More encouraging(?) news from Capitol Hill on federal statutory criminal justice reform efforts

Axios has this interesting new piece headlined "Senate plans barrage on crime," which provides an encouraging update on the commitment of some key Senators to get additional federal criminal justice reforms to the finish line soon. Here are some details (with a bit of my emphasis added):

Sens. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) are working to win Senate passage of a big criminal justice reform package this Congress.

Why it matters: Crime is spiking in big cities. Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) is still working on a police reform measure.  The bipartisan dynamic duo atop the Senate Judiciary Committee is stepping up, passing three piecemeal bills out of their committee....

What they're saying: It's these three measures, Grassley told Axios, they "hope to package along with potentially other proposals to pass the Senate sometime this Congress." Durbin told Axios in his own statement that he's "committed to bringing these bills to the Senate floor this Congress."

What to watch: The final package also may include a measure for the thousands of inmates who were released to home confinement during the pandemic but will be forced to return behind bars when it's over, a Republican Senate staffer told Axios.  In addition, it may address sentencing disparities in crack and powder cocaine offenses.

One challenge will be the crime spike, which has the potential of sapping support from senators afraid of being branded soft on crime.  "Negotiations have always been an important part of enacting criminal justice reform, and this time will be no different, especially given the increase in crime we are seeing across the country,” Grassley said.

Between the lines: It's still early, but advocates said they need to take advantage of any opening they see for criminal justice reform — especially since police reform has stalled. They pointed to the House Judiciary Committee recently voting out the bipartisan EQUAL Act.  It would eliminate disparities in sentencing for powder and crack cocaine offenses and allow some inmates to appeal their sentence.  Even normally critical Republicans like Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas) are cosponsors for the bill, which they take as a good sign.  That has supporters believing whatever emerges from the Senate can be packaged with House measures in conference committee and, ultimately, pass Congress.

I use the term "encouraging(?)" to describe this news in my post title because "this Congress" only means sometime before January 3, 2023.  Given how hard it is to get a divided Congress to complete anything these days, I suppose I should find any talk of any serious commitment to getting anything done to be just "encouraging."  But because of the modest nature of the "three piecemeal bills" primarily being discussed here (details in links below), I have been hoping that one or more of these bills might have a real change of getting to the desk of Prez Biden before the end of this year.

That all said, if these three Durbin/Grassley bills were to be combined with the EQUAL bill to reduce crack sentences and with some statutory fix to the pandemic home confinement problem, then I think all sentencing advocates would have something to really get excited about.  Notably, the FIRST STEP Act ended up having a lot of smaller reform proposals rolled into it, and I would love to see  five good reform proposals (and a few more) put together so that reform legislation can really improve a federal criminal justice system broken in so many ways.

Last but not least, I cannot complete this post without emphasizing, yet again, how effective implementation of any congressional reforms demands a well-functioning US Sentencing Commission.  The FIRST STEP Act is now nearly three years old, and the absence of a fully functioning USSC has impeded needed follow-up reforms and analyses that only the USSC can complete.  All the Durbin/Grassley bills and others in this space likewise need a working USSC to aid implementation (and a functional USSC could and would now be able to aid legislative analysis and consideration of various proposals).  But, with no USSC nominations from Prez Biden yet named, I am now fearing we may not ever get a full slate of Commissioners during "this Congress."

Some of many prior related posts:

• Senators Durbin and Grassley introduce new "First Step Implementation Act"
• Senators Durbin and Grassley re-introduce "COVID-19 Safer Detention Act"
• Senators Durbin and Grassley re-introduce "Prohibiting Punishment of Acquitted Conduct Act" 
• Senate Judiciary Committee to mark up three criminal justice and sentencing reform bills
• Senate Judiciary Committee advances three criminal justice and sentencing reform bills
• Encouraging(?) update on prospects for series of small federal sentencing reform bills
• GOP Gov and former DEA chief calls for Congress to "finally and fully end the disparity between crack and cocaine offenses" 
• US Senate Judiciary Committee hearing set for "Examining Federal Sentencing for Crack and Powder Cocaine 
• House Judiciary Committee votes 36 to 5 to advance the EQUAL Act to reduce federal crack sentences