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Ossoff-backed prison reform bill signed into law

Senator Jon Ossoff at Senate hearing.
US Senator Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.) at a US Senate committee hearing.

A measure increasing oversight of federal prisons that was pushed by two Georgia lawmakers has been signed into law by President Joe Biden.

The Federal Prison Oversight Act was introduced by, among others, Georgia Senator Jon Ossoff. Georgia Representative Lucy McBath was one of two lawmakers introducing the bill in the US House.

The human rights crisis behind bars in the United States is a stain on America’s conscience.
US Senator Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.)

The law requires regular inspections of the nation’s 122 federal correctional facilities by the Department of Justice. Higher-risk prisons will be inspected more regularly in the future as well.

It also creates a new ombudsman to pursue complaints from inmates and staff.

Ossoff and his co-sponsors first introduced the bill in 2022. In his role as Chair of the Senate Subcommittee on Human Rights, Ossoff has led several hearings into what he has called “a human rights crisis behind bars.”

 

Martin Matheny is WUGA's Program Director and a host and producer of our local news program 'Athens News Matters.' He started at WUGA in 2012 as a part-time classical music host and still hosts WUGA's longest-running local program 'Night Music' which is heard on WUGA and GPB Classical. He lives in Normaltown with his wife, Shaye and dog, Murphy.