Washington Reentry Council frames Reentry 2030 strategy, pushes legislative priorities on early release, records and housing

The Washington Statewide Reentry Council on May 20 reviewed its role under Reentry 2030 and an executive order cited in the meeting as ‘24 03,’ and set legislative priorities for the coming years.

Executive Director Janelle McFeatz said the council’s role is to consult with state agencies and to “advance and work humane and restorative reentry systems” as spelled out in the executive order, and described recent steps to align the council’s strategic plan with Reentry 2030. The council has formed subcommittees, hired a dedicated Reentry 2030 manager and begun statewide listening sessions in prisons and jails.

Hillary Young, co-chair and chair of the legislative subcommittee, said the council identified four top policy goals from surveys and listening circles: expanding early-release options (including advocacy to reinstate parole and increase earned-release credit), expanding “clean slate” record-vacation pathways, scaling peer support during and after incarceration, and improving access to housing for people leaving custody. “We have multiple strategies that have come up,” she said, naming reinstating parole and pursuing earned-release-credit changes as long-term priorities.

The subcommittee also reviewed the 2026 legislative session. Young said the council took positions on about 57 bills; she noted three bills advanced in some form this year, including a court-unification measure the meeting referenced as “House Bill 1909” and a designated-use change to the community reinvestment program (identified in the meeting as “House Bill 2523”) that in its final form directs at least 15% of an allocation to reentry grants.

Galen Rizzo Monte, the council’s program manager, summarized implementation work with the nine agencies named in the executive order, monthly agency leadership meetings and the submission of the first-round progress reports. He described agency pilots and cross-agency coordination—highlighting Commerce’s housing efforts, Medicaid prerelease enrollment work, and Department of Licensing screening for occupational-license eligibility.

Ty Reid, the council representative from the Employment Security Department, described employment-focused efforts tied to Reentry 2030’s North Star goal: raising employment for people released from DOC to at least 40% within six months. Reid highlighted Pathway Home 6, a $3,000,000 U.S. Department of Labor grant providing individualized employment services in five DOC locations; he reported 35 enrollments so far and several people who have returned to the community and found work.

Why it matters: The council is positioning itself as a cross-agency convener to move system-level reforms tied to Reentry 2030. Its priorities—early release mechanisms, clearing records, peer supports and housing—target barriers that stakeholders and people with lived experience repeatedly raised during listening sessions.

What’s next: Council members said strategic planning for 2027–2030 will begin June 10, and multiple presenters noted additional listening tours and a planned Reentry Assembly in September to elevate tribal and rural participation.