News Advisory
May 11, 2022
Press@ussc.gov


 

Comment of Honorable Charles R. Breyer
Acting Chair, U.S. Sentencing Commission,
on President's Nominations of Commissioners

The White House today announced nominations of individuals to serve on the Commission. Honorable Charles R. Breyer, Acting Chair of the Commission, commented on this action:

“I welcome President Biden’s nominations of individuals to serve on the United States Sentencing Commission.

As Senior United States District Judge for the Northern District of California and Acting Chair of the Sentencing Commission, I know first-hand the great difficulty judges have faced in implementing the criminal justice reforms enacted by the First Step Act in 2018.

Since the Commission lost its quorum in 2019, it has been unable to provide guidance on the First Step Act, as well as a host of other pertinent sentencing policy challenges. As a result, courts have been left without uniform national sentencing standards relating to important sentencing decisions, particularly as it relates to compassionate release amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

A reconstituted Sentencing Commission is vital to ensuring fairness and effectiveness of federal sentencing guidelines and policy.

I thank these nominees for their willingness to serve in this important capacity and look forward to a swift confirmation process.”

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The United States Sentencing Commission, an independent agency in the judicial branch of the federal government, was organized in 1985 to develop a national sentencing policy for the federal courts. The resulting sentencing guidelines provide structure for the courts’ sentencing discretion to help ensure that similar offenders who commit similar offenses receive similar sentences.