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Advocates ask lawmakers to repeal pay‑to‑stay and medical co‑payment laws for incarcerated people
Summary
Campaign Zero and other advocates urged repeal of room‑and‑board and medical co‑payment fees charged to incarcerated people and their families, saying the fees extract money from those with the least ability to pay, do not meaningfully offset corrections budgets and hinder reentry.
Campaign 0, legal services groups and advocates told the committee that Massachusetts should repeal statutes allowing deductions from incarcerated people's wages for room and board and fees for medical services. House Bill 2,734 and Senate Bill 17,556 would repeal pay‑to‑stay statutes; H.2,659 / S.17,557 would remove medical and health‑service fees.
Speakers argued that collection costs often exceed revenue, that deductions undermine people’s ability to save for release, and that the debts create post‑release barriers to housing, employment and family stability. Campaign 0 presented figures showing that a small number of institutions still take room‑and‑board deductions and that revenue is a fraction of DOC operating budgets; they cited administrative burdens and the disproportionate impact on low‑wage workers who earn only dollars per day in prison work programs.
Other witnesses supported eliminating medical co‑pays and health‑service charges, noting DOC stopped charging some medical fees in 2020 but that statutory repeal would prevent future reinstatement and reduce collections that fall most heavily on poor people and families.
Ending
The committee heard testimony supporting repeal of both categories of charges and asked for statutory alignment to protect low‑income people and families. No vote was taken during the session.
