S 3343
117th Congress
Senate
Civil Rights and Liberties, Minority Issues
Bivens Act of 2021
Introduced: December 8, 2021
Introduced by:
Whitehouse, Sheldon
Democratic
· Rhode Island
See on congress.gov
Everywhere this bill has been
2 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
Dec 8, 2021
Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Dec 8, 2021
Introduced in Senate
Plain-English summary
Bivens Act of 2021
This bill provides individuals with a statutory right to sue and recover damages from federal officials for violations of their constitutional rights.
Currently, individuals have a statutory right to bring such suits against state or local officials (e.g., law enforcement), commonly known as Section 1983 suits or Bivens actions. Although the statute does not explicitly authorize such suits against federal officials, the Supreme Court has found this right to be inferred from the Constitution in certain situations (e.g., Fourth Amendment violations committed by federal law enforcement officers).
What's happening now
Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Committees of jurisdiction
1