{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://labrador.house.gov/index.cfm?sectionid=49&itemid=917", "ICYMI: PAUL RYAN & WASHINGTON POST ENDORSE LABRADOR BILL TO REFORM CRIMINAL SENTENCING LAWS", "2014-07-24", "2014", "2014-07", "Republican", "House", "ID", "Ra\u00fal Labrador", "L000573", "labrador.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "In a speech today at the American Enterprise Institute, Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), Chairman of the House Budget Committee, endorsed Rep. Ra\u00fal Labrador\u2019s bill to reform criminal sentencing laws.\u00a0\r\n\r\n\tRep. Labrador\u2019s bill, H.R. 3382, the Smarter Sentencing Act, would allow courts to make individualized assessments in nonviolent drug cases, ensuring that limited resources are focused on the most serious offenders, while maintaining public safety.\u00a0\r\n\r\n\tIn his prepared remarks, Chairman Ryan said, \u201cWe need commonsense criminal-justice reform. We need to give people the opportunity to earn a second chance. Luckily, my colleagues have done a lot of good work on this front. Senator Mike Lee and Congressmen Raul Labrador and Bobby Scott have introduced a bill to reform our sentencing guidelines. It would give judges more discretion with low-risk, non-violent offenders. All we\u2019re saying is, they don\u2019t have to give the maximum sentence every time. There\u2019s no reason to lock someone up any longer than necessary.\u201d\r\n\r\n\tIn addition, the Washington Post published an editorial today, Congress Should Reform the Mandatory Minimum Sentences for Drug Offenses.\r\n\r\n\tThe Post stated, \u201cThe core of the problem \u2014 overly tough mandatory minimum sentences and the difficulty in reintegrating ex-prisoners into society \u2014 can be addressed only by Congress\u2026Luckily, two bills are pending that precisely address these issues.\u00a0 The Smarter Sentencing Act would reform how prisoners are sentenced\u2026 The second bill, the Recidivism Reduction and Public Safety Act, reforms the way prisoners reintegrate into society\u2026Sponsors of these two proposals are negotiating on whether to bundle them together. Whether that is successful or not, both bills should pass. They will help lower the crime rate in the long run, bring proportionality back into punishments and save millions of dollars a year.\u201d\u00a0\r\n\r\n\tThe Smarter Sentencing Act has 47 House cosponsors and the Senate version of the bill has already passed the Senate Judiciary Committee.\u00a0 The bill has been endorsed by organizations across the political spectrum, including Heritage Action; Justice Fellowship of Prison Fellowship Ministries; ACLU; American Correctional Association; American Bar Association; NAACP; and Constitution Project.\r\n\r\n\tTo learn more about the Smarter Sentencing Act, please click here.\u00a0 \r\n\r\n\t\u00a0\r\n\r\n\t\u00a0\r\n\r\n\t####", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://labrador.house.gov/index.cfm?sectionid=49&itemid=917"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.002684235572815, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}