Policy Memo Description of The Reverse Mass Incarceration Act (RMIA, 2019)

RMIA Policy Memo
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RMIA Policy Memo
TO: John Doe, Criminal Justice System.
FROM: [Your Name], RMIA Policy Supporter.
DATE: July 27, 2021.
SUBJECT: The Reverse Mass Incarceration Act (RMIA, 2019).
Policy Description
Mr. Blumenthal and Mr. Booker introduced the RMIA bill in 2019 and have been read twice to the Judiciary Committee. The proposed policy establishes a grant program that incentivizes states to decrease their prison populations. The bill should be an amendment of the Safe Street Act (SSA, 1968) and the Omnibus Crime Control Act (OCCA, 1968). If the bill passes, the Attorney General will be required to offer grants to reduce incarceration and crime rates. States should be eligible for funding if they demonstrate that within three years before the application of the grant:
The crime rate has increased by a rate of not more than 3%.
The number of incarcerated individuals or those in detention facilities has reduced by at least 7% (Congress.gov, 2019).
A state that is eligible for a grant should apply to the Attorney General at the right time by applying a methodology based on the population size, among other factors. If it is granted the money, a state should implement evidence-based programs to further reduce incarceration and crime rates. As such, the RMIA’s primary objective is to reduce the number of prisoners.
Why RMIA Should be Implemented
The criminal justice system of the United States of America (USA) is broken. About 25% of the USA’s population comprises prisoners (Subramanian et al., 2020). Mass incarcerations have adverse consequences on social, economic, and racial aspects. Additionally, it reinforces the systemic racial inequity patterns in society. The USA has taken many years while trying to eradicate racial discrimination, which contributes to the rising population of prisoners. In one way, the criminal justice system is too busy incarcerating individuals instead of doing something to decrease the number of prisoners. A reform in criminal justice should be the core response to facilitate quick actions to foster racial justice. For example, during the killings of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd, there has been a public outcry since these individuals died at the hands of the police officers. The RMIA would make minority groups of individuals in the USA, such as African Americans, feel that the country is headed in the right direction by reducing incarceration and crime rates.
The implementation of the RMIA would create a new relationship between police officers and communities. The Black Lives Matter would also appreciate efforts made by states to protect and save African Americans. In particular, the RMIA reforms must address the harshly punitive policing approach and show the need to invest in different communities. In ot...