End Racial Profiling Act of 2005 or ERPA - Prohibits any law enforcement agent or agency from engaging in racial profiling. Authorizes the United States or an individual injured by racial profiling to bring a civil action for declaratory or injunctive relief in state court or U.S. district court. Makes proof that the routine or spontaneous investigatory activities of law enforcement agents in a jurisdiction have had a disparate impact on racial, ethnic, or religious minorities prima facie evidence of a violation. Authorizes the court to allow a prevailing plaintiff attorney's fees under specified circumstances.
Directs federal law enforcement agencies to: (1) cease practices that permit racial profiling; and (2) maintain policies and procedures to eliminate racial profiling.
Requires applications for funding under the Byrne or Cops on the Beat program to include a certification that the applicant: (1) maintains adequate policies and procedures designed to eliminate racial profiling; and (2) does not engage in any practices that permit racial profiling.
Requires applicants to establish an administrative complaint procedure or independent auditor program. Directs the Attorney General to carry out a demonstration project to collect data on hit rates for stops and searches.
Authorizes the Attorney General, through the Bureau of Justice Assistance, to make grants to develop and implement best practice devices and systems to eliminate racial profiling.
Directs the Attorney General to report to Congress annually on racial profiling by law enforcement agencies.
[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2138 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
109th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 2138
To prohibit racial profiling.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
December 16, 2005
Mr. Feingold (for Mr. Corzine, Mr. Lautenberg, Mr. Kennedy, Mr. Durbin,
Mr. Kerry, Mrs. Boxer, Mr. Dodd, Ms. Cantwell, Ms. Mikulski, Mr. Obama,
and Ms. Stabenow) introduced the following bill; which was read twice
and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To prohibit racial profiling.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``End Racial
Profiling Act of 2005'' or ``ERPA''.
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents of this Act is as
follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Findings, purposes, and intent.
Sec. 3. Definitions.
TITLE I--PROHIBITION OF RACIAL PROFILING
Sec. 101. Prohibition.
Sec. 102. Enforcement.
TITLE II--PROGRAMS TO ELIMINATE RACIAL PROFILING BY FEDERAL LAW
ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES
Sec. 201. Policies to eliminate racial profiling.
TITLE III--PROGRAMS TO ELIMINATE RACIAL PROFILING BY STATE, LOCAL, AND
INDIAN TRIBAL LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES
Sec. 301. Policies required for grants.
Sec. 302. Administrative complaint procedure or independent auditor
program required for grants.
Sec. 303. Involvement of Attorney General.
Sec. 304. Data collection demonstration project.
Sec. 305. Best practices development grants.
Sec. 306. Authorization of appropriations.
TITLE IV--DATA COLLECTION
Sec. 401. Attorney General to issue regulations.
Sec. 402. Publication of data.
Sec. 403. Limitations on publication of data.
TITLE V--DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE REGULATIONS AND REPORTS ON RACIAL
PROFILING IN THE UNITED STATES
Sec. 501. Attorney General to issue regulations and reports.
TITLE VI--MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
Sec. 601. Severability.
Sec. 602. Savings clause.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS, PURPOSES, AND INTENT.
(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
(1) Federal, State, and local law enforcement agents play a
vital role in protecting the public from crime and protecting
the Nation from terrorism. The vast majority of law enforcement
agents nationwide discharge their duties professionally and
without bias.
(2) The use by police officers of race, ethnicity, national
origin, or religion in deciding which persons should be subject
to traffic stops, stops and frisks, questioning, searches, and
seizures is improper.
(3) In his address to a joint session of Congress on
February 27, 2001, President George W. Bush declared that
``racial profiling is wrong and we will end it in America.''.
He directed the Attorney General to implement this policy.
(4) In June 2003, the Department of Justice issued a Policy
Guidance regarding racial profiling by Federal law enforcement
agencies which stated: ``Racial profiling in law enforcement is
not merely wrong, but also ineffective. Race-based assumptions
in law enforcement perpetuate negative racial stereotypes that
are harmful to our rich and diverse democracy, and materially
impair our efforts to maintain a fair and just society.''.
