House Corrections Panel approves revised language to restore family-support program after veto

The House Committee on Corrections & Institutions on May 21 reviewed revised statutory language intended to restore a trauma-informed family-support program for incarcerated parents after Governor vetoed H.2.19 and signaled committee support to transmit the language to the Senate.

Committee members discussed changes that remove a clause requiring the Department of Corrections (DOC) commissioner to include funding for the program in the governor’s proposed budget, while retaining a requirement that the DOC establish and “provide and sustain” the family-support services and submit an annual report on funding, participation and outcomes by July 1.

The change responds to the administration’s veto message, which argued that the original bill’s language encroached on the governor’s constitutional authority to propose the executive branch budget. Committee members and staff cited statutory precedent and said the revised language narrows the provision to avoid…