Community group asks McLennan County to fund reentry roundtable to support formerly incarcerated residents

Miss Boone, representing the Centex Reentry Roundtable initiative, asked McLennan County’s Commissioners Court to consider funding and partnering to establish a traditional reentry roundtable for Greater McLennan County. She told the court the initiative began in February 2023 as a community listening effort and aims to coordinate stakeholders such as the Heart of Texas Behavioral Health Network and Prosper Waco to expand services to formerly incarcerated residents.

Boone argued that current local capacity is insufficient to serve the county’s justice‑impacted population and cited national and state research to quantify economic impacts of recidivism and the potential taxpayer savings from successful reentry employment. “Connecting formerly incarcerated individuals to jobs can create additional wage tax contributions and sales tax revenue over their lifetimes,” she told the court, urging commissioners to consider funding the group’s FY27 request and to convene community stakeholders.

Commissioners asked about prior outreach to Prosper Waco and what feedback Boone had received; Boone said Prosper’s strategic focus was not currently aligned with reentry but that she had engaged individual board members and other community partners. The court did not vote on funding; the presentation was taken under advisement and staff said they would follow up.