(5) The Department of Justice Guidance is a useful first
step, but does not achieve the President's stated goal of
ending racial profiling in America, as--
(A) it does not apply to State and local law
enforcement agencies;
(B) it does not contain a meaningful enforcement
mechanism;
(C) it does not require data collection; and
(D) it contains an overbroad exception for
immigration and national security matters.
(6) Current efforts by State and local governments to
eradicate racial profiling and redress the harms it causes,
while also laudable, have been limited in scope and
insufficient to address this national problem. Therefore,
Federal legislation is needed.
(7) Statistical evidence from across the country
demonstrates that racial profiling is a real and measurable
phenomenon.
(8) As of November 15, 2000, the Department of Justice had
14 publicly noticed, ongoing, pattern or practice
investigations involving allegations of racial profiling and
had filed 5 pattern or practice lawsuits involving allegations
of racial profiling, with 4 of those cases resolved through
consent decrees.
(9) A large majority of individuals subjected to stops and
other enforcement activities based on race, ethnicity, national
origin, or religion are found to be law abiding and therefore
racial profiling is not an effective means to uncover criminal
activity.
(10) A 2001 Department of Justice report on citizen-police
contacts that occurred in 1999, found that, although Blacks and
Hispanics were more likely to be stopped and searched, they
were less likely to be in possession of contraband. On average,
searches and seizures of Black drivers yielded evidence only 8
percent of the time, searches and seizures of Hispanic drivers
yielded evidence only 10 percent of the time, and searches and
seizures of White drivers yielded evidence 17 percent of the
time.
(11) A 2000 General Accounting Office report on the
activities of the United States Customs Service during fiscal
year 1998 found that--
(A) Black women who were United States citizens
were 9 times more likely than White women who were
United States citizens to be x-rayed after being
frisked or patted down;
(B) Black women who were United States citizens
were less than half as likely as White women who were
United States citizens to be found carrying contraband;
and
(C) in general, the patterns used to select
passengers for more intrusive searches resulted in
women and minorities being selected at rates that were
not consistent with the rates of finding contraband.
(12) A 2005 report of the Bureau of Justice Statistics of
the Department of Justice on citizen-police contacts that
occurred in 2002, found that, although Whites, Blacks, and
Hispanics were stopped by the police at the same rate--
(A) Blacks and Hispanics were much more likely to
be arrested than Whites;
(B) Hispanics were much more likely to be ticketed
than Blacks or Whites;
(C) Blacks and Hispanics were much more likely to
report the use or threatened use of force by a police
officer;
(D) Blacks and Hispanics were much more likely to
be handcuffed than Whites; and
(E) Blacks and Hispanics were much more likely to
have their vehicles searched than Whites.
(13) In some jurisdictions, local law enforcement
practices, such as ticket and arrest quotas and similar
management practices, may have the unintended effect of
encouraging law enforcement agents to engage in racial
profiling.
(14) Racial profiling harms individuals subjected to it
because they experience fear, anxiety, humiliation, anger,
resentment, and cynicism when they are unjustifiably treated as
criminal suspects. By discouraging individuals from traveling
freely, racial profiling impairs both interstate and intrastate
commerce.
(15) Racial profiling damages law enforcement and the
criminal justice system as a whole by undermining public
confidence and trust in the police, the courts, and the
criminal law.
(16) In the wake of the September 11, 2001, terrorist
attacks, many Arabs, Muslims, Central and South Asians, and
Sikhs, as well as other immigrants and Americans of foreign
descent, were treated with generalized suspicion and subjected
to searches and seizures based upon religion and national
origin, without trustworthy information linking specific
individuals to criminal conduct. Such profiling has failed to
produce tangible benefits, yet has created a fear and mistrust
of law enforcement agencies in these communities.
(17) Racial profiling violates the equal protection clause
of the fourteenth amendment to the Constitution of the United
States. Using race, ethnicity, religion, or national origin as
a proxy for criminal suspicion violates the constitutional
requirement that police and other government officials accord
to all citizens the equal protection of the law. Batson v.
Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79 (1986); Palmore v. Sidoti, 466 U.S. 429
(1984).
