Testimony in Support of HB 744

Correctional Services – Maryland Correctional Enterprises –

Construction Training Programs

TO: Hon. Peter Hammen, Chair, and members of the House Health and Government Operations Committee

FROM: Melissa Broome, Senior Policy Advocate

DATE: February 27, 2008

The Job Opportunities Task Force (JOTF) is an independent, nonprofit organization that promotes improved economic opportunities for low-income workers, in particular job-seekers who are returning to society from prison. JOTF strongly supports HB 744, which would permit Maryland Correctional Enterprises (MCE) to establish a construction training program for inmates.

Approximately 15,000 prisoners are released from incarceration each year. Many have little or no mainstream work experience, and most read at or below a third grade reading level when they entered prison. Without proper training and job placement assistance, these Marylanders run a high risk of slipping through the cracks and returning to prison.

By authorizing the provision of vital occupational skills training in the building trades industry, HB 744 would help prepare inmates for release and greatly enhance their employability “outside the fence.”

Construction is a growth industry sector in the Baltimore region and throughout Maryland. It is also a field which is more receptive than other sectors to job seekers with criminal history records. The building trades offer opportunities for career advancement and economic gain.

The training program will be developed in consultation with the Maryland and District of Columbia building trades councils, with the scope of construction activities undertaken by MCE being limited to projects behind prison walls. These projects would be subject to approval by the Secretary of Public Safety and the MCE Management Council would monitor operations to ensure that there is no undue competition with the private sector. 

By passing HB 744, the legislature would be making an investment not only in the economic well-being of ex-prisoners, but in the economic vitality of the communities to which they return. We respectfully urge a favorable report.