Bill Text: HI SCR84 | 2016 | Regular Session | Introduced

Hawaii Senate Concurrent Resolution 84 (Prior Session Legislation)

Introduced

Bill Title: Transitional programs for incarcerated women.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 8-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2016-03-29 - Report adopted, referred to JDL/WAM. [SCR84 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2016-SCR84-Introduced.html

THE SENATE	S.C.R. NO.	84
TWENTY-EIGHTH LEGISLATURE, 2016
STATE OF HAWAII

SENATE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

ENCOURAGING THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY TO CONTINUE AND EXPAND ITS COMMUNITY-BASED WORK FURLOUGH PROGRAMS TO ASSIST FORMERLY INCARCERATED FEMALE INMATES transition BACK INTO SOCIETY.

WHEREAS, community-based work furlough programs that assist formerly incarcerated persons transition back into society reduce incarceration costs and address problems associated with reentry and the high rate of recidivism; and

WHEREAS, recent data from the Justice Reinvestment Initiative indicate that incarceration is not an effective method for rehabilitating persons with substance abuse addictions, and that community-based substance abuse treatment programs are more effective than in-prison treatment; and

WHEREAS, a majority of female offenders in the State commit nonviolent crimes and do not pose a threat to the community; and

WHEREAS, many female offenders return to incarceration if their recovery is not supported during their transition, and community-based work furlough programs that integrate trauma-informed care help nonviolent female offenders break the cycle of substance abuse, crime, and incarceration; and

WHEREAS, the majority of incarcerated female offenders are mothers of minor children, and fragmented families often lead to integration problems, as evidenced by mothers and daughters being incarcerated together at the Women's Community Correctional Center; and

WHEREAS, community-based work furlough programs create an integrated and seamless resocialization and reentry process to help formerly incarcerated females adjust to greater independence as they transition and reunite with their children and families; and

WHEREAS, Native Hawaiian women have a disproportionate representation in the State's criminal justice system, making up over forty-four per cent of the incarcerated female population and having higher incarceration rates than Native Hawaiian men; and

WHEREAS, a 2012 Native Hawaiian Justice Task Force Report found that placement of Native Hawaiians in community-based, cultural and trauma-informed reentry programs are effective in reducing recidivism; and

WHEREAS, Ka Hale Ho ala Hou No Na Wahine, an Oahu-based program, is the only community-based work furlough program in the State and has experience in successfully transitioning formerly incarcerated female offenders through placement in a community-based work furlough program that emphasizes a gender-responsive, culturally-sensitive, and trauma-informed framework; and

WHEREAS, 82.4 per cent of women offenders who participate in this program are not reincarcerated for at least two years after being released, and Ka Hale Ho ala Hou No Na Wahine can serve as a successful reentry model for future community-based work furlough programs; and

WHEREAS, community-based work furlough programs not only empower women to successfully transition from prison to the community, but also contribute to safer communities; and

WHEREAS, as of November 3, 2014, there were six hundred sixty-five women under the care and custody of the Department of Public Safety; and

WHEREAS, the Department of Public Safety reported that the cost of incarceration is $134 per day for each inmate; and

WHEREAS, reducing recidivism and subsequent incarceration will not only provide long-term cost savings to the Department of Public Safety, but will also contribute to creating safer communities; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-eighth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2016, the House of Representatives concurring, that the Department of Public Safety is encouraged to continue and expand its structured, community-based work furlough programs to assist formerly incarcerated female inmates transition back into society; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Governor, the Director of Public Safety, and the Auditor.