A surprising number also have statutory minimum terms of imprisonment—for example, "imprisonment which may not be less than 10 years or for life." Under some circumstances, mandatory minimums have proven controversial. Legislative proposals in the 114 th Congress reflect both perspectives. S. 353 (Senator Paul) and H.R. 706 (Representative Scott (VA)) would permit federal courts to impose a sentence below an otherwise applicable mandatory minimum when necessary to avoid violating the sentencing standards found in Section 3553(a). Drug Offenses

The Controlled Substances Act and the Controlled Substances Import and Export Act establish a series of mandatory minimum sentences for violation of their prohibitions. 920 (Representative Labrador) would reduce the mandatory minimum sentences for drug traffickers engaged in manufacture, cultivation, or distribution. Safety Valve

The so-called safety valve provision of 18 U.S.C. 3553(f) allows a court to sentence qualified defendants below the statutory mandatory minimum in controlled substance trafficking and possession cases. H.R. 1255 (Representative Scott (VA)) would eliminate the sentencing distinction between powder and crack cocaine by eliminating the cocaine base specific references. S. 502 (Senator Lee) and H.R. The bills would instruct the commission to conduct this reexamination with six factors in mind: 
the need to minimize the risk that the federal prison population would exceed the system's capacity; the findings and recommendations of the Commission's report on mandatory minimum sentences; the fiscal implications of any changes to the Guidelines; relevant public safety concerns; congressional intent to maintain appropriately severe penalties for violent, repeat, and serious drug traffickers; and the need to reduce and prevent racial sentencing disparities. Those prohibitions carry with them mandatory minimum sentences when substantial amounts of marijuana are involved. 1013 (Representative Polis) would eliminate mandatory minimum sentences for trafficking in marijuana by removing marijuana from the coverage of the Controlled Substances Act. Attorney General Reports

S. 502 (Senator Lee) and H.R. The mandatory minimums, imposed in addition to the sentence imposed for the underlying crime of violence or drug trafficking, vary, depending upon the circumstances:
imprisonment for not less than five years, unless one of the higher mandatory minimums below applies; imprisonment for not less than seven years, if a firearm is brandished; imprisonment for not less than 10 years, if a firearm is discharged; imprisonment for not less than 10 years, if a firearm is a short-barreled rifle or shotgun or is a semi-automatic weapon; imprisonment for not less than 15 years, if the offense involves armor-piercing ammunition; imprisonment for not less than 25 years, if the offender has a prior conviction for violation of Section 924(c); imprisonment for not less than 30 years, if the firearm is a machine gun or destructive device or is equipped with a silencer; and imprisonment for life, if the offender has a prior conviction for violation of Section 924(c) and if the firearm is a machine gun or destructive device or is equipped with a silencer. H.R. 1254 (Representative Scott (VA)) would convert all of Section 924(c)'s mandatory minimum penalties to maximum penalties. So, for example, possession of a shotgun in furtherance of a crime of violence or of drug trafficking would be punishable by imprisonment for not more than 10 years. H.R. 1254 is a twin of a proposal offered by Representative Scott in the 113 th Congress. S. 847 (Senator McCain) and H.R. 1324(a), 1327, or 1328, to violent crimes and drug trafficking as predicate offenses which trigger Section 924(c)'s mandatory minimum sentences. The proposal has a number of antecedents in the 113 th Congress. A number of proposals would either clarify or expand the reach of those provisions. S. 178 , H.R. Some bills, H.R. The liability for advertising traffickers would require that they knew of or recklessly disregarded the victim's status. S. 178 , H.R.
A surprising number of federal crimes carry mandatory minimum terms of imprisonment; that is, they are punishably by imprisonment for a term of not less than some number of years. During the 114th Congress, Members have introduced a number of related proposals. Some would expand the scope of existing mandatory minimum sentencing provisions; others would contract their reach.
The most sweeping proposal is that of Representative Scott (VA) (H.R. 706) and Senator Paul (S. 353), which impacts mandatory minimum sentencing across the board, allowing federal courts to disregard statutory mandatory minimum sentencing requirements in order to avoid conflicts with general sentencing standards.
Other proposals are more narrowly drawn, and speak to a particular class of crime. Representative Polis (H.R. 1013), for example, has suggested decriminalizing marijuana, thereby eliminating the mandatory minimum sentencing provisions now associated with marijuana.
Several bills, including those offered by Senators Cornyn (S. 178), Feinstein (S. 140), and Kirk (S. 572), as well as those offered by Representatives Poe (H.R. 181, H.R. 296), Granger (H.R. 1201), and Wagner (H.R. 285), would clarify or expand the coverage of a number of federal sex trafficking offenses, in one way or another, thereby increasing the number of defendants facing mandatory minimum sentences.
While proposals relating to sex trafficking would largely increase the number of mandatory minimum sentences imposed, most of the proposals relating to drug trafficking would have the opposite impact. Senator Lee's S. 502 and Representative Labrador's H.R. 920, for instance, would reduce the mandatory minimum sentences that accompany a number of drug trafficking offenses. The same bills would expand the so-called safety valve which allows a court to sentence certain low-level drug offenders below the otherwise applicable mandatory minimum sentence. Finally, Representative Scott's H.R. 1255 would eliminate the distinction between powder and crack cocaine, and as a consequence potentially reduce the number of defendants subject to the more severe drug trafficking mandatory minimums.
Firearms legislation is more varied. Existing law imposes a series of mandatory minimum sentences when a firearm is associated with the commission of a crime of violence or drug trafficking (18 U.S.C. 924(c)). Representative Scott's H.R. 1254 would convert all of Section 924(c)'s mandatory minimums (not-less-than) to statutory maximums (not-more-than). Senator McCain's S. 847 and Representative McSally's H.R. 1588, on the other hand, would make Section 924(c)'s mandatory minimums available not only in cases involving crimes of violence or drug trafficking, but also those involving the smuggling of aliens.
Many of the proposals in the 114th Congress built upon earlier offerings in the 113th Congress, as described in CRS Report R43296, Mandatory Minimum Sentencing Legislation in the 113th Congress, by [author name scrubbed].