{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=52D64F5A-9DA6-47E3-AC61-CC996B4D2C56", "Sens. Lee, Paul, King, Crapo, Merkley Request Defunding of Civil Asset Forfeiture Expansion", "2017-11-08", "2017", "2017-11", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Today, Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) joined with Sens. Rand Paul (R-KY), Angus King (I-VT), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), and Tom Udall (D-NM) in sending a letter to Rules and Administration Committee Chairman Richard Shelby, requesting he defund the Department of Justice\u2019s reinstated expansion of civil asset forfeiture practices. The letter reads, in part: \u201cAdoptive forfeiture and equitable sharing are particularly egregious elements of civil asset forfeiture because they not only violate due process but also attack principals of federalism. DOJ\u2019s reinstated policy allows state law enforcement officers to circumvent state limitations on civil forfeiture by turning seized property over to federal officials for forfeiture in exchange for up to 80% of the proceeds of the property. This perversely incentivizes local law enforcement to confiscate suspect property even where state laws forbid the practice.\u201d The full letter and online version of this release can be viewed here.\r\nCivil Asset Forfeiture Letter by Senator Mike Lee", 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://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=52D64F5A-9DA6-47E3-AC61-CC996B4D2C56"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.954713836312294, "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"}