Today, the U.S. holds more prisoners than any other country. The largest increase came from nonviolent drug offenders, largely due to inflexible mandatory minimum sentences.
The First Step Act that I introduced with Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley would reduce recidivism, promote public safety and improve fairness in federal sentencing.
It’s a once-in-a-political-lifetime aligning of the stars. Republicans, Democrats, President Trump, the Fraternal Order of Police and the ACLU have thrown their support behind our bill. It’s the best chance in a generation to make meaningful changes in federal drug sentencing laws. We cannot waste it.