Mandatory Minimum Sentencing, and More from CRS
Mandatory minimum sentencing in drug-related criminal prosecutions has “contributed to an explosion in the federal prison population and attendant costs,” a new report from the Congressional Research Service on the laws of mandatory sentencing observes.
“Thus, the federal inmate population at the end of 1976 was 23,566, and at the end of 1986 it was 36,042. On January 4, 2018, the federal inmate population was 183,493.” The costs incurred by the federal prison system have increased accordingly. See Mandatory Minimum Sentencing of Federal Drug Offenses by CRS Senior Specialist Charles Doyle, January 11, 2018.
Other new and updated reports from the Congressional Research Service include the following.
Attorney General’s Memorandum on Federal Marijuana Enforcement: Possible Impacts, CRS Legal Sidebar, January 10, 2018
Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR): An Overview, updated January 9, 2018
Facing the FACT Act: Abortion and Free Speech (Part I), CRS Legal Sidebar, January 10, 2018
Update: Who’s the Boss at the CFPB?, CRS Legal Sidebar, updated January 11, 2018
Venezuela’s Economic Crisis: Issues for Congress, January 10, 2018
Transatlantic Relations in 2018, CRS Insight, January 10, 2018
Overview of “Travel Ban” Litigation and Recent Developments, CRS Legal Sidebar, updated January 10, 2018
When a hurricane hits, it’s all hands on deck – that goes for federal data, too. Pulling back from our investments in timely, accurate, and accessible public data will only make us less prepared and put us all at greater risk.
This is bigger than a singular elimination of race and ethnicity questions. It could accelerate the second wave of widespread reductions to demographic data, leaving public health officials with even less information to deliver better health outcomes for all Americans.
Soft law was never meant to be a permanent solution. Treating it as one, and letting the sandcastle stand in for the skyscraper indefinitely, is how we end up with a decade of voluntary commitments and no enforceable accountability to show for it.
FAS has partnered with ICLEI USA to launch the CRI Local Advisory Council.