(18) Racial profiling is not adequately addressed through
suppression motions in criminal cases for 2 reasons. First, the
Supreme Court held, in Whren v. United States, 517 U.S. 806
(1996), that the racially discriminatory motive of a police
officer in making an otherwise valid traffic stop does not
warrant the suppression of evidence under the fourth amendment
to the Constitution of the United States. Second, since most
stops do not result in the discovery of contraband, there is no
criminal prosecution and no evidence to suppress.
(19) A comprehensive national solution is needed to address
racial profiling at the Federal, State, and local levels.
Federal support is needed to combat racial profiling through
specialized training of law enforcement agents, improved
management systems, and the acquisition of technology such as
in-car video cameras.
(b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are--
(1) to enforce the constitutional right to equal protection
of the laws, pursuant to the fifth amendment and section 5 of
the fourteenth amendment to the Constitution of the United
States;
(2) to enforce the constitutional right to protection
against unreasonable searches and seizures, pursuant to the
fourteenth amendment to the Constitution of the United States;
(3) to enforce the constitutional right to interstate
travel, pursuant to section 2 of article IV of the Constitution
of the United States; and
(4) to regulate interstate commerce, pursuant to clause 3
of section 8 of article I of the Constitution of the United
States.
(c) Intent.--This Act is not intended to and should not impede the
ability of Federal, State, and local law enforcement to protect the
country and its people from any threat, be it foreign or domestic.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Covered program.--The term ``covered program'' means
any program or activity funded in whole or in part with funds
made available under--
(A) the Edward Byrne Memorial State and Local Law
Enforcement Assistance Program (part E of title I of
the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968
(42 U.S.C. 3750 et seq.));
(B) the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance
Grant Program, as described in appropriations Acts; and
(C) the ``Cops on the Beat'' program under part Q
of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe
Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796dd et seq.), but not
including any program, project, or other activity
specified in section 1701(d)(8) of that Act (42 U.S.C.
3796dd(d)(8)).
(2) Governmental body.--The term ``governmental body''
means any department, agency, special purpose district, or
other instrumentality of Federal, State, local, or Indian
tribal government.
(3) Indian tribe.--The term ``Indian tribe'' has the same
meaning as in section 103 of the Juvenile Justice and
Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5603)).
(4) Law enforcement agency.--The term ``law enforcement
agency'' means any Federal, State, local, or Indian tribal
public agency engaged in the prevention, detection, or
investigation of violations of criminal, immigration, or
customs laws.
(5) Law enforcement agent.--The term ``law enforcement
agent'' means any Federal, State, local, or Indian tribal
official responsible for enforcing criminal, immigration, or
customs laws, including police officers and other agents of a
law enforcement agency.
(6) Racial profiling.--The term ``racial profiling'' means
the practice of a law enforcement agent or agency relying, to
any degree, on race, ethnicity, national origin, or religion in
selecting which individual to subject to routine or spontaneous
investigatory activities or in deciding upon the scope and
substance of law enforcement activity following the initial
investigatory procedure, except when there is trustworthy
information, relevant to the locality and timeframe, that links
a person of a particular race, ethnicity, national origin, or
religion to an identified criminal incident or scheme.
(7) Routine or spontaneous investigatory activities.--The
term ``routine or spontaneous investigatory activities'' means
the following activities by a law enforcement agent:
(A) Interviews.
(B) Traffic stops.
(C) Pedestrian stops.
(D) Frisks and other types of body searches.
(E) Consensual or nonconsensual searches of the
persons or possessions (including vehicles) of
motorists or pedestrians.
(F) Inspections and interviews of entrants into the
United States that are more extensive than those
customarily carried out.
(G) Immigration related workplace investigations.
(H) Such other types of law enforcement encounters
compiled by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the
Justice Departments Bureau of Justice Statistics.
(8) Reasonable request.--The term ``reasonable request''
means all requests for information, except for those that--
(A) are immaterial to the investigation;
(B) would result in the unnecessary exposure of
personal information; or
(C) would place a severe burden on the resources of
the law enforcement agency given its size.
(9) Unit of local government.--The term ``unit of local
government'' means--
(A) any city, county, township, town, borough,
parish, village, or other general purpose political
subdivision of a State;
(B) any law enforcement district or judicial
enforcement district that--
(i) is established under applicable State
law; and
(ii) has the authority to, in a manner
independent of other State entities, establish
a budget and impose taxes;
(C) any Indian tribe that performs law enforcement
functions, as determined by the Secretary of the
Interior; or
(D) for the purposes of assistance eligibility, any
agency of the government of the District of Columbia or
the Federal Government that performs law enforcement
functions in and for--
(i) the District of Columbia; or
(ii) any Trust Territory of the United
States.
