This is the Cato Daily Podcast for Friday, September 27th, 2019.

I'm Keelah Brown. For criminal justice reform at the federal level, the

First Step Act was solid but not comprehensive, according to John

Malcolm, a senior legal fellow at the Heritage Foundation, he's less confident that 2019 will

prove a better year for criminal justice reform than 2018 did.

We talked about what might be coming next for reform and what states are doing on that front as well.

We spoke last week.

You've noted and it's almost required to note this of the First Step Act, the

Criminal Justice Reform, both the most significant in many years and also a pretty small bite at the apple with

respect to criminal justice. But what's next in your view what should follow the

First Step Act?

Well, I'm not so sure I would agree with your characterization

of the First Step Act

is a small bite at the Apple,

but it is certainly not a comprehensive bite at the Apple. There are a lot of things being discussed. It's going to be very, very hard to get anything done, of course, during a very contentious election year and a

divided Congress.

A lot of pieces had to come together

for the First Step Act to pass.

The reformers have been trying to get that passed for years.

So one thing that's under consideration

is that a House committee has passed the Fair Chance Act,

it may have even been voted on by the whole House, hasn't gone to the Senate yet.

...