PRINTER'S NO. 306
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
SENATE BILL
No.360
Session of
2025
INTRODUCED BY HUGHES, KANE, MUTH, COMITTA, KEARNEY, SAVAL,
HAYWOOD, SCHWANK, TARTAGLIONE AND COSTA, FEBRUARY 28, 2025
REFERRED TO JUDICIARY, FEBRUARY 28, 2025
AN ACT
Amending Title 61 (Prisons and Parole) of the Pennsylvania
Consolidated Statutes, providing for solitary confinement.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. Title 61 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated
Statutes is amended by adding a chapter to read:
CHAPTER 51
SOLITARY CONFINEMENT
Sec.
5101. Definitions.
5102. Data collection and reporting requirements.
§ 5101. Definitions.
The following words and phrases when used in this chapter
shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
context clearly indicates otherwise:
"Inmate." Notwithstanding the definition of "inmate" under
section 102 (relating to definitions), an adult person committed
to a term of imprisonment or otherwise confined in a State
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18 correctional institution.
"Member of a vulnerable population." Any of the following:
(1) An inmate who is 21 years of age or younger.
(2) An inmate who is 70 years of age or older.
(3) An inmate who is pregnant or in the postpartum
period.
(4) An inmate who has recently suffered a miscarriage or
terminated a pregnancy.
(5) An inmate who is perceived to be lesbian, gay,
bisexual, transgender or intersex.
"Personally identifiable information." Any representation of
information that permits the identity of an individual to whom
the information applies to be reasonably inferred by either
direct or indirect means, including the individual's:
(1) name;
(2) address;
(3) Social Security number or other identifying number
or code;
(4) telephone number; or
(5) email address.
"Postpartum period." The period following delivery before an
inmate or a detainee has been discharged from a medical
facility.
"Solitary confinement." The confinement of an inmate in a
State correctional institution due to disciplinary,
administrative, protective, investigative, medical or other
classification, in a cell or similarly confined holding or
living space, alone or with other inmates for approximately 20
hours or more per day, with severely restricted activity,
movement and social interaction.
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30 "State correctional institution." A correctional institution
or facility housing incarcerated individuals owned or operated
by the Commonwealth.
§ 5102. Data collection and reporting requirements.
(a) Data collection.--The department shall collect the
following information as required for reporting under subsection
(b):
(1) The average annual State prison population.
(2) The number of inmates housed within solitary
confinement and the number of inmates released from solitary
confinement.
(3) For each inmate housed within solitary confinement,
the age, sex, race, ethnicity, mental health code, medical
class code, security level and custody level classification
of the inmate and whether the inmate is a member of a
vulnerable population.
(4) For each inmate released from solitary confinement,
any change to the inmate's mental health code, medical class
code, security level or custody level classification.
(5) The reason or reasons for which each inmate was
placed into solitary confinement.
(6) The number of days each inmate was housed within
solitary confinement per confinement.
(7) The number of incidents of self-harm, offenses
toward others, suicide attempts and suicides for inmates
housed within solitary confinement.
(8) The number of incidents of self-harm, offenses
toward others, suicide attempts and suicides for inmates
released from solitary confinement.
(9) The current three-year recidivism rate for all
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30 inmates released from the State prison system and the three-
year recidivism rate for inmates released from the State
prison system who were housed in solitary confinement at any
time in the two years preceding their release.
(10) The number of staff persons, including a breakdown
by job classification, dedicated to inmates housed within
solitary confinement during the previous calendar year.
(b) Annual report.--
(1) On August 1 of the year that begins immediately
following the effective date of this paragraph, and each
August 1 thereafter, the department shall issue a report that
includes:
(i) In the aggregate, the data collected under
subsection (a) for the previous calendar year.
(ii) A description of any changes made during the
previous calendar year to written policies or procedures
of the department relating to the use and conditions of
solitary confinement.
(2) The department shall ensure that each report under
this subsection does not contain any personally identifiable
information of any inmate as a result of the required data
collection.
(3) The department shall submit each report under this
subsection to:
(i) The Governor.
(ii) The chairperson and minority chairperson of the
Judiciary Committee of the Senate.
(iii) The chairperson and minority chairperson of
the Judiciary Committee of the House of Representatives.
(c) Publication requirements.--
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30 (1) Within 30 days of the effective date of this
paragraph, the department shall:
(i) Provide a copy of the department's policies and
procedures governing the use of solitary confinement to:
(A) The Governor.
(B) The chairperson and minority chairperson of
the Judiciary Committee of the Senate.
(C) The chairperson and minority chairperson of
the Judiciary Committee of the House of
Representatives.
(ii) Post the department's policies and procedures
governing the use of solitary confinement on the
department's publicly accessible Internet website.
(2) If the department changes a policy or procedure
governing the use of solitary confinement following
dissemination of policies and procedures under paragraph (1),
the department shall update the policies and procedures
posted on the department's publicly accessible Internet
website and provide written notice to recipients listed in
paragraph (1)(i). A policy or procedure updated under this
paragraph must include an annotation with dates to indicate
any changes that have been made.
(3) Within 10 days of the submittal of a report under
subsection (b), the department shall post the report on the
department's publicly accessible Internet website.
Section 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
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