TITLE I--PROHIBITION OF RACIAL PROFILING
SEC. 101. PROHIBITION.
No law enforcement agent or law enforcement agency shall engage in
racial profiling.
SEC. 102. ENFORCEMENT.
(a) Remedy.--The United States, or an individual injured by racial
profiling, may enforce this title in a civil action for declaratory or
injunctive relief, filed either in a State court of general
jurisdiction or in a district court of the United States.
(b) Parties.--In any action brought under this title, relief may be
obtained against--
(1) any governmental body that employed any law enforcement
agent who engaged in racial profiling;
(2) any agent of such body who engaged in racial profiling;
and
(3) any person with supervisory authority over such agent.
(c) Nature of Proof.--Proof that the routine or spontaneous
investigatory activities of law enforcement agents in a jurisdiction
have had a disparate impact on racial, ethnic, or religious minorities
shall constitute prima facie evidence of a violation of this title.
(d) Attorney's Fees.--In any action or proceeding to enforce this
title against any governmental unit, the court may allow a prevailing
plaintiff, other than the United States, reasonable attorney's fees as
part of the costs, and may include expert fees as part of the
attorney's fee.
TITLE II--PROGRAMS TO ELIMINATE RACIAL PROFILING BY FEDERAL LAW
ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES
SEC. 201. POLICIES TO ELIMINATE RACIAL PROFILING.
(a) In General.--Federal law enforcement agencies shall--
(1) maintain adequate policies and procedures designed to
eliminate racial profiling; and
(2) cease existing practices that permit racial profiling.
(b) Policies.--The policies and procedures described in subsection
(a)(1) shall include--
(1) a prohibition on racial profiling;
(2) training on racial profiling issues as part of Federal
law enforcement training;
(3) the collection of data in accordance with the
regulations issued by the Attorney General under section 401;
(4) procedures for receiving, investigating, and responding
meaningfully to complaints alleging racial profiling by law
enforcement agents;
(5) policies requiring that appropriate action be taken
when law enforcement agents are determined to have engaged in
racial profiling; and
(6) such other policies or procedures that the Attorney
General deems necessary to eliminate racial profiling.
TITLE III--PROGRAMS TO ELIMINATE RACIAL PROFILING BY STATE, LOCAL, AND
INDIAN TRIBAL LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES
SEC. 301. POLICIES REQUIRED FOR GRANTS.
(a) In General.--An application by a State, a unit of local
government, or a State, local, or Indian tribal law enforcement agency
for funding under a covered program shall include a certification that
such State, unit of local government, or law enforcement agency, and
any law enforcement agency to which it will distribute funds--
(1) maintains adequate policies and procedures designed to
eliminate racial profiling; and
(2) does not engage in any existing practices that permit
racial profiling.
(b) Policies.--The policies and procedures described in subsection
(a)(1) shall include--
(1) a prohibition on racial profiling;
(2) training on racial profiling issues as part of law
enforcement training;
(3) the collection of data in accordance with the
regulations issued by the Attorney General under section 401;
(4) procedures for receiving, investigating, and responding
meaningfully to complaints alleging racial profiling by law
enforcement agents, including procedures that allow a complaint
to be made through any of the methods described in section
302(b)(2);
(5) mechanisms for providing information to the public
relating to the administrative complaint procedure or
independent auditor program established under section 302;
(6) policies requiring that appropriate action be taken
when law enforcement agents are determined to have engaged in
racial profiling; and
(7) such other policies or procedures that the Attorney
General deems necessary to eliminate racial profiling.
(c) Effective Date.--This section shall take effect 12 months after
the date of enactment of this Act.
SEC. 302. ADMINISTRATIVE COMPLAINT PROCEDURE OR INDEPENDENT AUDITOR
PROGRAM REQUIRED FOR GRANTS.
