{"id":22572,"date":"2024-12-18T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-12-18T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/?p=22572"},"modified":"2024-12-18T07:40:20","modified_gmt":"2024-12-18T15:40:20","slug":"pay-to-stay-prison-reform-research-could-guide-change","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/pay-to-stay-prison-reform-research-could-guide-change\/","title":{"rendered":"How one state\u2019s repeal of a prison \u2018pay-to-stay\u2019 law could guide national reform"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n    \n                                          \n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--article-hero \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--article-hero\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n<div class=\"inner-wrapper\">\n          \n<div class=\"f--field f--image\">\n\n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n              \n      <img\n                            data-src=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/12\/pay-to-stay-study-dornsife-768x432.jpg\"\n          data-srcset=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/12\/pay-to-stay-study-dornsife-1920x1080.jpg 1920w,https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/12\/pay-to-stay-study-dornsife-1280x720.jpg 1280w,https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/12\/pay-to-stay-study-dornsife-768x432.jpg 768w\"          data-sizes=\"(min-width:1200px) 75vw, (min-width:768px) 83vw, 100vw\"          class=\"lazyload\"\n        \n                  alt=\"Gold, cardinal and white graphics, dollar bills and receipt numbers are superimposed over a photo of a man sitting in a jail cell\"\n        \n        \n                                      \/>\n\n    \n    \n  \n  \n\n<\/div>\n  \n      <div class=\"image-caption\">\n          \n<div class=\"f--field f--description\">\n\n    \n  Forcing the incarcerated to pay their prison expenses doesn\u2019t offset costs, and it hinders rehabilitation efforts. (Composite: Rhiannon Monteilus; Image source: FreePik; iStock.)\n\n\n<\/div>\n    <\/div>\n  \n  <div class=\"text-wrapper\">\n          <nav aria-label=\"Breadcrumb\" class=\"breadcrumbs\">\n        <ul>\n                      <li><a href=\"\/news\/stories\/\">News<\/a><\/li>\n                      <li><a href=\"\/news\/stories\/\/?category=social-impact\">Social Impact<\/a><\/li>\n                  <\/ul>\n      <\/nav>\n    \n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--page-title\">\n\n    \n  <h1>How one state\u2019s repeal of a prison \u2018pay-to-stay\u2019 law could guide national reform<\/h1>\n\n\n<\/div>\n    \n          <div class=\"subtitle\">\n            \n<div class=\"f--field f--description\">\n\n    \n  A new USC Dornsife study reveals how Illinois\u2019 bipartisan repeal of a law charging inmates for room and board \u2014 a discredited practice still enforced in most states \u2014 could support the repeal of similar laws.\n\n\n<\/div>\n      <\/div>\n    \n           <strong class=\"author-field\"><span >By<\/span><a href=\"mailto:communication@dornsife.usc.edu\">Ileana Wachtel<\/a><\/strong>\n    \n          <span class=\"post-date-field\">December 18, 2024<\/span>\n      <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--social-share \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--social-share\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n  <div class=\"content-wrapper\">\n    <span class=\"a2a_kit a2a_kit_size_32 addtoany_list\" style=\"line-height: 32px;\">\n      <span class=\"title\">\n        Share\n      <\/span>\n                        <a class=\"a2a_button_copy_link\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/#copy_link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"Link\">\n            <span class=\"a2a_svg a2a_s__default a2a_s_copy_link\">\n              <svg height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 19 19\" width=\"19\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"m7.43475275 9.52380952-2.17490843 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     >\n\n    \n      \n<div class=\"f--field f--wysiwyg\">\n\n    \n  <p>Nearly every state requires incarcerated individuals to pay for room, board and basic services under so-called \u201cpay-to-stay\u201d laws. In 2019, Illinois became one of the first to repeal such a law \u2014 a move that prompted <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/profile\/brittany-friedman\/\">Brittany Friedman<\/a>, assistant professor of sociology at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, to investigate what made that repeal possible.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Why it matters<\/strong>: Research shows that charging inmates for their time in prison worsens economic hardship in marginalized communities, hinders rehabilitation efforts and fails to offset incarceration costs to the state.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>As states shifted away from the tough-on-crime policies of the 1980s and \u201990s, such as three-strikes laws and mandatory minimum sentences, the majority retained pay-to-stay fees as a potential source of revenue.<\/li>\n<li>After reviewing its pay-to-stay laws, Illinois lawmakers found the policy failed to generate revenue.<\/li>\n<li>The arguments that persuaded a bipartisan majority of legislators to repeal the law could inform similar efforts in other states.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Key findings:<\/strong> The <a href=\"https:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/eprint\/IV6QRNHJP59NC2ANUS8X\/full\">study<\/a> found that the lawmakers used a pragmatic approach to reforming the state\u2019s law.