Presidential Candidate Questionnaire on Criminal Justice Reform
Tom Steyer
1. Candidates unanimously agree on the need for justice reform. What is your primary reason for supporting reduction of the prison population? (Please select one)
a. To rectify racial injustices that disproportionately affect people of color.
b. To make our justice system more cost effective and save taxpayer dollars.
c. To provide individuals who have made mistakes with a second chance to live law-abiding lives.
d. To end unfair practices that negatively impact individuals in lower socio-economic brackets.
e. To improve the safety of our communities and lower the crime rate.
f. Other. __________________________
2. Candidates have put forward lengthy criminal justice reform plans with dozens of proposed reforms. What is the first criminal justice bill that you would put before Congress as President? (Please select one)
a. A bill to remove or reduce mandatory minimum sentences.
b. A bill to provide financial incentives to states that reduce their prison populations.
c. A bill to reform the probation system or reinstate parole in the federal system.
d. A bill to reform the bail system.
e. A bill to reform drug laws.
f. A bill to allow judges more flexibility in sentencing defendants to alternatives to prison.
g. A bill to end private prisons.
h. A bill to support police or prosecutorial reform.
i. A bill to increase opportunities for early release or remove barriers to successful reentry.
j. Other.
When we look at criminal justice, we have incarcerated people at a level that is not comparable in human history. We incarcerate people at seven times the rate of any other country. So one of the things that we pushed over the last few years is to get rid of money bail in California. It's been shockingly racist and unfair, and we need to address it as soon as possible. I worked to end cash bail in California and this will be the criminal justice bill that my administration focuses on.
3. What is the first executive action that you would take as President on criminal justice reform? (Please select one)
a. Reform or expand the clemency process.
b. Repeal harsh prosecutorial directives of the Justice Department.
c. End the federal use of private prisons.
d. Establish a criminal justice reform commission.
e. Establish an oversight division for the Bureau of Prisons.
f. Fill vacancies in the United States Sentencing Commission.
g. Other.
In California, we worked to get rid of automatic sentencing enhancements to give more discretion to judges--to get away from the idea that priors automatically affects sentencing going forward. In my administration, I will work to undo the prosecutorial directives of the Justice Department, including giving more discretion to prosecutors and judges on sentencing.
4. What is the biggest step that you would take to combat systemic racial bias in the justice system? (Please select one)
a. Remove sentencing disparities for drug-related sentences.
b. Implement reforms to reduce the overall prison population.
c. End racial profiling across the justice system.
d. Divert low-level offenders away from jail and prison time.
e. Reform federal prosecutorial practices, or support local police reform.
f. End the school-to-prison pipeline.
g. Other.
5. It is critical that the President and Congress continue to act on criminal justice reform to establish national leadership on the issue. However, 86 percent of the national prison population is under the control of states. Most states have already acted to reduce their populations. What is the first step you would take to further incentivize states to reform their justice systems? (Please select one)
a. Pass the Second Chance Reauthorization Act.
b. Provide incentive funding to states that reduce their prison populations, while keeping down crime.
c. Provide funding for states that reform their bail systems.
d. Provide funding for local diversion programs and mental health and substance abuse treatment.
e. Increase funding for local public defense systems.
f. Other. __________________________
6. What is the first policy you would implement as President to increase successful reentry and reduce recidivism? (Please select one)
a. Increase access to higher education.
b. Increase employment opportunities.
c. Reform probation and parole laws.
d. Expand expungement and record sealing opportunities.
e. Provide greater drug abuse and mental health treatment.
f. Other.
If you’ve served your time, you’ve served your time. We need to support pathways to reentry for those who are exiting prison that foster economic empowerment and independence. In my work with the Fair Shake Commission in California, I first recommended improvements to workforce training and education both within the prison system and for those reentering society as well as access to services like housing.
7. A November 2018 Washington Post investigation found large scale obstruction by the Justice Department in implementing the First Step Act. As President, how will you ensure that the First Step Act is faithfully and fully implemented? (Please select one)
a. Ensure the Bureau of Prisons receives requisite funding to implement and expand the recidivism-reduction programming required by the Act.
b. Hold the Justice Department accountable to abide by the law’s sentencing reforms and allowing the resentencing of eligible individuals.
c. Improve the system in which federal prisoners are assessed for risk and needs before placed into recidivism-reduction programming.
d. Other. __________________________
8. Of the current bipartisan bills pending in Congress, which is your priority to see passed this year? (Please select one)
a. The Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act, which would delay when federal employers may inquire about criminal history until later in the hiring process.
b. The Clean Slate Act, which would provide automatic record sealing for nonviolent, drug-related offenses for individuals who have remained crime free.
c. The REAL Act, which would remove the ban on incarcerated individuals accessing Pell Grants for higher education.
d. The Smarter Sentencing Act, which would reduce mandatory minimum sentences for drug possession offenses.
e. The Justice Safety Valve Act, which would allow judges to depart from harsh mandatory minimum sentences.
f. Other. __________________________
9. What is your view on whether and when voting rights should be restored to individuals with criminal convictions? (Please select one)
a. Voting rights should not be revoked for criminal convictions.
b. Voting rights should be automatically restored for individuals upon release from prison.
c. Voting rights should be automatically restored for individuals convicted of nonviolent or drug offenses upon release from prison.
d. Voting rights should be automatically restored for individuals after they have completed all terms of their sentence, including parole and probation.
e. Voting rights should not be restored for individuals who have had them revoked.
f. Other. __________________________
10. Please provide one example of a bipartisan effort you have engaged in to advance justice reform. (Please limit to 250 words)
We need to support pathways to reentry for those who are exiting prison that foster economic empowerment and independence. In my work with the Fair Shake Commission in California, I first recommended improvements to workforce training and education both within the prison system and for those reentering society as well as access to services like housing.
For decades, the cash bail system created a two-tiered system that prioritizes profits and penalizes poverty. Money bail is one of the greatest injustices within our society. It is a system that targets the poor by requiring those who cannot afford bail to sit in jail as they await trial — missing work, struggling with childcare, and being locked unconstitutionally without trial simply for lack of resources. This has been especially detrimental for communities of color. In America, your bank account must not determine your access to justice.
I was proud of my part in passing Senate Bill 10 in my home state of California, which gave judges more discretion to decide who should remain in jail before trial and eliminated the requirement of cash bail as a precondition for release--an important step towards creating a criminal justice system that is more just and equitable.
11. How would you work to build a bipartisan consensus to move the broadest possible justice reform package across the finish line? (Please limit to 250 words)
America has decades of injustice to account for when it comes to mass incarceration and criminalizing poverty, drugs, and race. We need a holistic approach to address the entire system from top to bottom, which includes reversing systemic racism, redirecting funding, and changing our priorities to reduce incarceration as well as crime. Many of these reforms have bi-partisan support that we can build upon.
For the past 10 years, I have been successful working with people on the ground, in coalition, to solve problems and winning. I know when people come together not as Democrats or Republicans, but as Americans and community members we can achieve great results. We need to work together. I know the American people want to solve the big issues facing us, from the climate crisis to health care to our education system. When we the people have the power we can break the corporate stranglehold on our government. We can do the same with criminal justice issues. The system has been used in a racist fashion over the last 40 years and we have to come to grips with our history. We must deal with the reality of formerly incarcerated people and their unique challenges in a fair and just way. I've worked on this in my home state of California. We've passed the end of cash bail. We've passed the end of automatic sentence enhancements. We have worked through this. I worked in Florida on the initiative to make sure that previous incarcerated people got back their voting rights as citizens. I feel this is a critical part of economic sustainability and justice.