(a) Establishment of Administrative Complaint Procedure or
Independent Auditor Program.--An application by a State or unit of
local government for funding under a covered program shall include a
certification that the applicant has established and is maintaining,
for each law enforcement agency of the applicant, either--
(1) an administrative complaint procedure that meets the
requirements of subsection (b); or
(2) an independent auditor program that meets the
requirements of subsection (c).
(b) Requirements for Administrative Complaint Procedure.--To meet
the requirements of this subsection, an administrative complaint
procedure shall--
(1) allow any person who believes there has been a
violation of section 101 to file a complaint;
(2) allow a complaint to be made--
(A) in writing or orally;
(B) in person or by mail, telephone, facsimile, or
electronic mail; and
(C) anonymously or through a third party;
(3) require that the complaint be investigated and heard by
an independent review board that--
(A) is located outside of any law enforcement
agency or the law office of the State or unit of local
government;
(B) includes, as at least a majority of its
members, individuals who are not employees of the State
or unit of local government;
(C) does not include as a member any individual who
is then serving as a law enforcement agent;
(D) possesses the power to request all relevant
information from a law enforcement agency; and
(E) possesses staff and resources sufficient to
perform the duties assigned to the independent review
board under this subsection;
(4) provide that the law enforcement agency shall comply
with all reasonable requests for information in a timely
manner;
(5) require the review board to inform the Attorney General
when a law enforcement agency fails to comply with a request
for information under this subsection;
(6) provide that a hearing be held, on the record, at the
request of the complainant;
(7) provide for an appropriate remedy, and publication of
the results of the inquiry by the review board, if the review
board determines that a violation of section 101 has occurred;
(8) provide that the review board shall dismiss the
complaint and publish the results of the inquiry by the review
board, if the review board determines that no violation has
occurred;
(9) provide that the review board shall make a final
determination with respect to a complaint in a reasonably
timely manner;
(10) provide that a record of all complaints and
proceedings be sent to the Civil Rights Division and the Bureau
of Justice Statistics of the Department of Justice;
(11) provide that no published information shall reveal the
identity of the law enforcement officer, the complainant, or
any other individual who is involved in a detention; and
(12) otherwise operate in a manner consistent with
regulations promulgated by the Attorney General under section
303.
(c) Requirements for Independent Auditor Program.--To meet the
requirements of this subsection, an independent auditor program shall--
(1) provide for the appointment of an independent auditor
who is not a sworn officer or employee of a law enforcement
agency;
(2) provide that the independent auditor be given staff and
resources sufficient to perform the duties of the independent
auditor program under this section;
(3) provide that the independent auditor be given full
access to all relevant documents and data of a law enforcement
agency;
(4) require the independent auditor to inform the Attorney
General when a law enforcement agency fails to comply with a
request for information under this subsection;
(5) require the independent auditor to issue a public
report each year that--
(A) addresses the efforts of each law enforcement
agency of the State or unit of local government to
combat racial profiling; and
(B) recommends any necessary changes to the
policies and procedures of any law enforcement agency;
(6) require that each law enforcement agency issue a public
response to each report issued by the auditor under paragraph
(5);
(7) provide that the independent auditor, upon determining
that a law enforcement agency is not in compliance with this
Act, shall forward the public report directly to the Attorney
General;
(8) provide that the independent auditor shall engage in
community outreach on racial profiling issues; and
(9) otherwise operate in a manner consistent with
regulations promulgated by the Attorney General under section
303.
(d) Local Use of State Complaint Procedure or Independent Auditor
Program.--
(1) In general.--A State shall permit a unit of local
government within its borders to use the administrative
complaint procedure or independent auditor program it
establishes under this section.
(2) Effect of use.--A unit of local government shall be
deemed to have established and maintained an administrative
complaint procedure or independent auditor program for purposes
of this section if the unit of local government uses the
administrative complaint procedure or independent auditor
program of either the State in which it is located, or another
unit of local government in the State in which it is located.
(e) Effective Date.--This section shall go into effect 12 months
after the date of enactment of this Act.
SEC. 303. INVOLVEMENT OF ATTORNEY GENERAL.
(a) Regulations.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 6 months after the date of
enactment of this Act and in consultation with stakeholders,
including Federal, State, and local law enforcement agencies
and community, professional, research, and civil rights
organizations, the Attorney General shall issue regulations for
the operation of the administrative complaint procedures and
independent auditor programs required under subsections (b) and
(c) of section 302.
