House committee hears $3 million request to sustain WorkSource reentry services in Oregon prisons

House lawmakers heard testimony March 3 on House Bill 2972, which would appropriate $3 million from the general fund to the Oregon Employment Department to staff WorkSource reentry programs for adults in custody across Oregon’s state correctional facilities.

Supporters told the House Committee on Labor and Workplace Standards that the WorkSource reentry program delivers job search assistance, resume help, interview practice, training, and computer labs inside prisons and that federal funding supporting the efforts is expiring. Representative David Gomberg (House District 10) said the funding request is “modest” and urged support; Representative Kevin Mannix (House District 21) said corrections should provide education and reentry assistance authorized under the Oregon Constitution and described the bill as an…