Racial Equity Impact Notes

The Racial Equity Impact Note (REIN) unit evaluates the racial impact of selected criminal justice legislation. REIN performs statistical analysis on available criminal justice-related data and provides an objective-based assessment of potential disparities among racial and ethnic groups that may be exacerbated or created by the legislation.

The assessments are published in the form of a racial equity impact statement, which can be found online as part of a bill’s legislative history. Factors that determine whether a REIN is published for a bill or group of bills include whether (1) there is sufficient data available to provide an objective analysis of the bill’s provisions; (2) the topics addressed in the bill include current issues of concern for minority residents in the State; and (3) providing information surrounding key decision points in the criminal justice system will inform legislators and the public of possible policy implications of legislation.