Sponsors
The bill increases fairness for exonerees by raising and indexing compensation, but does so at the cost of higher federal spending and more uncertain long‑term budgetary liabilities for taxpayers and planners.
Wrongfully convicted individuals: raises the fixed statutory compensation per exoneree from $50,000 to $70,000, increasing direct financial relief for those wrongfully imprisoned.
Wrongfully convicted individuals: ties awards to annual CPI adjustments so compensation keeps pace with inflation, preserving the real value of awards over time.
Taxpayers: higher per‑claim awards increase federal payouts when claims are paid, which raises government spending and could translate into greater fiscal pressure on taxpayers.
Federal budget planners and taxpayers: the annual inflation adjustments create a growing and less predictable long‑term liability for the government, complicating budgeting and fiscal planning.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Increases federal wrongful-conviction damages from $50,000 to $70,000 and requires annual CPI-based inflation adjustments.
Increases the federal statutory payment for people wrongfully convicted and imprisoned from $50,000 to $70,000 and requires that this payment be adjusted each year for inflation using the Consumer Price Index. The change amends the existing federal compensation statute to raise the fixed damages amount and add an annual inflation indexing provision to preserve the payment's real value over time. The bill does not create new programs or specify new funding sources; it simply changes the dollar amount and adds an inflation adjustment mechanism for the existing statutory damages for unjust conviction and imprisonment under federal law.
Introduced September 19, 2025 by Maxine Waters · Last progress September 19, 2025