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>A combination of moral and fiscal arguments proved to be the \u201cmagic formula.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>Data quantifying the policy\u2019s financial burden to the state and incarcerated individuals and their families emerged as the true bipartisan catalyst.<\/li>\n<li>Moral appeals alone, like fairness or reducing harm to incarcerated individuals, rarely changed minds.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>What she said:<\/strong> \u201cIllinois proves that meaningful reform is possible when both parties come together,\u201d said Friedman, <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/pay-to-stay-prison-policy-captive-money-lab\/\">co-founder<\/a> of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.captivemoneylab.org\/\">Captive Money Lab<\/a>. \u201cIn today\u2019s tough-on-crime climate, it\u2019s particularly important to use both ethical and financial reasoning, supported by data, to advance criminal justice reform.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>The big picture:<\/strong> Pay-to-stay fees became law in Illinois with bipartisan support in 1981. By the mid-2010s, however, the state faced mounting criticism of expensive, tough-on-crime policies.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>A 2015 <em>Chicago Tribune<\/em> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.chicagotribune.com\/2015\/11\/30\/state-sues-prisoners-to-pay-for-their-room-board\/\">expos\u00e9<\/a> shed light on the financial and human toll of Illinois\u2019 pay-to-stay law, sparking public outrage and prompting the introduction of a repeal bill the following year.<\/li>\n<li>The bill passed with bipartisan support and backing from the attorney general and Department of Corrections but was vetoed by Gov. Bruce Rauner, who some say was wary of appearing soft on crime.<\/li>\n<li>After the bill was reintroduced in 2019, it passed again with bipartisan support and was signed into law by Gov. JB Pritzker.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>What they did<\/strong>: To understand what led a bipartisan majority of lawmakers to repeal the law, Friedman and a team of researchers analyzed Illinois state records, including legislative debates and statutes (1981\u20132019), and 160 lawsuits filed by the Illinois Attorney General\u2019s office (1996\u20132015) against inmates and their families to recoup prison costs.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>They created the most comprehensive dataset on pay-to-stay lawsuits in the United States, detailing efforts to recover incarceration costs by targeting small inheritances or settlements.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>What they found:<\/strong> Researchers identified key factors fueling lawmakers\u2019 push to repeal the measure.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Of 160 legal cases against incarcerated individuals and their families to recover prison-related debts, 78% of defendants were still incarcerated while defending themselves. Many had few assets and little savings.<\/li>\n<li>Over a decade, the state recovered less than $500,000. High legal and administrative costs, coupled with many cases being overturned on appeal, frustrated lawmakers \u2014 a key factor in the repeal, Friedman surmised.<\/li>\n<li>In many instances, litigation costs exceeded the amount collected.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Case in point:<\/strong> For at least one former inmate, the outcome was particularly devastating.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>After serving 20 years in prison, Melvin Moore faced a $338,650 lawsuit for incarceration costs. He was ordered to pay the state $9,485 of his $14,000 inheritance, leaving him homeless and penniless until his death.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Going deeper:<\/strong> Interestingly, Friedman and her team discovered that lawmakers used the same arguments \u2014 ensuring public safety and promoting rehabilitation to reduce recidivism \u2014 to enact the law as they did to repeal it nearly 40 years later.<\/p>\n<p><strong>What\u2019s next:<\/strong> Future research by Friedman and her collaborators will investigate why some states succeed in reforming punitive practices while others do not.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>A forthcoming 50-state survey will explore the political and fiscal dynamics shaping reform efforts, with comparisons to cases like Connecticut, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/outlook\/2022\/05\/02\/forcing-people-pay-being-locked-up-remains-common\/\">where the state partially repealed the policy in 2022<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n  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of similar laws.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":22573,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[50,24],"tags":[201,60,95],"class_list":["post-22572","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics","category-social-impact","tag-law","tag-research","tag-social-sciences"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.1.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>How one state\u2019s repeal of a prison \u2018pay-to-stay\u2019 law could guide national reform<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"USC Dornsife study reveals how Illinois\u2019 bipartisan repeal of law charging inmates for room and board could support the repeal of similar laws\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, 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