On July 25, the House Judiciary Committee approved, by voice vote, the Stop AIDS in Prison Act of 2007 (H.R. 1943) and the Drug Endangered Children Act of 2007 (H.R. 1199). The House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security approved the measures on July 24. The subcommittee held a hearing on the bills on May 22 (see The Source, 5/25/07).
Sponsored by Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA), H.R. 1943 would require the Bureau of Prisons (BoP) to develop a comprehensive policy to provide pre- and post-test HIV counseling, prevention, and treatment for inmates in federal prisons, including pregnant women. H.R. 1199, sponsored by Rep. Dennis Cardoza (D-CA), would extend the Drug Endangered Children (DEC) program, authorized by the USA PATRIOT Improvement and Reauthorization Act of 2005 (P.L. 109-177), through FY2009. The DEC program allows the attorney general to make grants to states to provide social services to children who have been affected by the manufacture or sale of methamphetamine or other controlled substances.
