Austin, TX — The House Judiciary Committee postponed yesterday’s scheduled markup of The Prison Reform and Redemption Act (H.R. 3356), which would provide reentry programming to help reduce recidivism, increase public safety, and give those incarcerated a second chance once they have paid their debt to society. Right on Crime signatories former Attorney General of Virginia Ken Cuccinelli and former U.S. Senator Jim DeMint issued the following statements on the delay:
“For too long, we have tolerated a revolving door of offense and imprisonment. The Prison Reform and Redemption Act would help stop the vicious cycle of offense and imprisonment by addressing the underlying causes of criminality. The opportunity to go from prison to paycheck reduces recidivism, improves public safety, and gives a second chance to those who have paid their debt to society. Conservatives are living up to their principles by enacting successful reforms in the states, and the left has the opportunity to bring their principles to fruition by not delaying their support for the Prison Reform and Redemption Act,” said Ken Cuccinelli, former Attorney General of Virginia and Right on Crime signatory.
“The delay in voting on the Prison Reform and Redemption Act is disappointing. Prison reform has proven successful in reducing recidivism, improving public safety and saving taxpayer dollars in states like Texas, Georgia, and South Carolina. We now have the chance to implement similar reforms at the federal level and give incarcerated people the tools they need to become productive members of society. People should always come before politics and all sides should move forward on the shared principles contained in this bill,” said Jim DeMint, former Member of the United States Senate.
Right on Crime is a national campaign of the Texas Public Policy Foundation, in partnership with the American Conservative Union Foundation and Prison Fellowship, that supports conservative solutions for reducing crime, restoring victims, reforming offenders, and lowering taxpayer costs. The movement was born in Texas in 2005, and in recent years, dozens of states such as Georgia, Ohio, Kentucky, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and Louisiana, have led the way in implementing conservative criminal justice reforms.
Right on Crime has the support and works to mobilize the voices of more than ninety prominent conservative leaders who have endorsed the principles of conservative criminal justice reform, including former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich, Concerned Women for America President Penny Nance, former U.S. Senator Jim DeMint, former Ohio Secretary of State Ken Blackwell, and Americans for Tax Reform President Grover Norquist.
For more information or to schedule an interview with Right on Crime spokespersons, please contact Kevin McVicker at (703) 739-5920 or [email protected].