"Working to Build A Better Community"
"The
probability that we may fail in the struggle ought not deter us from the
support of a cause we believe to be just."
~ Abraham Lincoln
EX-OFFENDER HOUSING DISCRIMINATION
THE BIG PICTURE: REALITY IN THE U.S.
THE REALITY IN MASSACHUSETTS
THE LAW IN MASSACHUSETTS
COMMUNITY RESOURCES IN
MASSACHUSETTS
PROGRAMS IN OTHER STATES
PROGRAMS IN
OTHER STATES
▼housing
& criminal record access laws /
▼prisoner
re-entry /
▼sample
transitional housing programs /
GLOSSARY
In Massachusetts, many ex-offenders serve complete sentences (or "wrap" their sentences) without the opportunity for parole or transitional housing services. Even those individuals with access to transitional programs will find only a limited number of programs with limited funding. Ex-offenders in Massachusetts are also faced with additional barriers to obtaining public and private housing based on the fact that public housing authorities and many private landlords have access to Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI). Below are examples of laws and programs from the District of Columbia (D.C.), New York and New Jersey that address the issues of prisoner re-entry and housing while balancing both public safety and ex-offender rights and needs. Since these states share similar racial, ethnic, immigrant and economic demographics with Massachusetts, some of the characteristics of their programs and laws may be adaptable to Massachusetts.
HOUSING AND CRIMINAL
RECORD ACCESS LAWS
Massachusetts’ CORI practices
create obstacles for ex-offenders working to access housing. For more
information about Massachusetts criminal record access laws please visit the
Types of
Housing and CORI
and CORI Legislation
pages. Broad access to criminal records facilitates discriminatory practices.
New York, New Jersey, and D.C. illustrate alternatives for governing access
to criminal records and public housing.
Limit access to criminal records. Several states limit access to criminal record information so that the general public (including private landlords) cannot access these records.
§ In New York and New Jersey, the general public is not able to access criminal record information. Access to the records is restricted to government agencies, certain employers, certain licensing authorities and other limited groups.
§ Similarly, D.C. has restricted criminal record information to only “public” records pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and Privacy Act. “Public” records include limited information and can only be accessed after a written request and fee assessment.
- Only D.C. law enforcement agencies and the Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency (CSOSA), the state agency tasked with supervising offenders at all stages from sentencing through re-entry, have access to non-public criminal records in the absence of the ex-offender’s written consent to disclosure.
Case-by-case application review. The District of Columbia handles denials of public housing on a case-by-case basis in order to discourage policies of blanket discrimination, which automatically deny an ex-offender housing.
§ The D.C. Housing Authority bases an ex-offender’s eligibility for public housing on the extent of rehabilitation he or she has received, the nature of his or her offense(s), and the length of time that has passed since the offense(s). In assessing whether to accept or deny an ex-offender’s application for housing, the D.C. Housing Authority focuses on the following questions:
- Does the ex-offender accept responsibility for his or her crime?
- Does the ex-offender have adequate or suitable employment, or has he or she participated in a training program*?
- Is the ex-offender involved in substance abuse treatment*, if necessary?
- Has the ex-offender successfully completed therapy* directed at correcting the behavior which led to the criminal activity?
- Does the ex-offender have a support network?
*Most of the therapy and training programs referenced above are offered to offenders while in D.C. prisons on a volunteer basis
Tax Credits. New Jersey, following Connecticut’s example, has proposed tax credit legislation for those who provide housing and other opportunities to ex-offenders. Massachusetts can increase the availability of ex-offender housing by following these examples.
§ In New Jersey, there is pending legislation, H.R. 3701, which calls for “a temporary low income housing tax credit that would encourage the provision of housing, job training, and other services to ex-offenders.”
PRISONER RE-ENTRY
According to many
ex-offenders and advocates, pre-release and re-entry programs are invaluable
to ex-offenders and vital to ensuring public safety. Currently, in the
federal system, every prisoner transitions to community living through a
community corrections placement. Although Massachusetts does not currently
offer transitional programs to every offender, many programs are in
place. For more information on existing re-entry programs in Massachusetts,
please visit the
Reality in
Massachusetts
and
Community Resources pages.
Collaboration. Support from local advocacy groups concerned with both ex-offender re-integration and public safety facilitates ex-offender re-entry into local communities. The District of Columbia’s CSOSA has formulated a Comprehensive Reentry Strategy for Adults and an Action Plan based on collaboration among 7 government agencies, community groups, service providers, and residents in D.C. neighborhoods.
§ The CSOSA has established five work groups to address various areas of concern for ex-offenders re-entering their communities:
o Pre-release Planning
o Education/Employment
o Public Education, Family and Community Support
o Short-term and Long-term Housing
o Legislative and Policy Issues
§ D.C.’s Reentry Strategy is very new and represents an ambitious restructuring of their previous re-entry programs. Most of these strategies are underway, some are in the process of implementation, and a few are in the exploration and planning stages. The CSOSA has a specific timeline for each program which is included in the Reentry Strategy and accompanying Action Plan. For more information about D.C.’s Reentry Strategy and Action Plan, as well as other programs related to re-entry and ex-offender issues in D.C., click here. The CSOSA site also includes access to Starting Out, Starting Over, Staying Out, a guide to obtaining food, clothing, employment, and housing for ex-offenders in D.C. It includes over 300 pages of very useful information and resources. To view Starting Out, Starting Over, Staying Out, click here.