(2) Guidelines.--The regulations issued under paragraph (1)
shall contain guidelines that ensure the fairness,
effectiveness, and independence of the administrative complaint
procedures and independent auditor programs.
(b) Noncompliance.--If the Attorney General determines that the
recipient of any covered grant is not in compliance with the
requirements of section 301 or 302 or the regulations issued under
subsection (a), the Attorney General shall withhold, in whole or in
part, funds for 1 or more covered grants, until the grantee establishes
compliance.
(c) Private Parties.--The Attorney General shall provide notice and
an opportunity for private parties to present evidence to the Attorney
General that a grantee is not in compliance with the requirements of
this title.
SEC. 304. DATA COLLECTION DEMONSTRATION PROJECT.
(a) In General.--The Attorney General shall, through competitive
grants or contracts, carry out a 2-year demonstration project for the
purpose of developing and implementing data collection on hit rates for
stops and searches. The data shall be disaggregated by race, ethnicity,
national origin, and religion.
(b) Competitive Awards.--The Attorney General shall provide not
more than 5 grants or contracts to police departments that--
(1) are not already collecting data voluntarily or
otherwise; and
(2) serve communities where there is a significant
concentration of racial or ethnic minorities.
(c) Required Activities.--Activities carried out under subsection
(b) shall include--
(1) developing a data collection tool;
(2) training of law enforcement personnel on data
collection;
(3) collecting data on hit rates for stops and searches;
and
(4) reporting the compiled data to the Attorney General.
(d) Evaluation.--Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment
of this Act, the Attorney General shall enter into a contract with an
institution of higher education to analyze the data collected by each
of the 5 sites funded under this section.
(e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be
appropriated to carry out activities under this section--
(1) $5,000,000, over a 2-year period for a demonstration
project on 5 sites; and
(2) $500,000 to carry out the evaluation in subsection (d).
SEC. 305. BEST PRACTICES DEVELOPMENT GRANTS.
(a) Grant Authorization.--The Attorney General, through the Bureau
of Justice Assistance, may make grants to States, law enforcement
agencies, and units of local government to develop and implement best
practice devices and systems to eliminate racial profiling.
(b) Use of Funds.--The funds provided under subsection (a) may be
used for--
(1) the development and implementation of training to
prevent racial profiling and to encourage more respectful
interaction with the public;
(2) the acquisition and use of technology to facilitate the
collection of data regarding routine investigatory activities
sufficient to permit an analysis of these activities by race,
ethnicity, national origin, and religion;
(3) the analysis of data collected by law enforcement
agencies to determine whether the data indicate the existence
of racial profiling;
(4) the acquisition and use of technology to verify the
accuracy of data collection, including in-car video cameras and
portable computer systems;
(5) the development and acquisition of early warning
systems and other feedback systems that help identify officers
or units of officers engaged in, or at risk of engaging in,
racial profiling or other misconduct, including the technology
to support such systems;
(6) the establishment or improvement of systems and
procedures for receiving, investigating, and responding
meaningfully to complaints alleging racial, ethnic, or
religious bias by law enforcement agents;
(7) the establishment or improvement of management systems
to ensure that supervisors are held accountable for the conduct
of their subordinates; and
(8) the establishment and maintenance of an administrative
complaint procedure or independent auditor program under
section 302.
(c) Equitable Distribution.--The Attorney General shall ensure that
grants under this section are awarded in a manner that reserves an
equitable share of funding for small and rural law enforcement
agencies.
(d) Application.--Each State, local law enforcement agency, or unit
of local government desiring a grant under this section shall submit an
application to the Attorney General at such time, in such manner, and
accompanied by such information as the Attorney General may reasonably
require.
SEC. 306. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are necessary
to carry out this title.
TITLE IV--DATA COLLECTION
SEC. 401. ATTORNEY GENERAL TO ISSUE REGULATIONS.
(a) Regulations.--Not later than 6 months after the enactment of
this Act, the Attorney General, in consultation with stakeholders,
including Federal, State, and local law enforcement agencies and
community, professional, research, and civil rights organizations,
shall issue regulations for the collection and compilation of data
under sections 201 and 301.
