January 18, 2017, Introduced by Senators PROOS, O'BRIEN, COLBECK, KNOLLENBERG, BOOHER, JONES, HORN, SCHUITMAKER, BRANDENBURG, HANSEN, KOWALL, GREGORY, JOHNSON and WARREN and referred to the Committee on Michigan Competitiveness.
A bill to amend 1953 PA 232, entitled
"Corrections code of 1953,"
(MCL 791.201 to 791.285) by adding section 69b.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
Sec. 69b. (1) Subject to the policies and procedures adopted
under subsection (2) for screening and approving applicants, the
department shall allow representatives from all nonprofit faith-
based, business and professional, civic, and community
organizations that apply to be registered with the department under
this section to enter correctional facilities in this state for the
purpose of providing inmate reentry services. Reentry services
include, but are not limited to, counseling, providing information
on housing and job placement, and money management assistance.
(2) The department shall develop and adopt policies and
procedures for screening, approving, and registering organizations,
and representatives from those organizations listed under
subsection (1) that apply to provide inmate reentry services. The
department may deny approval and registration to an organization,
or a representative from an organization listed under subsection
(1) if the department determines that the organization or
representative does not meet the department's screening guidelines.
The department retains discretion to deny entry into a correctional
facility at any time to a representative of an organization listed
under subsection (1) regardless of whether that representative
previously applied to and was registered with the department to
provide inmate reentry services within a correctional facility.
(3) The department shall post a department telephone number
and provide an application for registration on its public Internet
website for use by representatives from an organization described
in subsection (1) who wish to provide inmate reentry services to
obtain information and to begin the application process for
registration with the department.
(4) The department shall not endorse or sponsor any faith-
based reentry program or endorse any specific religious message.
The department shall not require an inmate to participate in a
faith-based program.
Enacting section 1. This amendatory act takes effect 90 days
after the date it is enacted into law.