13th Amendment Prison Labor Clause Draws No Legislative Action from Either Party
The exception to the abolition of slavery embedded in the 13th Amendment remains federal law, and no bill to remove or restrict it has advanced in the current Congress.
The 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, ratified in 1865, prohibits slavery and involuntary servitude 'except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted.' That clause, recorded verbatim in the National Archives, has remained unmodified for 160 years and continues to authorize compelled labor by incarcerated individuals in federal and state prison systems.
As of the 119th Congress, no legislation to amend or repeal the exception clause has been reported out of committee in either the Senate Judiciary Committee or the House Judiciary Committee, according to the congressional record maintained at Congress.gov. The most recent related legislative attempt was the Abolition Amendment, introduced in prior Congresses by Rep. Nikema Williams (D-GA) and Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR), which proposed striking the exception language. That measure did not receive a floor vote. Its current-session status, if reintroduced, is not confirmed by available congressional records as of June 17, 2026.
Federal Prison Industries, known commercially as UNICOR, is the government corporation that employs incarcerated individuals at federal facilities. According to its most recent annual report filed with the Department of Justice, UNICOR pays wages ranging from $0.23 to $1.15 per hour, figures recorded in the agency's publicly available financial disclosures. The program generated approximately $247 million in net sales in fiscal year 2023, per DOJ reporting. UNICOR is required by statute, under 18 U.S.C. § 4121–4129, to sell its products primarily to federal agencies.
The Washington Examiner published commentary on June 17, 2026, noting that neither major party has advanced a legislative debate on the clause, attributing Republican inaction to its alignment with a punitive criminal justice framework and Democratic inaction to potential conflict with organized labor interests, which have historically opposed competition from prison-manufactured goods. These characterizations reflect editorial opinion and are not sourced to floor statements, party platforms, or congressional testimony in the current session.
What remains unknown is whether any member of the 119th Congress has introduced legislation in the current session to address the 13th Amendment exception or to modify UNICOR wage structures. The full text of any such bill, if introduced, would be available at Congress.gov. Additionally, a comprehensive breakdown of state-level prison labor wages and revenue, which would provide a complete picture of the economic scope of the clause's application, is not consolidated in a single federal database; the Bureau of Justice Statistics' Annual Survey of State and Federal Correctional Facilities would be the primary public record to consult.