Congress moves to undo D.C. criminal-justice reforms, reverse rehabilitation programs
H.R. 5242 — To repeal the Second Chance Amendment Act of 2022 and the Incarceration Reduction Amendment Act of 2016. · Filed by David Kustoff (R-TN) · 1 cosponsor · Introduced Sep 10, 2025 · Reported out
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What it does
This bill repeals two Washington, D.C. criminal-justice laws: the Second Chance Amendment Act of 2022 (which reduced incarceration and expanded rehabilitation programs) and the Incarceration Reduction Amendment Act of 2016 (which reduced youth incarceration). It also eliminates D.C.'s automated traffic enforcement system and removes restrictions on right turns at red lights. The net effect is to reverse criminal-justice reforms in D.C. and roll back traffic safety enforcement.
Why we flagged it
The bill's core function is to undo criminal-justice reforms and eliminate traffic-safety enforcement. While framed as a simple repeal, the operative effect is to reverse rehabilitation-focused policies and remove automated safety systems.
- Repeal of automated traffic enforcement system (Title IX, Fiscal Year 1997 Budget Support Act) is substantively unrelated to criminal-justice reform repeal.
- Elimination of right-turn-at-red restrictions (Section 9e, D.C. Traffic Act, 1925) is unrelated to the stated purpose of repealing incarceration-reduction laws.
What the text implies
- Repealing the Second Chance Amendment Act of 2022 may restore harsher sentencing provisions and eliminate rehabilitation programs that reduce recidivism, potentially increasing incarceration rates and public costs for detention.
- Repealing the Incarceration Reduction Amendment Act of 2016 reverses youth-justice reforms, potentially returning D.C. to higher youth incarceration rates and reducing access to diversion and rehabilitation programs for minors.
- Eliminating automated traffic enforcement removes a revenue source for D.C. and removes a deterrent to traffic violations; accident rates and injuries may increase, particularly in school zones and residential areas.
- The removal of right-turn-at-red restrictions eliminates a pedestrian-safety measure; intersection accidents involving pedestrians and cyclists may increase.
- The bill applies retroactively to 'criminal conduct that occurred after the date of enactment,' which may affect sentencing and release decisions for individuals already in the system under the repealed laws.
Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.
Who it affects
Repealing criminal-justice reforms that reduced incarceration and expanded rehabilitation programs reverses protections and opportunities for formerly incarcerated individuals and youth in the justice system. Eliminating automated traffic enforcement and right-turn restrictions removes public-safety measures designed to reduce traffic accidents and injuries.
Named in the bill
Washington, D.C., Second Chance Amendment Act of 2022, Incarceration Reduction Amendment Act of 2016, Comprehensive Youth Justice Amendment Act of 2016, Fiscal Year 1997 Budget Support Act of 1996, District of Columbia Traffic Act, 1925, House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Rep. David Kustoff, Rep. Joe Wilson
Where it stands
1 cosponsor: 1 Republicans.
- Sep 10, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
- Sep 10, 2025 — Referred to House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform”
- Sep 10, 2025 — Markup held in committee · Congress.gov: “Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held”
- Sep 10, 2025 — Reported out of committee · Congress.gov: “Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by the Yeas and Nays: 24 - 20”
Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.
Money around this bill
3 lobbying clients named this bill on 5 disclosure filings across 3 quarters, Dec 2025 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $251,304 in lobbying spend. A filing names 16 bills on average, so that figure is what each filing reported, not a share belonging to this bill.
More lobbying clients named this bill than 61% of bills with at least one filing.
David Kustoff, the sponsor, reported $1,066,250 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.
- Prison Fellowship Ministries — $170,000 on 2 filings
- The Sentencing Project — $66,304 on 2 filings
- Due Process Institute — $15,000 on 1 filing
Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 20, 2026. A filing shows who paid to lobby on a bill it names, not what changed.
How this was measured
Analysis — Quorum's AI read the bill text published by Congress.gov (2,380 characters) on Jul 6, 2026. Section numbers in the findings refer to that text, linked below; transparency and hidden-provision scores are compared against the median of 16,222 analysed bills.
Status and sponsors — Congress.gov's bill record — actions, committee referrals and cosponsors — loaded nightly. The timeline shows status changes, not every procedural action.
Money — Senate Lobbying Disclosure Act filings whose specific-issue field names this bill for quarters ending Dec 2025 to Jun 2026. A filing's amount is reported whole beside the median number of bills a filing names; it is never divided across them. PAC receipts are FEC-reported contributions to the sponsor's candidate committee in the 2026 cycle.
As of — lobbying records through Jul 20, 2026 · page rendered 2026-10-20.
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