Durbin Celebrates Sixth Anniversary Of The First Step Act On Senate Floor

WASHINGTON – In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, celebrated the sixth anniversary of the First Step Act—bipartisan criminal justice reform legislation designed to make our justice system fairer and our communities safer by reforming sentencing laws and providing opportunities for those who are incarcerated to prepare to re-enter society successfully. The First Step Act was signed into law by then-President Trump in December 2018, and was championed by Durbin and U.S. Senators Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Cory Booker (D-NJ), and Mike Lee (R-UT).

“This coming Saturday, December 21st, will mark the sixth anniversary of the First Step Act becoming law. That moment resulted from overwhelming bipartisan majorities in the House and Senate coming together to pass landmark criminal justice reform. I was honored to be the lead Democratic sponsor of this legislation, alongside the lead Republican sponsor, Senator Chuck Grassley. Senators Cory Booker and Mike Lee joined us,” Durbin said. “The First Step Act acknowledges the obvious—the vast majority of people who are incarcerated will someday be released, so we must prepare them to successfully return to their communities. In the last six years, this law has safely and effectively reduced populations in overcrowded federal prisons, reuniting families, and revitalizing communities.”

Durbin noted that the reforms made by the First Step Act have been tremendously successful. Of more than 40,000 people released under the law through January 2024, only 9.7 percent have been rearrested or returned to custody compared to the Bureau of Prisons’ overall recidivism rate of about 45 percent.

“Unfortunately, some elected officials are now calling for a return to the punitive policies of the past, despite the success of the First Step Act.  Here’s the reality—we all deserve to live free from crime, but the war on drugs, with its inflexible mandatory minimum [sentences], did not make communities safer. Instead, the so-called ‘war on drugs’ filled the prisons with young, mostly African American, men, and, at the same time, the price of illegal drugs went down, and use of illegal drugs went up—the strategy didn’t work. The First Step Act shows that we can do more than be just ‘tough on crime.’ We can be, once and for all, smart on crime and achieve accountability without excessive punishment and incarceration.”

Durbin continued, “Six years ago, the First Step Act was signed into law by President Donald Trump, during his first term in office. My lead Republican sponsor, Chuck Grassley, was Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee. With Donald Trump returning to the White House, and Senator Grassley returning as Chair of the Judiciary Committee, we have the opportunity to build on the success of the First Step Act.”

Durbin concluded, “Today, as I reflect on what we have achieved by correcting our past wrongs and investing in the power of second chances, I also recognize that more must be done to make our justice system fair and to keep America safe. We should learn from the experiences of individuals who have been incarcerated under misguided policies and are now seeking to reform the criminal justice system for the future. As we celebrate this anniversary, I will continue to work with my colleagues to reform outdated sentencing laws and improve conditions of confinement and rehabilitation within our federal prison system.”

Video of Durbin’s remarks on the Senate floor is available here.

Audio of Durbin’s remarks on the Senate floor is available here.

Footage of Durbin’s remarks on the Senate floor is available here for TV Stations.

Durbin has long championed efforts to address inequities in mandatory minimum sentencing. Durbin has sponsored both the Smarter Sentencing Act and the Eliminating A Quantifiably Unjust Application Of The Law (EQUAL) Act. Durbin and Grassley introduced the bipartisan First Step Implementation Act, the COVID-19 Safer Detention Act, and the Prohibiting Punishment of Acquitted Conduct Act of 2021, legislation that aims to build on the First Step Act and continue Congress’s bipartisan efforts to make our criminal justice system fairer.

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