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House funds inmate college programs; adopts amendment excluding undocumented participants
Summary
The House passed House Bill 86 to stabilize funding for inmate postsecondary education programs and adopted an amendment (41–26) that excludes inmates not in the United States legally; backers cited recidivism reductions and opponents raised equity and budget concerns.
SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah House voted to fund and stabilize existing postsecondary education programming for inmates, approving House Bill 86 as amended after floor debate weighing recidivism benefits, costs and eligibility rules.
Representative Draxler, the bill sponsor, said the bill appropriates $1.5 million from the Education Fund to institutions that provide inmate education and requires participating inmates to pay an affordable tuition based on their correctional wage rate. He cited research and program statistics showing that education can reduce recidivism from about 50 percent to roughly 16 percent for participants.
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