§991 United States Sentencing Commission; Establishment and Purposes

Summary

Creates an independent United States Sentencing Commission in the Judicial Branch with seven voting members and one nonvoting member. The President picks the seven voting members with the Senate’s approval after talking with judges, prosecutors, defense lawyers, law enforcement, senior citizens, victims, and others. One voting member is appointed as Chair (with Senate approval) and the President names three Vice Chairs. At least three members must be federal judges chosen after the Judicial Conference gives a list of six judges. No more than four members can be from the same political party, and of the three Vice Chairs no more than two can be from the same party. The Attorney General, or the AG’s designee, is a nonvoting member. The President can remove the Chair, Vice Chairs, or members only for neglect of duty, misconduct, or other good cause. The Commission must create federal sentencing policies that meet the purposes listed in 18 U.S.C. 3553(a)(2). Its rules must aim for fairness and certainty, avoid unfair differences in sentences for similar offenders, and still allow individual sentences when special factors apply. The Commission must also use new knowledge about human behavior when it can and develop ways to measure how well sentencing and correctional practices meet the goals in 18 U.S.C. 3553(a)(2).