H.R. 1693 · 117th Congress

EQUAL Act of 2021

Introduced on Mar 9, 2021 by Hakeem S. Jeffries (D-NY-8). 56 cosponsors, 26 of them from another party. Latest action (Sep 29, 2021): Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

Stage
Passed one chamber
Introduced
Mar 9, 2021
Cosponsors
56
26 from the other party
Policy area
Crime and Law Enforcement
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Progress

The furthest stage the measure reached. Simple and concurrent resolutions do not go to the President.

  1. Introduced
  2. Reported by committee
  3. Passed one chamber
  4. 4Passed both chambers
  5. 5Sent to the President
  6. 6Became law

Official title

To eliminate the disparity in sentencing for cocaine offenses, and for other purposes.

Subjects

  • Criminal procedure and sentencing
  • Drug trafficking and controlled substances

Summary

By the Congressional Research Service (Passed House, Sep 28, 2021). Public domain.

Eliminating a Quantifiably Unjust Application of the Law Act of 2021 or the EQUAL Act of 2021

This bill eliminates the federal sentencing disparity between drug offenses involving crack cocaine and powder cocaine.

Currently, different threshold quantities of crack cocaine and powder cocaine (e.g., 28 grams of crack cocaine and 500 grams of powder cocaine) trigger the same statutory criminal penalties.

This bill eliminates the lower quantity thresholds for crack cocaine offenses. Under the bill, the same threshold quantities of crack cocaine and powder cocaine trigger the same statutory criminal penalties.

The change applies to future cases and cases pending on the date of enactment. With respect to past cases, the bill authorizes a sentencing court to impose a reduced sentence on a defendant who was convicted or sentenced for a specified crack cocaine offense before this bill's enactment. A defendant does not have to be present at the sentence reduction hearing. Finally, the bill prohibits the reduction of a sentence that was previously reduced.

Sponsor and cosponsors

Cosponsors by party as of the day they signed on. Original cosponsors signed on the day of introduction.

Hakeem S. JeffriesD-NY-8Sponsor

Democrats · 30

Republicans · 26

Roll calls

Recorded votes on the measure. Most measures move by voice vote or unanimous consent, which record no individual positions.

  1. On Motion to Suspend the Rules and Pass, as Amended
    Sep 28, 2021· House· Passage· Passed 361–66

History

Every action as published, oldest first. Roll calls link to how each member voted.

  1. Mar 9, 2021Introduced in House
  2. Mar 9, 2021Introduced in House
  3. Mar 9, 2021 · HouseReferred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
  4. Mar 9, 2021 · HouseReferred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
  5. Mar 10, 2021 · HouseReferred to the Subcommittee on Health.
  6. May 18, 2021 · HouseReferred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security.
  7. Jul 21, 2021 · HouseSubcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security Discharged.
  8. Jul 21, 2021 · HouseCommittee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.
  9. Jul 21, 2021 · HouseOrdered to be Reported (Amended).
  10. Sep 27, 2021Reported (Amended) by the Committee on Judiciary. H. Rept. 117-128, Part I.
  11. Sep 27, 2021 · HouseReported (Amended) by the Committee on Judiciary. H. Rept. 117-128, Part I.
  12. Sep 27, 2021Committee on Energy and Commerce discharged.
  13. Sep 27, 2021 · HouseCommittee on Energy and Commerce discharged.
  14. Sep 27, 2021 · HousePlaced on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 92.
  15. Sep 28, 2021 · HouseMr. Nadler moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended.
  16. Sep 28, 2021 · HouseConsidered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H5477-5481)
  17. Sep 28, 2021 · HouseDEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 1693.
  18. Sep 28, 2021 · HouseAt the conclusion of debate, the Yeas and Nays were demanded and ordered. Pursuant to the provisions of clause 8, rule XX, the Chair announced that further proceedings on the motion would be postponed.
  19. Sep 28, 2021 · HouseConsidered as unfinished business. (consideration: CR H5492-5493)
  20. Sep 28, 2021Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by the Yeas and Nays: (2/3 required): 361 - 66 (Roll no. 297).(text: CR H5477)House · Roll call 297
  21. Sep 28, 2021 · HouseOn motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by the Yeas and Nays: (2/3 required): 361 - 66 (Roll no. 297). (text: CR H5477)House · Roll call 297
  22. Sep 28, 2021 · HouseMotion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
  23. Sep 29, 2021 · SenateReceived in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

Committees

Committees and subcommittees the measure was referred to.

Agencies in its committees' jurisdiction

Analisa's mapping of committee jurisdiction to federal agencies; the bill may touch others, or none of these.

Sources and method

Every figure on this page traces to these records.

  • Bill status: bills and resolutions, sponsors, actions, subjects and CRS summaries (U.S. Government Publishing Office (GovInfo), from Congress.gov (Library of Congress))GovInfo Bill Status bulk data (Congress.gov; summaries by the Congressional Research Service) · data current to Oct 6, 2026 · loaded Oct 6, 2026 · license: Public domain (U.S. Government work, 17 U.S.C. § 105)
  • Members of Congress, their terms, committees and identifiers (The @unitedstates project (from the Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress, the House and the Senate))unitedstates/congress-legislators: legislators, committees and current committee membership · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: CC0 1.0 (public domain dedication)
  • House roll-call votes (Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives)Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives, roll-call vote records · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: Public domain (U.S. Government work, 17 U.S.C. § 105)
  • Senate roll-call votes and DW-NOMINATE scores (Voteview (UCLA Department of Political Science))Lewis, Jeffrey B., Keith Poole, Howard Rosenthal, Adam Boche, Aaron Rudkin, and Luke Sonnet (2026). Voteview: Congressional Roll-Call Votes Database. https://voteview.com/ · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: Free to use with the required citation
  • Lobbying disclosures (LD-1 registrations, LD-2 quarterly reports, LD-203 contribution reports) (Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives)Clerk of the House, Lobbying Disclosure Act filings (organizations only; lobbyists' names are not loaded) · data current to Oct 6, 2026 · loaded Oct 6, 2026 · license: Public domain (U.S. Government work, 17 U.S.C. § 105)
  • Positions are shown only where a roll call recorded them; voice votes and unanimous consent record none.