"Second Chance Act" Would Prevent Ex-Cons From Becoming Repeat Offenders

"Second Chance Act" Would Prevent Ex-Cons From Becoming Repeat Offenders

In an effort to make communities safer and help former prison inmates transition back into society, U.S. Senators Joe Biden (D-DE), Arlen Specter (R-PA) and Sam Brownback (R-KS) today introduced legislation designed to reduce the number of convicted felons from becoming repeat offenders. The Second Chance Act of 2005 provides $100 million a year in federal competitive grants to promote programs that combine intensive parole supervision with job skill training, substance abuse treatment and other support services to assist high-risk offenders reintegrate into the community.

"It's time we start facing a stark reality - more than two million people are living in prisons across this country, and sooner or later, the vast majority of them will be returned to the streets," said Senator Biden. "A staggering two-thirds of these released prisoners are expected to be rearrested for a felony or serious misdemeanor within three years of release - two out of every three. Many of these men and women have a history of drug and alcohol abuse, little or no job skills, insufficient housing and deficient basic life skills. It is clearly in our best interest to help them reintegrate into the community and become productive, contributing members of our community."

According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics and the National Institute of Justice, up to 60 percent of former inmates are not employed; 40 percent of State inmates have never completed high school or its equivalent; and 57 percent of Federal and 70 percent of State inmates used drugs regularly before prison.

The Second Chance Act also requires greater coordination of offender reentry efforts among all levels of government and with community groups, and requires coordinated research and studies on offender reentry issues.

According to Senator Biden, "it is imperative for officials to know who is most likely to recommit crimes when they are released, to better target limited resources where they can do the most good. We also need to study why some ex-offenders who seem to have the entire deck stacked against them are able to become successful and productive members of our society," said. "We need to know what works and how we can replicate what works for others."

Biden also noted that the bill could eventually end up saving American taxpayers millions of dollars, noting: "A relatively modest investment in offender reentry efforts compares very well with the alternative - building more prisons for these ex-offenders to return to if they are unable to successfully reenter their communities. We have to keep in mind that the average cost of incarcerating each prisoner exceeds $20,000 per year, with expenditures on corrections alone having increased from $9 billion in 1982 to $60 billion in 2002. We simply can't be penny-wise but pound-foolish."

http://biden.senate.gov/newsroom/details.cfm?id=247884&&