United States · Bill · S
S. 697 (116th)
Next Step Act of 2019
Introduced
7 March 2019
Last action
7 March 2019 · Introduced
Status
Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Sponsors
Sen. Booker, Cory A. [D-NJ], Sen. Markey, Edward J. [D-MA]
Subjects
Discovery layer
Source updated
10 August 2026
Summary
Next Step Act of 2019 This bill revises sentencing guidelines, addresses prison conditions and prisoner reentry, and addresses law enforcement training. First, it eliminates increased and mandatory minimum penalties for drug offenses involving mixtures or substances which contain cocaine base (i.e., crack cocaine). It decriminalizes marijuana by (1) removing marijuana from the list of scheduled substances; (2) eliminating criminal penalties for an individual who imports, exports, manufactures, distributes, or possesses with intent to distribute marijuana; and (3) expunging convictions for marijuana use or possession. It reduces the mandatory minimum prison term for defendants who manufacture, distribute, or possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance. Additionally, the bill requires the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) to provide videoconferencing free of charge to prisoners; prohibits federal agencies from requesting that applicants disclose their criminal history before receiving a conditional offer of employment; restricts the use of criminal records to disqualify individuals from employment, occupational licensing, or occupational certification; creates a mechanism by which certain eligible individuals may file a petition to seal federal criminal records for certain nonviolent offenses; reinstates the right to vote in federal elections for persons convicted of criminal offenses; revises requirements for the BOP to help prisoners obtain identification documents prior to their release; establishes and revises certain grants; requires a state or tribe that receives certain funding to report on use-of-force incidents involving a law enforcement officer and a civilian; and prohibits racial profiling by law enforcement.
This text is taken from the official record. PoliticalRepo does not editorialize.
Timeline
7 March 2019
Introduced
Introduced in Senate
Source: IntroReferral
7 March 2019
Introduced
Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Source: IntroReferral
Votes
No vote records are attached yet.
Versions
- Introduced in Senate · 7 March 2019 · Download file
Documents
3 official files
Introduced in Senate (text)
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Introduced in Senate (text)
Introduced in Senate · EN · 7 March 2019
Introduced in Senate (PDF)
Introduced in Senate · EN · 7 March 2019
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Introduced in Senate
summary · EN · 7 March 2019
Leesvertaling
Vertaal dit document naar jouw taal. PoliticalRepo bewaart geen aparte kopie per EU-taal.
Documentvertaling op verzoek met downloadbare PDF (logo + link naar de officiële bron). Het bronbestand blijft leidend.
Sponsors
- Sen. Booker, Cory A. [D-NJ] · D · Sponsor
- Sen. Markey, Edward J. [D-MA] · D · Cosponsor
- · ssju00 · Standing
Related records
- related to → Democracy Restoration Act of 2019
- related to → Fair Chance Act
- related to → Marijuana Justice Act of 2019
- related to → Fair Chance Act
- related to → Marijuana Justice Act of 2019
- related to ← Next Step Act of 2019
- related to ← To amend title 18, United States Code, to authorize a court to reduce the term of imprisonment imposed on certain defendants convicted as an adult for an offense committed and completed before the defendant attained 18 years of age, and for other purposes.
- related to ← Democracy Restoration Act of 2019
- related to ← New Pathways Act
- related to ← New Pathways Act
- related to ← REDEEM Act
- related to ← Reverse Mass Incarceration Act of 2019
- related to ← Reverse Mass Incarceration Act of 2019
Showing 13 of 19 related records.
Sources
PoliticalRepo is an index and interpretation layer, not the authoritative legal source.
- Official source: https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/senate-bill/697
- Open data entity: https://api.congress.gov/v3/bill/116/s/697
- us · 116-s-697 · source updated 10 August 2026