On September 28, 2021, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the EQUAL Act (Eliminating a Quantifiably Unjust Application of Law Act) by a bipartisan 361-66 vote. The bill would eliminate the federal sentencing disparity between offenses involving crack and powder cocaine, a gap created by the 1986 Anti-Drug Abuse Act that for decades treated crack offenses far more harshly and disproportionately affected Black defendants. Senators Dick Durbin and Cory Booker led the Senate companion bill with a bipartisan group of cosponsors, but the measure subsequently stalled in the Senate and had not become law as of 2025.
On September 28, 2021, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the EQUAL Act (Eliminating a Quantifiably Unjust Application of Law Act) by a bipartisan 361-66 vote. The bill would eliminate the federal sentencing disparity between offenses involving crack and powder cocaine, a gap created by the 1986 Anti-Drug Abuse Act that for decades treated crack offenses far more harshly and disproportionately affected Black defendants. Senators Dick Durbin and Cory Booker led the Senate companion bill with a bipartisan group of cosponsors, but the measure subsequently stalled in the Senate and had not become law as of 2025.
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Legislative effort to correct a discriminatory sentencing rule reflects accountability pressure toward a fairer justice system; modest weight because the bill did not become law.
