The Federal Death Penalty Abolition Act is the title of a series of bills introduced in the United States Congress since 1999 to abolish the federal death penalty. Related proposals have also been introduced under the title Federal Death Penalty Prohibition Act. The proposals would prohibit death sentences and executions for violations of federal law, but would not abolish capital punishment under state law.
History
Senator Russ Feingold introduced the Federal Death Penalty Abolition Act of 1999 on November 10, 1999. He reintroduced the proposal in the Senate in 2001, 2003, 2005, 2007, and 2009.
In the House, Dennis Kucinich sponsored versions in 2003, 2006, 2008, and 2011. Donna Edwards introduced a version in 2013, and Adriano Espaillat introduced versions in 2019, 2021, and 2023.
In July 2019, Representative Ayanna Pressley and Senator Dick Durbin introduced related bills following the Justice Department's announcement that federal executions would resume. The Pressley and Durbin bills did not include a short title. Their successors were introduced as the Federal Death Penalty Prohibition Act in 2021 and 2023. Between 2001 and January 2021, the federal government executed 16 people, including 13 between July 2020 and January 2021.
On July 1, 2021, Attorney General Merrick Garland imposed a moratorium on federal executions pending a review of Justice Department policies and procedures. On December 23, 2024, President Joe Biden commuted the sentences of 37 of the 40 people on federal death row to life imprisonment without parole. Attorney General Pam Bondi lifted the moratorium on February 5, 2025. As of September 30, 2026, no federal executions have taken place since the moratorium was lifted.
Pressley and Durbin reintroduced the Federal Death Penalty Prohibition Act on May 20, 2026, as H.R. 8940 and S. 4608, respectively.
Provisions The proposals would prohibit federal death sentences and executions. Bills introduced under the Federal Death Penalty Abolition Act title include amendments removing death penalty provisions from individual federal statutes. The Federal Death Penalty Prohibition Act proposals use a general prohibition without those detailed amendments.
The 1999 Abolition bill proposed amendments to civilian criminal statutes and repeal of federal capital sentencing procedures. Early reintroductions retained this framework, including the 2006 House bill. The 2007 Senate bill added explicit amendments to the Uniform Code of Military Justice and military commission offenses and procedures. It also expanded the list of civilian statutes to be amended, including provisions concerning chemical weapons and war crimes. The 2009 Senate bill added an amendment to Article 56 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice expressly excluding death as a permitted punishment. The 2023 version revised the military amendments, including the statutory references for aiding the enemy, spying, and espionage.
The Abolition bills from 1999 through 2019 would have required people already sentenced to death under federal law to serve life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. The 2021 House Abolition bill instead called for resentencing without specifying a replacement sentence; subsequent Abolition and Prohibition bills have used the same approach.
Legislative history The table includes bills titled Federal Death Penalty Abolition Act and the related Federal Death Penalty Prohibition Act proposals, including the 2019 bills introduced by Pressley and Durbin, which had no short title. None have been enacted as of September 30, 2026. Cosponsor counts and statuses are current as of that date. CongressShort titleBillDate introducedSponsorCosponsorsLatest status106th CongressFederal Death Penalty Abolition Act of 1999November 10, 1999Russell Feingold (D-WI)1Died in committee.107th CongressFederal Death Penalty Abolition Act of 2001January 25, 2001Russell Feingold (D-WI)1Died in committee.108th CongressFederal Death Penalty Abolition Act of 2003June 24, 2003Dennis Kucinich (D-OH)46Died in committee.Federal Death Penalty Abolition Act of 2003February 13, 2003Russell Feingold (D-WI)0Died in committee.109th CongressFederal Death Penalty Abolition ActMarch 9, 2006Dennis Kucinich (D-OH)45Died in committee.Federal Death Penalty Abolition Act of 2005January 24, 2005Russell Feingold (D-WI)0Died in committee.110th CongressFederal Death Penalty Abolition Act of 2008September 11, 2008Dennis Kucinich (D-OH)19Died in committee.Federal Death Penalty Abolition Act of 2007January 31, 2007Russell Feingold (D-WI)0Died in committee.111th CongressFederal Death Penalty Abolition Act of 2009March 19, 2009Russell Feingold (D-WI)0Died in committee.112th CongressFederal Death Penalty Abolition Act of 2011September 23, 2011Dennis Kucinich (D-OH)15Died in committee.113th CongressFederal Death Penalty Abolition Act of 2013December 12, 2013Donna Edwards (D-MD)13Died in committee.116th CongressFederal Death Penalty Abolition Act of 2019July 25, 2019Adriano Espaillat (D-NY)67Died in committee.No short titleJuly 25, 2019Ayanna Pressley (D-MA)65Died in committee.No short titleJuly 31, 2019Richard Durbin (D-IL)16Died in committee.117th CongressFederal Death Penalty Abolition Act of 2021January 4, 2021Adriano Espaillat (D-NY)85Died in committee.Federal Death Penalty Prohibition ActJanuary 11, 2021Ayanna Pressley (D-MA)79Died in committee.Federal Death Penalty Prohibition ActMarch 3, 2021Richard Durbin (D-IL)20Died in committee.118th CongressFederal Death Penalty Abolition Act of 2023February 21, 2023Adriano Espaillat (D-NY)28Died in committee.Federal Death Penalty Prohibition ActJuly 13, 2023Ayanna Pressley (D-MA)61Died in committee.Federal Death Penalty Prohibition ActJuly 13, 2023Richard Durbin (D-IL)20Died in committee.119th CongressFederal Death Penalty Prohibition ActMay 20, 2026Ayanna Pressley (D-MA)30Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.Federal Death Penalty Prohibition ActMay 20, 2026Richard Durbin (D-IL)17Referred to the Senate Committee on the Judiciary.
See also Capital punishment in the United States Capital punishment by country Crimes Act of 1790 Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution Furman v. Georgia Gregg v. Georgia Wrongful execution
References