing on crack cocaine on September 18.

FAMM here has lots of details about the bills, and I am sure they will cover the hearings effectively.

Ultimately, I would be surprised to see Congress make any dramatic changes soon, but the nature and tenor of these hearing could surely impact how others handle various on-going sentencing issues.  For example, if there are broad expressions of support at these hearings from the US Sentencing Commission's new crack amendments, the USSC might be more inclined to make these amendments retroactive.  Also, all this activity seems sure to impact the Supreme Court's work in Kimbrough, the crack sentencing case to be heard next month.

Some recent related posts:

• FAMM alert about the USSC's crack amendments
• The Government's merits brief in Kimbrough
• ABA makes pitch for USSC crack amendments to be made retroactive
• Taking a crack at fairness in crack sentencing
• Previewing the (quite unpredictable) new federal politics of crack sentencing