George Floyd Justice in Policing Act of 2020

In the House of Representatives, the legislation has been principally drafted by Representative Karen Bass of California (who chairs the Congressional Black Caucus) and Representative Jerrold Nadler of New York (who chairs the House Judiciary Committee); in the Senate, the legislation has been drafted by Cory Booker of New Jersey and Kamala Harris of California, the Senate's two black Democrats.[4][9] The legislation was introduced in the House as H.B. 7120 on June 8, 2020, by Bass, with 165 co-sponsors, all Democrats.[11] The bill was referred to the House Judiciary Committee, and additionally to the House Armed Services Committee and House Energy and Commerce Committee, for consideration of provisions falling within those committees' jurisdiction.[2] The legislation was introduced in the Senate on the same day as S. 3912, by Booker, with 35 cosponsors.[12] It was referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee.[13]

At a June 10 hearing on police issues in the House Judiciary Committee, George Floyd's brother, Philonise Floyd, testified in favor of police reforms. Also testifying were the Floyd family's attorney Benjamin Crump (invited by the Democrats) and Angela Underwood Jacobs (invited by the Republican, the brother of Federal Protective Service officer David "Patrick" Underwood, who was killed in the line of duty.[14][15][16] Committee Republicans invited conservative Fox News commentator and ex-Secret Service agent Dan Bongino,[16][17] who did not mention police brutality at the hearing and instead focused on dangers faced by police.[17] Committee Republicans also called Darrell C. Scott, a Trump surrogate, to testify.[16]

At a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on June 16, members heard testimony from a number of witnesses, including Vanita Gupta of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights; attorney S. Lee Merritt, who represents the family of Ahmaud Arbery; St. Paul, Minnesota Mayor Melvin Carter; Houston Police Department chief Art Acevedo; and Fraternal Order of Police national president Patrick Yoes.[18] Gupta, who served as head of the U.S. Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division during the Obama administration, testified in favor of police reforms and criticized the Trump Justice Department, while Yoes testified against restricting qualified immunity for police.[19]

The legislation is endorsed by more than 100 civil rights groups,[6] including the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, NAACP and NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, National Urban League, and National Action Network.[20] The American Civil Liberties Union praised the legislation for taking "significant steps to protect people and ensure accountability against police violence" but expressed opposition to providing "hundreds of millions more to law enforcement" and called for more sweeping changes to "the role of police in our society fundamentally."[21]

Police unions and other organizations representing police oppose the bill.[6] Police organizations are influential in Congress, exerting influence through campaign contributions, endorsements, and lobbying and advocacy efforts, and historically have been successfully in stymieing reform legislation.[22]

President Donald Trump opposes the bill, issuing a formal pledge to veto the legislation if it passed Congress and contending that the bill is "overbroad" and would "weaken the ability of law enforcement agencies to reduce crime."[6] Trump specifically opposed proposals to restrict qualified immunity.[8]

On June 17, 2020, after a nearly 12-hour debate, the House Judiciary Committee advanced the bill to the House floor on a party-line vote (with all Democrats voting yes and all Republicans voting no).[23] On the floor, the bill passed the Democratic-controlled House on a mostly party-line vote of 236–181.[5][6][24] The legislation's key sponsors sought to garner support for the bill from moderate Republicans,[8] but ultimately only three House Republicans (all moderates) joined all House Democrats in voting to pass the bill: Representatives Fred Upton of Michigan, Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, and Will Hurd of Texas (the sole black Republican U.S. Representative).[6] The bill is not expected to advance in the Republican-controlled Senate.[5][6]

The bill is not expected to advance in the Republican-controlled Senate, and is thus gridlocked.[25][26] Republican senators led by Tim Scott have proposed alternative police legislation that is far narrower than the House bill.[25][26][27] The Scott bill would introduce incentives for states and localities to change police practices (by limiting chokeholds and promoting the use of body cameras),[27][28] but would not restrict the qualified-immunity doctrine,[27] would not ban chokeholds or otherwise federally restrict police use of deadly force,[27] and would not restrict no-knock warrants.[28] Democrats and civil rights organizations oppose the Senate Republican proposal as too weak;[26][27] Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Democratic Senators Kamala Harris and Cory Booker (the sponsors of the Senate version of the Justice in Policing Act), called the Republican bill "not salvageable" and "so threadbare and lacking in substance that it does not even provide a proper baseline for negotiations."[27] On June 24, 2020, the Senate Republican proposal failed in a procedural vote of 55-45, on a mostly-party line vote, failing to obtain the 60 votes needed to advance to a floor debate.[29] Democrats called upon Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to enter "bipartisan talks to get to a constructive starting point."[27]