Arnold Ventures Statement on Federal Prisons Accountability Act

Arnold Ventures released the following statement in response to the Federal Prisons Accountability Act of 2019:

In another example of the strong bipartisan efforts propelling criminal justice reform forward, Sens. Mitch McConnell (R‑KY), Rand Paul (R‑KY), Mike Lee (R‑UT), and Kyrsten Sinema (D‑AZ) have introduced a bill to require the Bureau of Prisons Director to be appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate — extending the same level of oversight to the Bureau of Prisons as other federal law enforcement agencies. 

This move would bring a greater level of transparency and accountability to the federal prison system, something sorely needed. For too long, federal and state prisons have resisted the kind of accountability we expect from other government institutions, and the result has been a deprivation of safety and well-being for those incarcerated and those who work in prisons. We applaud this bill and urge federal leadership to continue to bring the prison system into greater sunlight.