Second Chance Act Appropriations Request

April 17, 2008

NAHC Joins Our Partners to Request $165 Million in Funding for the Second Chance Act in FY 2009

Two months ago, NAHC reported the long awaited passage of the Second Chance Act of 2007. Now that it is public law, the bill faces an up hill battle to ensure adequate funding for the programs and services outlined, including housing, that address the needs of people re-entering communities from prisons and jails. NAHC joins our coalition of groups in recommending $165 million in appropriated funding for the Second Chance Act in FY 2009. Call your Representative today and encourage them to sign-on to the letter of support for the appropriation request. The importance of this bill for the HIV/AIDS community cannot be overstated. It is estimated that the incidence of confirmed AIDS cases has grown to be five times higher in prison than in the general population and incidences of HIV are estimated to be between 10 and 14 percent higher.

Please see the below alert from the Reentry Working Group and forgive duplications sent:

The deadline for your member to sign on to this critical letter urging the Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies to appropriate $165 million in FY 2009 to fully fund provisions of the Second Chance Act of 2007 is Friday, May 30th.

Ask your Representative to support $165 million in FY2009 funding for the Second Chance Act.

Encourage them to join the growing list of supporters for this first-of-its-kind bipartisan approach to reducing recidivism and safer communities. If they have any questions, or would like to sign on to the letter, please contact Helen Mitchell in Danny K. Davis’ office at ext. 6-7810.

Click here to download the sign-on letter.

Current Co-signers Include:

  • Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-18th TX)
  • Bennie Thompson (D-2nd MS)
  • Christopher Shays (R-4th CT)
  • Edolphus Towns (D-10th NY)
  • Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-30th TX)
  • Elijah Cummings (D-7th MD)
  • Stephanie Tubbs Jones (D-11th OH)
  • Darlene Hooley (D-5th OR)
  • Jerrold Nadler (D-8th NY)
  • Nancy Boyda (D-2nd KS)
  • Gwen Moore (D-4th WI)
  • Hank Johnson (D-4th GA)
  • Leonard Boswell (D-3rd IA)
  • Keith Ellison (D-5th MN)
  • Bob Filner (D-51st CA)
  • Bobby Rush (D-1st IL)
  • Dennis Kucinich (D-10th OH)
  • James McGovern (D-3rd MA)
  • John Lewis (D-5th GA)
  • Stephen Cohen (D-9th TN)
  • Bobby Scott (D-3rd VA)
  • Barbara Lee (D-9th CA)
  • Chaka Fattah (D-2nd PA)
  • Dennis Moore (D-3rd KS)
  • Corrine Brown (D-3rd FL)
  • Betty Sutton (D-13th OH)
  • Raul Grijalva (D-7th AZ)
  • Tammy Baldwin (D-2nd WI)
  • Christopher Smith (R-4th NJ)
  • Andre Carson (D-7th IN)
  • Maxine Waters (D-35th CA)
  • Gabrielle Giffords (D-8th AZ)
  • Michael Michaud (D-2nd ME)
  • David Scott (D-13th GA)
  • Robert Andrews (D-1st NJ)
  • janice Schakowsky (D-9th IL)
  • Donald Payne (D-10th NJ)
  • Yvette Clarke (D-11th NY)
  • Donna Christensen (D-VI)
  • Diana DeGette (D-1st CO)
  • William Jefferson (D-2nd LA)
  • Howard Coble (R-6th NC)
  • Albert Wynn (D-4th MD)
  • Gregory Meeks (D-6th NY)
  • Hilda Solis (D-32nd CA)
  • Michael Capuano (D-8th MA)

CONTROLL CRIME AND COST: URGE CJS TO FULLY FUND THE SECOND CHANCE ACT

Annually, correction budgets are consuming an ever larger chunk of state general funds. Some states spend an even larger proportion of their budgets on corrections. According to a latest study, between 1987 and 2007, states spent more than double on corrections (+127%) while higher education spending has been moderate (+21%). Oregon, for example, directed one in every 10 dollars to corrections, while Florida and Vermont spent one in 11.

Moreover:

  • Colorado (8.8%)
  • California (8.6%)
  • Texas (8.6%)
  • Arizona (8.5%)
  • Montana (8.3%)
  • Oklahoma (7.8%)
  • Arkansas (7.7%)
  • Maryland (7.6%)
  • Louisiana (7.5%)
  • Missouri (7.4%)
  • Delaware (7.1%)
  • Ohio (7.0%)
  • South Dakota (7.0%)
  • Idaho (6.9%)
  • Utah (6.9%)

Corrections as a percentage of total general fund expenditures exceed the national average; 6.8%.

Five States-Vermont (1.37); Michigan (1.19); Oregon (1.03); and Delaware (1.00)-spent as much or more on corrections than they did on higher education. For every dollar spent on higher education Alaska spent 77 cents on corrections and Georgia spent 50 cents while 50 states average 60 cents spent on corrections for every dollar spent on higher education.

DO THE MATH, STATE BUDGETS ARE BUSTING AT THE SEAMS AND LOCAL POLICYMAKERS ARE CALLING FOR CHANGE:

  • “We are jammed up with this situation right now because we have fallen in love with one of the most undocumented beliefs: That somehow you get safer if you put more people in jail.” (CA Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata);
  • “Our policy and funding decisions need to be based on good data and the latest research. Unless we have that foundation, I’m not confident we’re doing everything we can to fight crime effectively and to be efficient with taxpayer dollars.” (AZ State Sen. John Huppenthal)
  • “It’s not good public policy to take all of these taxpayers’ dollars at a very tough time, and invest it in the prison system when we ought to be investing it in the things that are going to transform the economy, like education and diversifying the economy.” (MI Gov. Jennifer Granholm);
  • “If we don’t change the course now, we will be building prisons forever and ever-prisons we can’t afford.” (TX State Senator John Whitmire);
  • “It’s far better for our society if we can get rid of the drug habit than if they just serve a short period of incarceration and go back to drugs after they come out.” (TX State Rep. Jerry Madden); and
  • “For continued funding, we have to achieve that goal statewide. The DOC has announced to us our funding will no longer be based solely on how many clients we have, but on our performance.” (Ken Moore, Director, Reno County, KS Community Corrections)

The objective of sharing these findings (from the PEW) is to drive home the importance and timeliness of the Second Chance Act. The Second Chance Act provides comprehensive assistance to state and local governments in developing evidence based programs that will help enable persons leaving jail or prison to successfully re-enter their communities. It recognizes the important role of cities and counties in re-entry efforts and acknowledges the role of the local jail as a staging area for re-entry services. Foremost, the Second Chance Act saves taxpayers dollars and provides States much needed assistance in appropriating larger chunks of the general funds to secondary and higher education, health and transportation.