American Public Safety & Justice Act Back the Badge. Fix What's Broken.
Officers deserve better tools, better training, and real mental health support. Non-violent drug offenders deserve a second chance. Fentanyl dealers deserve to be stopped. This bill does all three — without adding a dime to the national debt.
Support Officers. Reform Justice. Stop Fentanyl.
Most bills pick one. This bill does all three — because public safety, fair justice, and the drug crisis are all connected. You can't fix one without addressing the others. Every dollar is tracked through a dedicated Trust Fund. Nothing comes from the general budget.
Officers Deserve Better Tools, Better Training, and Real Mental Health Support.
The bill starts from a simple truth: keeping communities safe requires keeping officers healthy, well-trained, and properly equipped. These programs are built on evidence — what actually reduces incidents and improves outcomes — not on politics. All programs are voluntary for states and departments.
$1 Billion a Year for Modern Equipment.
Equipment grants are organized into four tiers by priority. Small departments — under 100 sworn officers — get 100% federal funding. Every larger department gets 75%. The bill puts safety equipment first.
Non-Violent Drug Offenses Get Sentences That Fit.
Mandatory minimum sentences were meant to get serious criminals off the street. But they've been applied to non-violent drug offenses too — requiring judges to hand down long sentences even when the facts of a case call for something different. The result: overcrowded prisons, huge costs, and people serving decades for non-violent crimes.
This bill repeals federal mandatory minimums for non-violent drug offenses — narrowly defined. Judges get their discretion back and are required to consider risk of recidivism, substance abuse history, demonstrated rehabilitation, public safety, and U.S. Sentencing Commission guidelines.
Current inmates serving time for non-violent drug offenses can petition their sentencing court for a reduction — consistent with the new rules and the same exclusions. Courts decide based on the written record. This is not automatic release; it's a review.
Estimated savings from reduced incarceration: $400–$800 million per year in Bureau of Prisons costs — which flow into the Trust Fund and pay for treatment, reentry, and the very officer programs in Division A.
600,000 People Leave Prison Every Year. What Happens Next Matters.
More than 600,000 individuals are released from federal and state custody every year. What they find on the other side determines whether they come back. The bill funds the evidence-based programs that actually reduce recidivism — education, jobs, housing, and treatment.
Some People Need Treatment, Not a Cell.
Drug courts, mental health courts, and veterans courts have strong evidence behind them. They reduce recidivism, save money, and get people into treatment programs that actually work — with judicial oversight and accountability every step of the way.
Fentanyl Is 50 Times More Potent Than Heroin. The Response Has to Match.
Illicit fentanyl is a national emergency. A lethal dose is invisible — smaller than a few grains of salt. It's being pressed into fake pills, mixed into other drugs without users knowing, and trafficked through the mail and at ports of entry. People are dying because they don't know what's in what they're taking.
The bill's response has two tracks that work together: interdiction (stopping the supply through law enforcement and border technology) and treatment (saving lives and helping people recover). Evidence shows that supply-only approaches don't work alone — you need both.
The Federal Fentanyl Joint Task Force brings together DEA, FBI, Treasury, and the Office of National Drug Control Policy to coordinate disruption of trafficking networks, enforce sanctions on foreign entities, and run joint operations targeting high-level distributors. Not just low-level arrests — going after the networks.
Field Offices open in high-intensity drug trafficking areas within 180 days — prioritizing major population centers, primary trafficking corridors, and areas with 400%+ increases in overdose deaths. Cap: no more than 5 Field Offices during the 10-year life of the bill.
Addiction Is a Health Crisis. Treatment Works.
Interdiction alone has never solved a drug crisis. The bill funds the treatment side of the response — Medication Assisted Treatment, community centers, recovery housing, and peer support — with rural communities getting priority because they have the fewest options and the longest distances to travel for help.
Naloxone Reverses Overdoses. Test Strips Prevent Them.
While treatment works, not everyone is ready for treatment yet. In the meantime, people are dying from overdoses that could have been prevented. The bill funds the tools that save lives today — Naloxone to reverse overdoses and fentanyl test strips to prevent them.
Funded by Crime Itself. Not by Taxpayers.
The Public Safety & Justice Trust Fund collects money from criminal fines, asset forfeiture, fentanyl penalties, and Bureau of Prisons savings — then spends it on public safety. No general fund spending. OMB certifies annually that spending doesn't exceed revenues. Excess goes to deficit reduction.
| Revenue Source (Sec. 1002) | Annual Estimate |
|---|---|
| 15% of Federal criminal fines | $200–350M |
| 10% of Assets Forfeiture Fund | $150–250M |
| 25% of fines for fentanyl violations | $20–35M |
| $50 per shipment from precursor source countries | $15–25M |
| $5,000 annual fee on List I chemical handlers | $5–10M |
| BOP savings from reduced incarceration (OMB-certified) | $400–800M |
| Interest on Trust Fund balances | Variable |
| Total Estimated Annual Revenue | $800M–$1.5B |
What This Bill Cannot Do.
Division D includes an entire set of legal protections that limit what any government can do under this bill. These are enforceable provisions — written directly into the law.
"A comprehensive response requires both interdiction AND treatment. This bill does not choose sides — it chooses evidence."— From the Bill's Findings, Sec. 2(9) · Gregory Burgess for Congress · CA-2 · No Party Preference
Ready to Read the Full Bill?
The complete American Public Safety & Justice Act of 2027 — all four divisions, all fiscal details, all constitutional safeguards — is in the full platform download. Every figure on this page comes directly from the bill text.