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2024 Regular Session
HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 12
BY REPRESENTATIVES FREEMAN AND KNOX
A RESOLUTION
To continue the task force created in the 2023 Regular Session of the Legislature of
Louisiana pursuant to House Resolution No. 174 to study both the academic and
vocational educational programs within prisons and jails in Louisiana.
WHEREAS, on June 30, 2022, the Department of Public Safety and Corrections held
approximately twenty-five thousand six hundred seventy-seven individuals in its custody,
in addition to one thousand three hundred ninety-five women; and
WHEREAS, approximately fourteen thousand one hundred fifty-seven individuals
are housed in parish jails; and
WHEREAS, six percent of incarcerated individuals are in transitional work
programs; and
WHEREAS, in 2021, there were twelve thousand, one hundred ninety-one new
admissions to the Department of Public Safety and Corrections, of which thirteen percent
were under twenty-five years of age, twelve percent were over fifty years of age, ten percent
were women, and twenty-one percent were for violent crimes; and
WHEREAS, of these new admissions, sixty-five percent were parole eligible and
ninety-one percent were eligible for good time parole supervision; and
WHEREAS, in 2021, fifty-two parishes sentenced at least fifty individuals to prison,
thirty-three parishes sentenced at least one hundred individuals to prison, and sixteen
parishes sentenced at least two hundred individuals to prison; and
WHEREAS, in 2021, the nine leading parishes relative to sentencing are Caddo
Parish with one thousand one hundred six, Jefferson Parish with nine hundred thirty-six, St.
Tammany with six hundred sixty-nine, Calcasieu with sixty hundred twenty, East Baton
Rouge with five hundred ninety-nine, Bossier and Ouachita with five hundred twelve,
Livingston with four hundred eighty-six, and Orleans with four hundred sixty-one; and
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WHEREAS, in 2021, there were twelve thousand five hundred seventy-two
individuals released from state custody; and
WHEREAS, the overwhelming majority of those individuals return to where they
consider to be home or where they have opportunity and support; and
WHEREAS, in 2021, forty-nine parishes received over fifty individuals from
custody, thirty-three parishes received at least one hundred individuals, sixteen parishes
received over two hundred individuals; and
WHEREAS, of those sixteen parishes, Orleans received nine hundred eighty-three
individuals, Caddo received nine hundred eighty-one individuals, Jefferson received nine
hundred forty-seven individuals, East Baton Rouge received seven hundred forty-nine
individuals, St. Tammany received six hundred sixty-six individuals, and Ouachita received
five hundred twelve individuals; and
WHEREAS, Louisiana recidivism rates, including revocations of supervision, vary
based on where an individual was released, with the highest rates of return to custody being
from parish jails at thirty-two percent, transitional work programs at twenty-eight percent,
and state prisons at twenty-five percent over three years; and
WHEREAS, this disparity in recidivism rates has remained consistent across years
of release, and the reduced rate for those who have obtained an education has reached
sixteen percent; and
WHEREAS, individuals listed under "education" by the department as having
attained a credential account for less than ten percent of those released between 2007 and
2020; and
WHEREAS, the recidivism rate of these individuals has steadily improved over time
between 2007 and 2012, averaging an eleven percent return to prison in the first year and a
reduction to five percent between the years of 2019 and 2020; and
WHEREAS, the MacKinac Center for Public Policy performed a comprehensive
analysis of correctional education between the years of 1980 and 2022 and documented the
impacts of various levels of education, including adult basic education reducing recidivism
by six point three percent over three years, and increasing employment by one point four
percent; and
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WHEREAS, a completed secondary education, including a GED, reduces recidivism
by seven point one percent and increases employment by one point two percent over three
years; and
WHEREAS, vocational education reduces recidivism by nine point three percent and
increases employment by five point five percent over three years; and
WHEREAS, a college education reduces recidivism by twenty-seven point seven
percent and increases employment by ten point five percent over three years; and
WHEREAS, the RAND Corporation published a study in 2013 that showed every
one dollar spent on correctional education saved the public four to five dollars in police,
court, and correctional costs, in addition to saving the hardships inflicted through crime; and
WHEREAS, educated individuals in jails and prisons create a ripple effect of role
models and mentors, which reduces disciplinary infractions and provides a more capable
incarcerated workforce; and
WHEREAS, on average, half of incarcerated individuals have two school-aged
children, who have a higher risk of incarceration due to poverty, trauma, and family
disruption; and
WHEREAS, parents and children who have studied together, despite physical
distance, have reported feelings of mutual inspiration from one another; and
WHEREAS, the United States Department of Education has reinstated the Pell Grant
program for incarcerated students, increasing the viability of post-secondary education; and
WHEREAS, the Department of Public Safety and Corrections created an advisory
committee to implement a Pell Grant program; and
WHEREAS, incarcerated individuals participate in a wide range of programming that
varies between institutions, including support from outside volunteers, temporary
arrangements, and distance learning courses; and
WHEREAS, the 2022-2023 budget for the Department of Public Safety and
Corrections allocates one percent of the budget, five point eighty-six million dollars, for
rehabilitation, including forty-three staff education positions out of four thousand four
hundred eighty-seven employees, which is an average of five individuals per institution; and
WHEREAS, it is unclear how many educational staff exist across the many local jails
in Louisiana; and
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WHEREAS, the Justice Reinvestment Initiative provided a reallocation of funds into
rehabilitative programming; and
WHEREAS, those funds have been reduced and been the subject of dispute; and
WHEREAS, five percent of the incarcerated population are women, who are spread
throughout multiple facilities in much less concentration than men with a different range of
programming opportunities; and
WHEREAS, good time credits are granted upon completion of certain educational
programming, so that prison time can be converted into parole time; and
WHEREAS, the Voice of the Experienced and Daughters Beyond Incarceration are
two organizations with deep connections with Louisiana's incarcerated individuals that are
committed to their rehabilitation and restoration of families; and
WHEREAS, Tulane University and Loyola University New Orleans both offer
bachelor degree programs in Louisiana prisons, and Northshore Technical College provides
associate degree programs in Louisiana prisons.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the House of Representatives of the
Legislature of Louisiana does hereby continue the task force created in the 2023 Regular
Session of the Legislature of Louisiana pursuant to House Resolution No. 174 to study both
the academic and vocational educational programs within prisons and jails in Louisiana.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the membership and duties of the task force
shall continue as provided in House Resolution No. 174 of the 2023 Regular Session of the
Legislature of Louisiana with the chief executive officer from The Center for Literacy and
Learning, or his designee, added as an additional member of the task force.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Tulane University shall continue to provide staff
support to the task force.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to each
of the task force members and the appointing entities provided in this Resolution.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that one print copy and one electronic copy of any
report produced pursuant to this Resolution shall be submitted to the David R. Poynter
Legislative Research Library as required by R.S. 24:772 no later than March 1, 2025.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
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