Walberg, Raskin Lead Bipartisan Effort to Curb Civil Asset Forfeiture Abuse

Today, Congressmen Tim Walberg (R-MI) and Jamie Raskin (D-MD) introduced the Fifth Amendment Integrity Restoration (FAIR) Act, a comprehensive reform to our nation's civil asset forfeiture laws. The bipartisan FAIR Act raises the level of proof necessary for the federal government to seize property, reforms the IRS structuring statute to protect innocent small business owners, and increases transparency and congressional oversight.

"Stories about a grocer in Michigan, a restaurant owner in Iowa, and farmers in Maryland have all exposed government overreach within the civil asset forfeiture process," said Rep. Walberg. "The FAIR Act restores a core American principle: that no one should lose their property without due process of law. I thank Congressman Raskin for his continued partnership on this bipartisan piece of legislation, which puts the presumption of innocence back where it belongs, on the side of the American people."

"Our constitutional liberties are not suggestion-box recommendations to the Executive branch but categorical and inviolable rights that must be defended against piecemeal erosion," said Rep. Raskin. "The FAIR Act is an essential corrective step to restore probable cause and Due Process protections to our people. Current civil asset forfeiture laws allow government agents to deprive Americans of their private property without due process. Our bipartisan legislation will restore accountability and ensure fundamental property rights are protected against outrageous government overreach."

Joining Reps. Walberg and Raskin as original co-sponsors of the FAIR Act are Reps. Tom McClintock (R-CA) and Mary Scanlon (D-PA).

"The current process of civil asset forfeiture is in direct contradiction to the basic premise of American justice: an individual is innocent until proven guilty," said Rep. McClintock. "As such, civil asset forfeiture violates the rights guaranteed to Americans under the Constitution. I am pleased to cosponsor the FAIR Act, which returns the presumption of innocence to American citizens."

"For decades, our civil asset forfeiture laws have been susceptible to abuse and government overreach," said Rep. Scanlon. "I'm proud to join this bipartisan effort to reform our civil asset forfeiture laws in order to assure that Americans receive the full measure of due process to which they are entitled when faced with a government effort to seize their personal property."

The FAIR Act is also supported by the Institute for Justice.

"For too long, tens of thousands of Americans each year have lost their hard-earned savings, cars, businesses and even their homes to an unjust civil forfeiture system," said Dan Alban, a senior attorney at the Institute for Justice who co-directs its national initiative to end forfeiture abuse. "The FAIR Act is an essential package of reforms that are urgently needed to end many of the appalling practices endemic to current law. Crucially, the FAIR Act would end the perverse financial incentives that fuel forfeiture abuse and ensure property owners have better access to courts by eliminating the unjust administrative forfeiture system, where property is forfeited by bureaucrats rather than judges."

The full text of the FAIR Act is available here.