Press Contact: Devin McMahon, Manager of Communications

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

(WASHINGTON, DC) – The Bail Project strongly opposes House passage of H.R. 5625 and H.R. 6260 – a pair of federal bills that would pressure states and local jurisdictions to rely more heavily on wealth-based detention, expand federal criminal liability for charitable organizations that provide free bail assistance, and create new mechanisms for federal interference in local policy decisions about public safety.

“These bills are rooted in the false idea that wealth-based detention makes communities safer,” said Erin George, National Director of Policy at The Bail Project. “In reality, they undermine local decision-making that places safety at the center of pretrial determinations.”

H.R. 5625 would require the Department of Justice (DOJ) to maintain a public list of jurisdictions that allow release without cash bail in certain cases. The creation of this list provides the opportunity to create a “hit list” for the federal government to restrict essential criminal justice grants, like Byrne JAG funding, through Executive Order 14342. Rather than investing federal resources in violence prevention and evidence-based public safety strategies, the legislation would divert DOJ resources toward monitoring and penalizing local procedural decisions.

“Holding public safety funding hostage to force one-size-fits-all bail policies is both dangerous and unconstitutional,” George said. “States and local communities are best positioned to determine what works for their public safety needs, and courts must be able to make individualized decisions based on actual risk – not access to money.”

Meanwhile, H.R. 6260 would expose charitable organizations, faith groups, and community organizations that provide free bail assistance to expanded and redundant federal criminal liability by improperly applying insurance fraud statutes to nonprofit humanitarian work.

“Charitable bail funds are not insurance companies,” George added. “These organizations do not sell products, charge premiums, or write commercial bonds. They provide humanitarian assistance to people a judge has already determined can safely return home while awaiting trial.”

The Bail Project also warned that H.R. 6260 would prohibit organizations from hiring people with certain criminal records. This could have a chilling effect on second-chance hiring practices overall, by discouraging the employment of formerly incarcerated people who currently help organizations improve court appearance rates and provide supportive pretrial services.

Research continues to show that unnecessary pretrial incarceration destabilizes people and communities while failing to improve public safety. Nationally, more than 60% of people in local jails are detained pretrial – many simply because they cannot afford cash bail. Studies have also shown that even short periods of pretrial incarceration increase the likelihood of future involvement with the criminal justice system.

The Bail Project urges lawmakers to reject the legislation and instead support evidence-based public safety approaches that strengthen communities without relying on wealth-based detention.

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The Bail Project is a national nonprofit working to transform America’s pretrial system by eliminating reliance on cash bail and proving that a more humane, equitable, and effective pretrial system is possible. We provide free bail assistance and pretrial support to thousands of low-income people each year while advancing policy change at the local, state, and national levels. Since our founding, The Bail Project has supported over 40,000 people navigating the pretrial system, which includes nearly 35,000 individuals whose release we secured by posting bail and providing supportive services such as court reminders and transportation assistance. With this support, those clients returned to court 92% of the time, proving that support – not wealth – is what makes the system work. We have also provided supportive services through pilot programs to more than 6,000 people, ensuring that both wealth and access to support are never barriers to fairness in the pretrial process. Learn more at bailproject.org.