Pennsylvania stalls on prison ID reform where other states found bipartisan consensus

For a second consecutive year, Pennsylvania legislators have rejected a common-sense criminal justice reform bill that would help people released from state prisons receive the basic identification documents needed to find employment, secure housing, and effectively reintegrate into civil society. Conservative states like Oklahoma, Alabama, and Georgia have found bipartisan support for such bills, but Pennsylvania remains gridlocked.

House Bill 728, sponsored by state Rep. Emily Kinkead (D-Allegheny County), would have helped ensure all eligible inmates receive basic identification documents before release. On Sept. 22, the House Judiciary Committee advanced the bill by a 14-12 party-line vote. The next day, the same committee laid it on the table, which effectively shelved the measure. The House passed similar legislation in March 2024 (House Bill 1601) by an also-split vote (102-99), only for it to stall in the Senate Judiciary Committee.

According to the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections (DOC), 64.7% of people released from the state’s prisons are rearrested within three years. Research consistently identifies employment as among the strongest predictors of reoffending, with unemployed individuals 1.5 times more likely to return to prison than those who are employed. Yet formerly incarcerated people face unemployment rates exceeding 27%—higher than the total U.S. unemployment rate has ever reached, including during the Great Depression.

Before a person can apply for a job, rent an apartment, or even open a bank account, the person needs access to basic identification documents such as a photo ID, birth certificate, or Social Security card. Pennsylvania charges approximately $40 for a photo ID or driver’s license and $20-30 for a birth certificate. The process of acquiring a state-issued photo ID is often complicated by red tape, requiring documents such as a birth certificate or Social Security card, which can be difficult to obtain without an ID in the first place.

HB 728 would establish an “Identification Upon Reentry Program” requiring the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections to coordinate with the Department of Health, Department of Transportation, Social Security Administration, and other agencies to ensure all returning citizens obtain photo IDs, driver’s licenses, birth certificates, Social Security cards, and proof of naturalization.

DOC already has a program to assist inmates with obtaining identification documents, funded through the Inmate General Welfare Fund, which generates revenue from commissary sales, hobby craft functions, and private donations. DOC policy allows these funds to cover birth certificate costs for indigent inmates preparing for release within 12 months. HB 728 would strengthen the existing program by providing clear legislative direction and statutory authority for DOC and other agencies to coordinate on implementation and would expand coverage for document fees beyond indigent individuals to all returning citizens.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Robert Kauffman (R-Adams) raised the primary objection to HB 728 during the bill’s hearing, citing fairness to Pennsylvania taxpayers:

I have constituents who walk in my office on a daily basis of extraordinarily modest means. … They’re having trouble getting their birth certificate, paying for their driver’s license, their vehicle registration. You just go down the list of the services that we offer that they can barely afford. And now we are going to place into law the requirement that those same people who cannot afford it for themselves are now going to pay for it for someone who is getting out of incarceration.

This concern resonates with many voters facing real economic pressures. They’re right to expect government to spend tax dollars wisely, and assisting people being released from prison with reintegration more than pays off when people can get jobs and housing with these documents, and be less likely to commit new crimes.

Meanwhile, the cost of the program would likely be minimal. Pennsylvania released approximately 11,396 people from state prisons in 2023. There is no official fiscal analysis of HB 728 available, but even assuming every person needed a $40 photo ID and $30 birth certificate, the total cost would be under $800,000 annually—less than 0.03% of the $3.3 billion Pennsylvania DOC requested for fiscal year 2024-25. Much of this cost could continue to be covered by the existing Inmate General Welfare Fund, which currently covers document fees for indigent individuals, though the extent of the coverage under the expanded program would depend on how many returning citizens qualify as indigent versus non-indigent under DOC policy.

Second, people in state custody face unique constraints that the government itself has imposed. Pennsylvania prison work programs pay between 19 cents and 51 cents per hour, meaning a $20-$30 birth certificate represents 40 to 160 hours of prison labor. As state Rep. Chris Rabb (D-Philadelphia) explained during the hearing:

If they’re making 19 cents an hour on the inside and they’re paying restitution, and they’re doing all those things… That’s a very different context than folks who may have struggles paying various fees, but do not have the same structural barriers that we as the state legislature have created.

Successful reentry also ultimately saves Pennsylvania taxpayers money. According to the Pennsylvania DOC’s 2022 Recidivism Report, recidivism costs the state approximately $3.11 billion annually in total societal costs. With nearly two-thirds of released individuals rearrested within three years, even modest improvements in reentry success could generate meaningful savings. The federal Department of Justice specifically identifies that “access to government-issued identification documents is critical to successful reentry.” When people cannot access legal employment because they lack basic identification, the risk of reoffending increases, which makes the cost of obtaining the IDs a solid investment.

The partisan divide in Pennsylvania stands in stark contrast to the bipartisan consensus emerging nationally. At least 27 states have adopted laws directing corrections agencies to provide or assist individuals with obtaining state-issued photo identification cards prior to release from prison, including red or red-leaning states like Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Kentucky, Oklahoma, and Tennessee.

In March, Georgia’s legislature unanimously passed legislation requiring the Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC) to coordinate with the Department of Driver Services to help individuals obtain a state-issued photo ID prior to release. The law also requires GDC to provide individuals with other documents to support post-release employment, including a vocational training record, institutional work record, certified copy of their birth certificate, and a Social Security card, if obtainable. Virginia adopted similar reforms in April with nearly unanimous support in both chambers of the General Assembly. While states vary as to whether they cover document fees, there is broad national consensus that corrections agencies should actively help people obtain identification before release.

Nearly everyone in Pennsylvania’s prisons will eventually return to their communities. The question is whether they return with or without the basic tools necessary to succeed. A plurality of states led by both Republican and Democratic legislatures have already answered this question, recognizing that helping people reenter society successfully is both more humane and more cost-efficient than maintaining barriers to employment and stability. Pennsylvania should join them by codifying its identification assistance program and expanding it beyond indigent inmates to serve all returning citizens.

The post Pennsylvania stalls on prison ID reform where other states found bipartisan consensus appeared first on Reason Foundation.

Source: https://reason.org/commentary/pennsylvania-stalls-on-prison-id-reform-where-other-states-found-bipartisan-consensus/