One Stop Shop Community Reentry Program Act of 2021

Floor Speech

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Mr. CICILLINE. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 3372, the One Stop Shop Community Reentry Program Act.

Every year, more than 600,000 people in the United States are released from State and Federal prisons. But even after they are released, in many ways their sentences continue.

Criminal records create unbelievable barriers to securing housing, education, employment, healthcare, and other basic necessities. And there is no Federal agency currently responsible for helping newly released people to navigate these issues.

This bill provides much-needed funding for the creation of a community-based solution to help formerly incarcerated people access vital services that will help them return to their families and neighborhoods successfully.

As mayor of the city of Providence, I assembled a reentry council to support similar reentry programs in the city. I witnessed firsthand how such services deliver desperately needed support and effectively reduced an individual's reoffending and thereby making our communities safer and more prosperous.

That is why I am proud to support this legislation. I am confident it will help people who are exiting the criminal justice system effectively get back on their feet.

I thank Congresswoman and future Los Angeles mayor, Karen Bass for her great leadership on this bipartisan, bicameral bill, and on so many other important issues facing our country.

Madam Mayor, you will be sorely missed in this Chamber and for your work in the Committees on the Judiciary and Foreign Affairs.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill today.

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