§ The Reentry Strategy includes both long-term goals, such as constructing more transitional housing facilities in D.C., and small detail-oriented programs such as distributing “Starter Packages” to ex-offenders exiting incarceration. These packages include resource information as well as medication, toothpaste, and other personal items for the first 60 days after release. Strategies for aiding successful reentry of ex-offenders in D.C. specifically regarding housing include:
o Encouraging and assisting inmates who plan to reside with a family member in public housing in completing their own application for being added to the family member’s existing lease at least 90 days prior to release to allow for acceptance or time to appeal an application if denied.
o Allowing ex-offenders to return to public housing on probationary basis.
o Encouraging inmates to save money and work release wages earned while in prison with banks, by establishing unique interest-bearing accounts for post-release expenses. The District of Columbia's Release Preparation Program also encourages offenders to develop financial skills, and it provides information about banks where ex-offenders have successfully established accounts. The District of Columbia is exploring partnerships with banks willing to accept bulk referrals of offenders, waive fees for those offenders who open accounts, and waive other requirements such as minimum balances.
o Creating an online service directory for ex-offenders that includes housing options to aid staff at Community Corrections Centers in assisting ex-offenders in search for housing.
o Increasing transitional housing facilities in the D.C. area including facilities which can accommodate ex-offenders with children.
o Creating more subsidized housing throughout the city as well as Single Room Occupancy facilities.
o Encouraging disabled ex-offenders and those pursuing treatment for addictions to choose programs that offer housing or subsidize housing costs.
o Helping the ex-offender evaluate his or her housing situation and plan prior to release by allocating CSOSA staff to do the following:
1. Review his or her proposed housing plan.
2. If the ex-offender's plan involves returning to his or her family, meeting with the family to counsel the family about their role in the re-entry process.
3. Investigate planned residence and assess suitability.
4. If returning to the family is not an option, CSOSA will seek short-term housing and work on a long-term housing plan with the offender.
5. Locate transitional housing.
6. Encourage at least a 120-day stay.
Records and Identification. There are other tools that prisoners can access while still in prison in order to obtain important documentation that will facilitate their re-entry. Personal identification and personal criminal records are especially important in this regard. The Legal Action Center, based in New York, has developed instructional guides on how to obtain this, and other, information.
§ In New York, the Legal Action Center has created a comprehensive guide, How to Obtain Important Documents, which explains how to obtain personal identification including a driver’s licenses, passports, voter registrations and social security cards.
§ The Legal Action Center has also created a document, How to Get and Clean Up Your New York State Rap Sheet, which clearly explains how to obtain a copy of one's rap sheet. The document addresses how to understand the rap sheet and make sure it is correct, how to have corrections made where there are inaccuracies, and how to make a record appear less threatening to those who have access to it. The document also contains a number of model letters to assist the ex-offender when dealing with issues relating to rap-sheets that frequently arise (e.g. if a case should be sealed but is not).
SAMPLE TRANSITIONAL
HOUSING PROGRAMS
Kintock Group.
Kintock acts as a community corrections
provider and contracts with the States of New Jersey and Pennsylvania, as
well as the Federal Bureau of Prisons, in order to provide transitional
assistance to offenders prior to their release from prison. Kintock has a
residential pre-release program with 170 beds for work-release participants
and 40 clients who participate in the treatment of addictions. Individuals
are referred to the Kintock Group through the New Jersey Department of
Corrections and are eligible for the pre-release residential program within
18 months of parole. To visit
the Kintock Group web site, please
click here.
Volunteers of America Delaware Valley – New Jersey Corrections Program. The VOA-DV New Jersey Corrections program operates two community based non-traditional half-way houses under contract with the New Jersey Department of Corrections. The two residences house 84 and 164 individuals respectively. One residence requires that all residents enroll in vocational training or be employed full-time, and all residents must participate in local community service projects and pro-social activities. The other residence hall is a treatment facility with a work-release component for pre-parole adult male offenders. To visit the Volunteers of America web site, please click here.
The Fortune Society – The Castle. The Fortune Society provides a variety of services to approximately 2000 ex-offenders annually through its various office locations and residential facilities. Fortune provides a comprehensive range of services to returning prisoners, including reentry planning before release, transitional housing, and long term housing placement. The Castle, the Fortune Society’s residence, provides for two types of housing – emergency (18 beds) and longer-term (41 beds). Each room in the residence has its own bathroom and the longer-term units all have kitchenettes. Fortune’s model for providing housing services is unique in that the only criterion is that prospective residents be homeless former prisoners who appear to pose no current risk of violence to others and they must be interested in and appropriate for the services being provided.
The program model first assigns individuals to emergency units which contain 3-5 people. Those who require a longer stay in order to stabilize are moved to a two-person longer term unit. Clients who remain in longer term housing for a considerable period of time and show increased stability may be moved into a single unit for the duration of their stay. This system of rewarding clients based upon behavior and progress provides incentives for clients to remain engaged and behave appropriately. To visit the Fortune Society web site, please click here.
Women’s Prison Association & Homes, Inc. (WPA). The WPA programs address the overlapping health, child welfare, public assistance, education, housing, and criminal justice issues that ex-offenders who are women commonly face. The Sarah Powell Huntington House is a residence for women with criminal justice histories. Women who live here either have custody of their children or have a goal of family reunification in the near future.
Another program of
the WPA, Steps to Independence, provides female ex-offenders with resources
and programs in the areas of employment, housing and life skills. This
program also matches women transitioning from prisons with community
mentors. Also, the Transitional Services Unit of the WPA assists women with
pre-release planning, housing placement, peer group support. To visit
the Women’s Prison Association with Homes, Inc. web site, please
click here.