Introducing The Fair Chance Act

Washington, D.C. - September 11, 2015 (The Stuff Gazette) -- Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, a senior member of the House Judiciary Committee, and Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security and Investigations released the following statement after the introduction of the Fair Chance Act:

“As Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Crime Subcommittee, it is my honor to join colleagues from the right and left today as we introduce this critical piece of legislation. To all those who worked tirelessly to make this day possible—I thank you.

“In particular, I am grateful to those in the business community who have led the way by removing the criminal history box from their applications. On its face, the Fair Chance Act of 2015 reforms the hiring practices of the federal government—practices that have long deserved a critical look. I commend my colleague and longtime friend Elijah Cummings for his leadership on this issue.

“At its roots, this bill is a response to our broken criminal justice system and the epidemic of mass incarceration. This bill acknowledges that one of the most difficult parts of coming into the criminal justice system is the journey of coming out of it. For an individual who has served their time and paid their debt, the process of re-entering society is paved with tremendous, and often insurmountable, obstacles.

“Roughly 70 million people in the United States have a criminal record—this is nearly one in every three adults. About 700,000 incarcerated individuals re-enter our communities each year. Research, experience, and common sense tell us that access to employment is to successful re-entry. Studies have shown that employment is the single most important influence on decreasing recidivism.

“But for formerly incarcerated individuals, the risks associated with unemployment extend beyond recidivism. We know that there is a direct link between unemployment and depression. One survey revealed the rate of depression among unemployed individuals was double that of employed individuals. Upon release, the risk of depression is already higher for formerly incarcerated individuals than that of the general public. That risk is undoubtedly exacerbated when combined with the shame and burden of unemployment.

“That is why it is especially meaningful that we are introducing this legislation today, on World Suicide Prevention Day. The prevalence of mental illness within our criminal justice system and the population of formerly incarcerated individuals is staggering. Opening up job will have a direct impact on the mental health and emotional well-being of these individuals.

“The introduction of the Fair Chance Act could not come at a more appropriate time—we are in an unprecedented surge of support for criminal justice reform. In my service as Ranking Member of the Crime Subcommittee, I have been working directly with Judiciary Committee Chairman Goodlatte and Ranking Member Conyers on legislation to reform all stages of our criminal justice system that we hope to introduce in the coming weeks. The Fair Chance Act of 2015 is one more critical step in this long overdue and urgently needed effort to comprehensively reform our criminal justice system.”