May 25, 2007
TOUGH LUCK FOR SECOND CHANCE
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Crime fighter Gohmert (with Miss America 2006)
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A petty email from a Texas Republican helped stymie efforts to pass a bill in the House of Representatives last week that would support released prisoners reentering communities and would reduce recidivism. AIDS, housing, and prisoners' rights advocates had expected the Second Chance Act (H.R. 1593) to pass easily, but the bill was pulled at the last minute when Democratic leadership realized they couldn't guarantee enough Republican votes for quick passage. Fears of a Republican backlash began when Rep. Louie Gohmert sent a grammatically challenged e-mail to his colleagues subtitled "[Second Chance Act] Gives Criminals a Better GI Bill than What Our GI's Get."
The Second Chance Act had been placed on the House's "Suspension of the Rules" calendar, used to expedite relatively uncontroversial legislation. Bills on the Suspension calendar are only debated for 40 minutes and then must be passed by a two-thirds majority. Thanks in part to Gohmert's prodding, the Republican Study Committee — a group of more than 100 House members "organized for the purpose of advancing a conservative social and economic agenda" — adopted his enlightened position that the Second Chance Act extends excessive support to ex-prisoners. Democratic leadership decided to pull the bill from the suspension calendar in order to avoid a floor vote.
"If this bill were brought to the floor it would be subject to amendments that would weaken it," says Nancy Bernstine, executive director of the National AIDS Housing Coalition. "We want to have everything set when it goes for a full vote." The bill's sponsors hope to build more bipartisan support and get it back on the suspension calendar in June. A version of the Second Chance Act (S. 1060) is awaiting a vote in the Senate, and is expected to pass easily if the House vote goes smoothly.
Housing help for HIV-positive prisoners
The Second Chance Act is intended to ease ex-prisoners' transition from incarceration to daily life and cut down on recidivism. It provide funds to state and local governments for mentoring programs, recidivism research, substance abuse programs, career training, and, most importantly for housing advocates, funds that states can use to address ex-prisoners' housing needs. There are no specific earmarks in the $191 million budget for housing, but there is $65 million in discretionary funds that state and local government can use for their own reentry initiatives. "The bill was perceived as one that would leave decision-making to the states," says Gene Guerrero, Senior Policy Analyst of the Open Society Policy Center. "One state might not have a severe drug addiction problem and want to address ex-prisoner housing issues, or vice versa."
That could be good news for scores of HIV-positive ex-prisoners. According to a UCSF study, between 20 and 26 percent of Americans with HIV/AIDS have spent time in correctional facilities. Many can't find adequate housing once they're released. "There are a huge number of people coming out of incarceration who are excluded from housing," says Housing Works president and CEO Charles King. "There are people who can't go into public housing, and this encourages recidivism."
Steve Berg, vice president for programs and policy at the Alliance to End Homelessness, said that from talking with corrections officials, he is confident states would use reentry funds to address housing. "Corrections agencies are starting to get that, without housing, people who leave prison and become homeless are much more likely to commit crime and go back to prison," he says.
Gonzo Ghomert
Rep. Gohmert takes issue with elements of the Second Chance Act that appear to be soft on criminals. He argues that items in the bill that provide for books on tape programs, family days and children visiting incarcerated parents should be struck because, according to the email, "We do NOT provide such services to the children of our brave soldiers fighting for our freedom. Therefore, it is difficult to justify doing so for convicted criminals."
The bill's sponsors agree that families of G.I.'s are also being shortchanged but that two wrongs don't make a right. A representative for one of the bill's lead cosponsors, Rep. Danny Davis (D-IL), says, "We agree with Congressman Gohmert. These programs should be for children of service workers also. We should work together to make both happen."
Gohmert also objects to the exclusion of faith-based approaches to substance abuse and the general philosophy that "when you create financial rewards for criminal activity, you'll create more criminal activity."
Attention New Yorkers!: Sen. Charles Schumer is a cosponsor of the Second Chance Act in the Senate, but Sen. Hillary Clinton is not. Call her office today and tell her to get on board. Click here for a list of representatives who are cosponsoring the Second Chance Act in the House- if yours isn't on the list, ask him or her to sign on. All Congressional offices can be reached through the Capitol switchboard: 800-614-2803.