S. 3271: No Money Bail Act
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S. 3271: No Money Bail Act
115th Congress · introduced 2018-07-25 · Crime and Law Enforcement · Latest: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
federal
Follow this bill, step by step
- Where it came from: introduced 2018-07-25 · official record
- Who proposed it: Sen. Sanders, Bernard [I-VT] · what a sponsor is
- What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
- Where it stands now: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
- If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.
Official title
No Money Bail Act
Plain summary
No Money Bail Act This bill restricts the use of money bail (i.e., the payment of money as a condition of pretrial release) in criminal cases. Specifically, it prohibits the use of money bail in federal criminal cases. Additionally, it amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968: to make a state that uses a money bail system ineligible for funds under the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program; and to establish grants: (1) for developing alternative bail systems in state and local court systems; and (2) for implementing the National Pretrial Reporting Program to collect data on how state and local courts process defendants. The Government Accountability Office must assess the alternative bail systems used by states.
Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.
What a vote does
A “Yea” vote
If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.
A “Nay” vote
If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.
PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).
What does this mean? (plain words)
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The strongest published arguments
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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes
Officials and money
Sponsor: Sen. Sanders, Bernard [I-VT] · 1 cosponsors
Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.
Cosponsors on this site
Kirsten E. Gillibrand (D-NY)
Sponsor's campaign money: Sen. Sanders, Bernard [I-VT] reported raising $26.5 million (2025–2026). Details. Shown for context only; it does not mean any donor supported this bill.
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 (2)
- Bail
- Money or conditions a court sets so a person charged with a crime can leave jail while waiting for trial, to make sure they come back to court.
- Bill
- A proposed law. It becomes law only if it passes the legislature and is signed by the president or governor (or a veto is overridden).
Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.
Sources
- Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)
- Congress.gov
- Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-115s3271.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/115/s>
Record fed-us-cong115-s3271 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong115 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong115