Your voice is needed now in support H.R. 2152

Your voice is needed now in support of H.R. 2152, tYour voice is needed now in support H.R. 2152, the Citizens’ Right to Know Act!

Simply fill out the form below and click “send” to write your representative

Your voice is needed now in support of H.R. 2152, tYour voice is needed now in support H.R. 2152, the Citizens’ Right to Know Act!

Simply fill out the form below and click “send” to write your representative

Write your Representative

Your voice is needed now in support of H.R. 2152, the Citizens’ Right to Know Act!
Simply fill out the form below and click “send” to write your Representative

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Subject:

I am writing to express my strong support for HR 2152, the Citizens’ Right to Know Act, sponsored by Rep. Ted Poe R-TX). The legislation has been referred to the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security and Investigations.

This legislation is long overdue. It would allow, for the first time, public scrutiny of taxpayer-funded release programs. It requires publicly funded pretrial release agencies receiving federal funds to report on who participates in their programs, including the following information on participants:
•	Criminal history, including previous charges filed
•	Previous failures to appear for court proceedings
•	Previous and current non-compliance infractions

Currently federally-funded pretrial release programs are not required to report any information about the defendants released through their programs. Basic information on defendants is neither collected nor reported in any systematic fashion. The DOJ only collects data from pretrial release agencies related to crime rates and trends in the aggregate. It does not collect data on specific participants and programs. Thus, there is no mechanism to determine if pretrial release agencies are effective in ensuring that defendants adhere to their pretrial release requirements or whether these defendants actually show up for court.

Without this legislation, policymakers and taxpayers have no ability to determine the effectiveness of taxpayer-funded pretrial release programs.  And without such data, hundreds of federally-funded pretrial release programs lack sufficient accountability to U.S. taxpayers. This lack of accountability has allowed many repeat offenders to get out of jail on our tax dollars.

Until the 1960s, principal options for the accused were ROR (release on one’s own recognizance), commercial bail or incarceration.  Commercial bail ensured the appearance of the defendant in court at no cost to the taxpayer.  Pretrial release programs began in the 1960s for the purpose of securing release for indigent, non-violent offenders who could not afford monetary bail.

However, over the last four decades, pretrial release programs have expanded well beyond their original scope and purpose.  Today there are over 300 pretrial release programs nationwide whose participants routinely include violent and repeat offenders, many of whom are able post a commercial bond and have done so in the past.  In many instances, the federal government has become a major source of funding for pretrial release programs.

If Congress continues to fund pretrial release programs, then Congress must be able to determine the effectiveness of such programs.  Taxpayers deserve to know if their limited resources are being spent wisely and their communities are being protected.

I believe swift passage of H.R. 2152 will provide greater transparency for pretrial programs, greater accountability for taxpayer funds and increased public safety for our communities.

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