(b) Requirements.--The regulations issued under subsection (a)
shall--
(1) provide for the collection of data on all routine or
spontaneous investigatory activities;
(2) provide that the data collected shall--
(A) be collected by race, ethnicity, national
origin, gender, and religion, as perceived by the law
enforcement officer;
(B) include the date, time, and location of the
investigatory activities; and
(C) include detail sufficient to permit an analysis
of whether a law enforcement agency is engaging in
racial profiling;
(3) provide that a standardized form shall be made
available to law enforcement agencies for the submission of
collected data to the Department of Justice;
(4) provide that law enforcement agencies shall compile
data on the standardized form created under paragraph (3), and
submit the form to the Civil Rights Division and the Bureau of
Justice Statistics of the Department of Justice;
(5) provide that law enforcement agencies shall maintain
all data collected under this Act for not less than 4 years;
(6) include guidelines for setting comparative benchmarks,
consistent with best practices, against which collected data
shall be measured; and
(7) provide that the Bureau of Justice Statistics shall--
(A) analyze the data for any statistically
significant disparities, including--
(i) disparities in the percentage of
drivers or pedestrians stopped relative to the
proportion of the population passing through
the neighborhood;
(ii) disparities in the percentage of false
stops relative to the percentage of drivers or
pedestrians stopped; and
(iii) disparities in the frequency of
searches performed on minority drivers and the
frequency of searches performed on non-minority
drivers; and
(B) not later than 3 years after the date of
enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, prepare
a report regarding the findings of the analysis
conducted under subparagraph (A) and provide the report
to Congress and make the report available to the
public, including on a website of the Department of
Justice.
SEC. 402. PUBLICATION OF DATA.
The Bureau of Justice Statistics shall provide to Congress and make
available to the public, together with each annual report described in
section 401, the data collected pursuant to this Act.
SEC. 403. LIMITATIONS ON PUBLICATION OF DATA.
The name or identifying information of a law enforcement officer,
complainant, or any other individual involved in any activity for which
data is collected and compiled under this Act shall not be--
(1) released to the public;
(2) disclosed to any person, except for such disclosures as
are necessary to comply with this Act;
(3) subject to disclosure under section 552 of title 5,
United States Code (commonly know as the Freedom of Information
Act).
TITLE V--DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE REGULATIONS AND REPORTS ON RACIAL
PROFILING IN THE UNITED STATES
SEC. 501. ATTORNEY GENERAL TO ISSUE REGULATIONS AND REPORTS.
(a) Regulations.--In addition to the regulations required under
sections 303 and 401, the Attorney General shall issue such other
regulations as the Attorney General determines are necessary to
implement this Act.
(b) Reports.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 2 years after the date of
enactment of this Act, and each year thereafter, the Attorney
General shall submit to Congress a report on racial profiling
by law enforcement agencies.
(2) Scope.--Each report submitted under paragraph (1) shall
include--
(A) a summary of data collected under sections
201(b)(3) and 301(b)(1)(C) and from any other reliable
source of information regarding racial profiling in the
United States;
(B) a discussion of the findings in the most recent
report prepared by the Bureau of Justice Statistics
under section 401(a)(8);
(C) the status of the adoption and implementation
of policies and procedures by Federal law enforcement
agencies under section 201;
(D) the status of the adoption and implementation
of policies and procedures by State and local law
enforcement agencies under sections 301 and 302; and
(E) a description of any other policies and
procedures that the Attorney General believes would
facilitate the elimination of racial profiling.
TITLE VI--MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
SEC. 601. SEVERABILITY.
If any provision of this Act or the application of such provision
to any person or circumstance is held to be unconstitutional, the
remainder of this Act and the application of the provisions of this Act
to any person or circumstance shall not be affected thereby.
SEC. 602. SAVINGS CLAUSE.
Nothing in this Act shall be construed to limit legal or
administrative remedies under section 1979 of the Revised Statutes of
the United States (42 U.S.C. 1983), section 210401 of the Violent Crime
Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14141), the Omnibus
Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3701 et seq.),
and title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.).
<all>
Introduced in Senate
Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S13804-13805)
Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. (text of measure as introduced: CR S13805-13808)
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