Criminal Justice Assistance Act of 1979
Latest action. Referred to House Committee on Education and Labor.
Criminal Justice Assistance Act of 1979 - Title I: Criminal Justice Assistance - Restates and amends in its entirety title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (Law Enforcement Assistance). Replaces the Law Enforcement Assistance Administration within the Department of Justice with a Bureau of Criminal Justice Assistance. Establishes within the Bureau (1) the Office of the Community Anticrime Program, and (2) the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. Establishes within the Department and independent of the Bureau two separate bodies: (1) the National Institute of Justice (NIJ), and (2) the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS). Establishes Policy Boards to the NIJ and the BJS, and directs each Board to review and make recommendations with respect to the activities undertaken by their respective bodies. Restructures the existing program of grants and assistance to State and local units of government into three categories: formula grants, special emphasis grants, and transition grants. Sets forth the purposes for which such grants may be made and the procedures to be followed in making the grants. Repeals titles I and II of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974. Title II: Public Safety Officers' Death Benefits - Continues the existing program of public safety officers' death benefits, but transfers its administration to the Secretary of Labor. Title III: Effective Date - Makes this Act effective on October 1, 1979.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on February 13, 1979. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on February 13, 1979: Referred to House Committee on Education and Labor.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 96th Congress (1979-80), 613 of the 12,581 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 4.9 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
JOHN CONYERS (D-MI) introduced it on February 13, 1979. No cosponsors are recorded.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on February 13, 1979, 17376 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 17376 days ago, on February 13, 1979.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 96th Congress has not finished by January 3, 1981 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers