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Councilmember asks whether DOC has capacity to meet new pregnancy-support requirements; DOC cites operational and staffing needs
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Summary
Councilmember Kent Henderson pressed the Department of Corrections on implementation of the Safe and Supported Pregnancy Amendment Act during the June 11 budget hearing.
Councilmember Kent Henderson pressed the Department of Corrections on implementation of the Safe and Supported Pregnancy Amendment Act during the June 11 budget hearing.
Henderson reminded DOC that the statute (referred to in testimony as the Safe and Supported Pregnancy Amendment Act) requires additional staffing and specific service timelines for coordinating support persons and expanded visits for incarcerated parents. He said the law's Fiscal Impact Statement (FIS) called for three additional FTEs to coordinate support persons and visitation expansion.
DOC officials said their revised pregnancy policy already formalizes a process to request and approve a support person for pregnant residents and that operationally the department has been able to approve support persons where appropriate. However, DOC said the legislation requires specific notification timelines and on-call coverage for labor and delivery events and a broader visitation entitlement for any resident with a child under a specified age; those statutory timelines and expanded visitation would require dedicated staffing, tracking and additional officer support. DOC said that while the policy allows case-by-case approval, the law's specified response times and the need to identify residents with children under the statute's age threshold will require the additional FTEs requested in the FIS and associated operational resources.
Why it matters: The statute creates concrete operational obligations (timelines, coordination of support persons, expanded visitation) that affect staffing, custody logistics and family contact for residents.
What remains unresolved: DOC said it will continue to implement policy changes but that the committee should recognize the additional staffing and tracking requirements in the law; committee members and DOC staff agreed to follow up on the specific number and scheduling of required FTEs and operational supports.
