Cashless Bail Reporting Act
Key claim: The Cashless Bail Reporting Act would require the Department of Justice to publish an annual list of state and local governments that allow pretrial release on personal recognizance or unsecured bond for violent, sexual, or public-disorder offenses.
Abstract
(HR5625 · 119th Congress) Cashless Bail Reporting Act This bill requires the Department of Justice to publish annually a list of state and local governments that permit individuals who are charged with certain criminal offenses that pose a clear threat to public safety and order to be released pending trial on personal recognizance or upon execution of an unsecured appearance bond. Under the bill, the criminal offenses that pose a threat to public safety and order include criminal offenses involving a violent or sexual act (e.g., burglary, murder, or rape) and offenses that promote public disorder (e.g., looting or vandalism). On August 25, 2025, President Donald Trump issued an executive order that required the Department of Justice to submit to the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security a list of state and local jurisdictions that have substantially eliminated cash bail as a potential condition for pretrial release for crimes that pose a clear threat to public safety and order, including offenses involving violent, sexual, or indecent acts, or burglary, looting, or vandalism. Latest action (2026-05-18): Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Why this matters
Pretrial release policy sits at the intersection of due process and public safety, with direct practical effects on defendants who cannot afford bail as well as on communities affected by release decisions. A federal reporting mandate would create a standardized, ongoing public record of which jurisdictions permit non-monetary release for serious offense categories, which could shape both public debate and downstream federal funding or oversight decisions. Because the bill largely codifies an existing executive-order requirement, its main incremental effect is durability across administrations rather than a new substantive standard.