MA Legislature Criminal Justice Reform Caucus Highlight Priorities Passed in the FY23 House Budget
BOSTON – The Criminal Justice Reform Caucus celebrated significant priority wins in the FY23 House budget debates that took place this week on Beacon Hill. The House Committee on Ways and Means released their budget on April 13th with investments in community-based residential reentry programs, legal service providers, removal of supervision fees for individuals with parole or probation sentences, and an outside policy section that will make communications between incarcerated people and those outside of correctional facilities free of charge.
In their letter to the House Committee on Ways and Means, Caucus co-chairs Representative Mary Keefe (D-Worcester), Senator Jamie Eldridge (D-Acton), and their colleagues advocated for the inclusion of these priorities. The FY23 House Budget includes numerous investments toward re-entry programs that support formerly incarcerated individuals and ease their transitions into the community by providing workforce development and case management. The House allocated $24 million for re-entry and recidivism programs, $5.6 million more than the Governor’s recommendation. The House also appropriated $11.3 million for community-based residential re-entry programs, $27.5 million for probation community corrections centers, $11.2 million for residential reentry programs, $6 million for an emerging adults recidivism reduction grant program, $3.8 million for a re-entry workforce development and supportive services program, $3.6 million for creating two post-incarceration support centers to be modeled off of the Hampden County Center, and $2.2 million for the Employment Services Division within Probation. The House Ways and Means Budget also allocated $2 million for a pilot program that assists individuals returning to the community by providing rental subsidies.
The co-chairs also implored House leadership to include funding for post-secondary education programming and to divert Section 35 funding for urgently-needed community-based treatment programs licensed or approved by the Departments of Public Health and Mental Health, rather than treat correctional sites as healthcare facilities. Representative Kay Khan (D-Newton) secured a $25,000 earmark for post-secondary education programming. Representative Ruth Balser’s (D-Newton) amendments regarding Section 35 funding were not included in the final House Budget. Both representatives are members of the Caucus.
Governor Baker and the House Committee on Ways and Means each included in their budgets policy changes that would eliminate supervision fees for individuals with parole or probation sentences. These reforms were adopted in large part due to the work of the Special Commission on Structural Racism in the Massachusetts Parole Process, chaired by Representative Andy Vargas (D-Haverhill) and Senator Jamie Eldridge, as well as the Commission on Structural Racism in the Massachusetts Probation Service, chaired by Representative Tram Nguyen (D-Andover) and Senator Jamie Eldridge. Removal of supervision fees reduces barriers to re-entry and rehabilitation that disproportionately affect people of color and this will streamline the parole process by reducing administrative costs and increasing efficiency.
Incarcerated individuals and their loved ones currently pay $14.4 million per year to communicate with each other. This financial barrier makes it more difficult for incarcerated people to maintain their relationships with others, in turn making it more challenging to secure the resources that they need to successfully re-enter society after their sentencing is complete. The House Committee on Ways and Means addresses this barrier by allocating $20 million for a Communications Access Trust Fund, allowing for free phone calls, video calls and other forms of communication to and from correctional facilities so that incarcerated constituents can stay connected with their loved ones. This is an issue that the Criminal Justice Reform Caucus has been advocating for alongside Representative Chynah Tyler (D-Boston) and Senator Cindy Creem (D-Newton), legislative sponsors of No Cost Calls legislation H.1900 and S.1559, and the No Cost Calls Coalition.
Representative Keefe and Senator Eldridge applaud Speaker Ron Mariano (D-Quincy) and House Ways and Means Chair Aaron Michlewitz (D-Boston) for prioritizing criminal justice reform measures in this budget. The co-chairs look forward to continuing their work with House leadership and the Legislature to advocate for additional justice for everyone impacted by the Massachusetts carceral system.
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