S. 1435: Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003

108th Congress · introduced 2003-07-21 · Crime and Law Enforcement · Latest: Became Public Law No: 108-79.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2003-07-21 · official record
Who proposed it: Sen. Sessions, Jeff [R-AL] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Became Public Law No: 108-79. (final step reached)
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003

Plain summary

(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The expanded summary of the Senate passed version is repeated here.) Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003 - (Sec. 4) Directs the Bureau of Justice Statistics to carry out, annually, a comprehensive statistical review and analysis of the incidence and effects of prison rape. Requires: (1) the review and analysis to be based on a sample of not less than ten percent of all Federal, State, and county prisons, and a representative sample of municipal prisons, that includes at least one prison from each State; and (2) Federal, State, or local officials or facility administrators that receive a request from the Bureau to participate in the national survey and provide access to any inmates under their legal custody. Establishes within the Department of Justice the Review Panel on Prison Rape to carry out, for each calendar year, public hearings concerning the operation of the three prisons with the highest incidence of prison rape and the two prisons with the lowest incidence in each category of facilities identified. Declares that the purpose of these hearings shall be to collect evidence to aid in the identification of common characteristics of: (1) victims and perpetrators of prison rape; (2) prisons and prison systems with a high incidence of prison rape; and and (3) prisons and prison systems that appear to have been successful in deterring prison rape. Requires the Attorney General to submit an annual report to Congress and the Secretary of Health and Human Services on Bureau and Panel activities regarding prison rape. Authorizes appropriations for FY 2004 through 2010. (Sec. 5) Establishes within the National Institute of Corrections (NIC) a national clearinghouse for the provision of information, assistance, and training to Federal, State, and local authorities for the prevention, investigation, and punishment of prison rape. (Sec. 6) Directs the Attorney General to make grants to to assist States in ensuring that budgetary circumstances do not compromise efforts to protect inmates and to safeguard the communities to which inmates return. Authorizes appropriations for FY 2004 through 2010, with a limitation. (Sec. 7) Establishes the National Prison Rape Reduction Commission to: (1) study the impact of prison rape on Federal, State, and local governments and on communities and social institutions; and (2) report recommended national standards for enhancing the detection, prevention, reduction, and punishment of prison rape. (Sec. 8) Directs the Attorney General, within one year after receiving such report, to publish a final rule adopting national standards. Provides for a five percent reduction of any amount of grant funds for prisons that a State would otherwise receive for a fiscal year, unless the chief executive of the State submits to the Attorney General: (1) a certification that the State has adopted, and is in full compliance with, the national standards; or (2) an assurance that not less than five percent of such amount shall be used only to enable the State to adopt and achieve full compliance with such standards, so as to ensure that such certification may be submitted in future years. Requires the Attorney General to publish an annual report listing each grantee that is not in compliance with the standards. (Sec. 9) Prohibits the receipt of Federal grants by penal facility accredication organizations that fail to adopt accreditation standards for the detection, prevention, reduction, and punishment of prison rape.

Congressional Research Service summary (Public Law), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

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What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Public Law)

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Sen. Sessions, Jeff [R-AL] · 4 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Richard J. Durbin (D-IL)

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (3)

Appropriation: Money a legislature sets aside by law for a specific purpose. Government agencies may spend public money only as it has been appropriated.
Fiscal year: The 12-month period a government uses for its budget. The federal fiscal year runs from October 1 to September 30 and is named for the calendar year in which it ends. Most states use July 1 to June 30.
Rulemaking: The process agencies use to write regulations that carry out laws passed by Congress or a legislature. Usually an agency publishes a proposed rule, takes public comments, then publishes a final rule.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Public Law)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-108s1435.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/108/s>

Record fed-us-cong108-s1435 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong108 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong108