LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) – A bi-partisan group of state and federal lawmakers joined together Monday morning to urge Senate Majority Leader (R) Mitch McConnell to bring a criminal justice reform bill to the floor of the Senate.
The Bill, also referred to as the First Step Act, has received wide reaching support from both democrats and republicans, including President Donald Trump.
The bill includes provisions that would attempt to reduce mandatory minimums for drug related offenses as well as allowing some non-violent offenders out of prison sooner. It would also create new pathways to allow more felons to complete re-integration programs to allow a smoother transition back into society.
“There are so many aspects to our criminal justice system that are problematic,” said (D) Rep. John Yarmuth (KY-3). “We know that we have a broken system.”
So far though, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has been hesitant to bring the bill to the Senate floor this year due to time constraints and worries that it could create some division among Republican senators.
“Many of us on my side of the aisle we say we're the part of family values, we can debate which party more or less is but you can't be the party of family values if you don't want to let the young men come back and be back in community and get back into the families,” said U.S. Senator (R) Rand Paul.
President Donald Trump has also expressed support for the bill and urged McConnell to bring it to the floor for a vote. Paul says it shouldn’t have any issue passing.
“It will pass overwhelmingly and it is a first step and a very necessary first step,” Paul said. “I'm asking those in Louisville to call Senator McConnell and say please allow this vote.’
Some congressional leaders worry that if the bill is not passed before the end of the year, it could lose support as different items are prioritized in 2019.
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