RFK Human Rights’ Sancia Dalley Testifies Against HB 2 in Texas
Texas already spends $2.4 million a day on mass incarceration, even though 60 percent of people in the state’s jails haven’t been convicted of a crime and could be released back to their families and communities to await their trials. The proposed HB 2 legislation would only make matters worse.
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On July 10, during the Texas Legislature’s special session, Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights and its coalition of partners showed up in full force to the state capitol building to testify against House Bill 2.
The proposed bill, part of Gov. Greg Abbott’s suite of priority legislation, aims to restrict pretrial release from jail and would specifically limit the ability of charitable bail funds to provide money to people who can’t afford to make bond on their own.
As dozens of advocates, including our senior vice president Sancia Dalley, noted in their testimony, these provisions in HB 2 would most certainly balloon the jail population across the state and have a disparate impact on Black and Brown Texans.
“This unfunded mandate will force cities and counties across our state to pour more and more of their limited budgetary resources into jailing and punishment, rather than investing in social systems such as job training, affordable housing complexes, and public education—institutions that facilitate economic growth, community development, and true public safety,” Dalley said before the Select Committee on Constitutional Rights & Remedies. “This is simply terrible economics that paralyzes communities and families, especially communities and families of color.”
Texas already spends $2.4 million a day on mass incarceration, even though 60 percent of people in the state’s jails haven’t been convicted of a crime and could be released back to their families and communities to await their trials. Jailing more people and spending more money on unnecessary pretrial detention is the last thing Texans need during a projected budget shortfall, Dalley noted. Read her full testimony below.
SANCIA DALLEY’S TESTIMONY ON HB 2 BEFORE TEXAS SELECT COMMITTEE
Good afternoon, committee members. Thank you for the opportunity to read my prepared remarks in opposition to the bill, HB 2. I am Sancia Dalley; I’m the senior vice president of investor engagement at Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights. I’m also proud to call Austin and the State of Texas home.
At RFK Human Rights, we regularly convene hundreds of investors to highlight the human rights issues they should consider during the investment process with a specific emphasis on racial equity and economic injustice. Our