Government Administration and Elections Committee
JOINT FAVORABLE REPORT
Bill No.: SB-753
AN ACT CONCERNING THE COUNTING OF INCARCERATED PERSONS FOR
Title: PURPOSES OF DETERMINING LEGISLATIVE DISTRICTS.
Vote Date: 3/29/2021
Vote Action: Joint Favorable Substitute
PH Date: 3/10/2021
File No.:
Disclaimer: The following JOINT FAVORABLE Report is prepared for the benefit of the
members of the General Assembly, solely for purposes of information, summarization and
explanation and does not represent the intent of the General Assembly or either chamber
thereof for any purpose.
SPONSORS OF BILL:
The Government Administration and Elections Committee
REASONS FOR BILL:
In the State of Connecticut, incarcerated individuals are counted as residents of the
municipality where their respective correctional institution is located. This bill seeks to ensure
that incarcerated individuals will be counted as residents of the town where they last resided
prior to their incarceration. With reconfigured population data that reflects the changes made
in this bill, legislative redistricting set to take place in 2022 will utilize this information and
make necessary changes.
RESPONSE FROM ADMINISTRATION/AGENCY:
Denise W. Merrill, Secretary of the State of Connecticut: Secretary Merrill reiterated her
support for this bill, as she has done in the past. She believes that this bill will allow for
population counts to be more accurately reflected in major cities as well as in the towns that
have correctional facilities. Secretary Merrill believes that this change will allow for legislative
districts to be drawn in a way that better represents communities. Citing the time-sensitive
nature of this bill due to the post-census decennial redistricting scheduled to take place later
this year, she urged that the bill be passed this session.
State of Connecticut Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities (CHRO): When
the state counts incarcerated people as residents of the geographical area in which they are
incarcerated, they implicitly assume that these individuals will not return to their home
communities. This lowered population count results in underrepresentation from a political
standpoint, as well as inadequate funding from the state. Municipalities that host correctional
facilities tend to be predominately White and rural in nature. By gerrymandering these
legislative districts to count prisoners as part of the population, these regions are getting an
unfair advantage in terms of legislative representation and access to state funding, all at the
expense of already marginalized communities. CHRO strongly supports the bill, viewing it as a
means to correct this grave injustice that has perpetuated the redistribution of resources from
Black and Latinx communities to predominantly White communities.
Senator Martin Looney, President Pro Tempore, Connecticut State Senate: Senator
Looney offered testimony in support of the bill. He identified the current prisoner
apportionment practices as being at odds with CGS 9-14. Senator Looney made reference
to the fact that less than 20% of the states population lives in cities like Hartford, Bridgeport,
Waterbury, New Haven, New Britain and Stamford, but over half of the states prison
population comes from these cities. In addition, Senator Looney acknowledged the fact that
the apportionment of prisoners based on correctional facility location has an impact on the
amount these domiciles receive in state funding and financial aid. Senator Looney believes
that funding should be allocated to the municipalities that incarcerated persons resided in
prior to their imprisonment, that way the municipality can provide incarcerated individuals with
services such as housing upon their release.
Shawn Wooden, Treasurer, State of Connecticut: Treasurer Wooden expressed support
for Senate Bill 753. In his testimony, he referred to House District 59 in Enfield, where it is
said that 3,300 Black and Latino constituents are represented. When taking a closer look at
the demographics, it is clear that 72% of the African Americans and 60% of Latinos in the
district are currently incarcerated at the correctional facilities located within the district.
Treasurer Wooden acknowledged the diminished political power in urban districts, where they
are underrepresented and underfunded due to misleading population counts.
NATURE AND SOURCES OF SUPPORT:
Zenaida Aguirre, Member, Yale Democrats: Ms.Aguirre expressed her strong support for
this bill. She views the bill as a means to provide incarcerated persons with equal
representation in the Connecticut General Assembly. Ms. Aguirre contends that the current
practice of counting incarcerated individuals based on the location of their incarceration is
wrong and highlights racial inequities in society. Considering the fact that most incarcerated
people cannot vote, but are still counted as residents of the town of the correctional facility
they are housed in, Ms. Aguirre views the current counting method as unequal since it affords
these districts with an inappropriate level of electoral power.
Sauda Efia Baraka, Chairperson, Greater Bridgeport NAACP Criminal Justice
Committee: On behalf of a coalition of voting rights groups in Bridgeport, Ms. Baraka
submitted testimony in support of the bill. Citing information from the Prison Gerrymandering
Project, Ms. Baraka contends that prison gerrymandering defrauds both urban communities
with a high population of incarceration, as well as individuals living in rural communities that
lack any correctional facilities. By ending prison gerrymandering in Connecticut, Ms. Baraka
believes that the state could restore political power to disenfranchised communities and
simultaneously correct the racial and socioeconomic injustices that have been perpetuated by
this system.
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Corrie Betts, Criminal Justice Chair, NAACP Connecticut State Conference: The
NAACP Connecticut State Conference is in strong support of the bill. In their testimony, the
conference emphasized the adverse impact that Connecticuts prison gerrymandering has
had in terms of denying incarcerated people from meaningful representation. In addition, the
conference made clear that prison gerrymandering deliberately attempts to reduce the
political power of Black and Latinx voters in urban communities. Lastly, the conference
addressed the urgency of this situation and the need for the Connecticut General Assembly
to pass the bill this session, that way the new law will be in effect prior to the legislative
redistricting efforts set to take place later this year.
Aaron Goode, Foundr, New Haven Votes Coalition: Mr. Goode identified disparities in
PILOT reimbursements between cities like New Haven and relatively affluent towns like
Cheshire. In his testimony, Mr. Good writes that Cheshire received 100% PILOT
reimbursement for their prisons and gets increased representation in the legislature based on
their incarcerated population. On the contrary, New Haven received only 20 cents per dollar
for PILOT reimbursement and their representation is diminished due to prison
gerrymandering. By eliminating the current prison gerrymandering system, Mr. Goode
believes we can strengthen our cities and restore their true political representation.
Hartford Foundation for Public Giving: As a community foundation, one of the missions of
the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving is to dismantle structural racism and improve social
and economic mobility for Black and Latinx residents of Greater Hartford. Much of their
funding goes towards investing in programs that help returning citizens succeed. The
foundation expressed their support for the bill. Based on their position in the Greater Hartford
community, the foundation recognizes the disenfranchising impact that the current legislative
apportionment methods have on urban communities. While the foundation wishes that the
United States Census Bureau would change the method by which they count incarcerated
people, they believe that Connecticut should join the growing list of states that are changing
the methods used to interpret census data and draw legislative districts.
Aleks Kajstura, Legal Director, Prison Policy Initiative: Mr. Kajstura makes reference to
Connecticut General Statute 9-14, which is in direct conflict with the prison apportionment
methods currently employed by the state. By passing Senate Bill 753, Connecticut would join
ten other states across the country that have implemented laws requiring redistricting that
accurately represents incarcerated people. In addition, Mr. Kajstura addressed the
misconception that bills like SB 753 would impact state or federal aid formulas and thus the
distribution of funding. He dispels this notion, stating that there are no funding formulas that
rely on redistricting data. Ultimately, on behalf of the Prison Policy Initiative, Mr. Kajstura
supports this bill based on the core belief that representation should be distributed on the
basis of population.
LatinoJustice PRLDEF and Hispanic Federation: LatinoJustice and Hispanic Freedom
came together to submit testimony in support of immediate passage of the bill. By ending
prison gerrymandering in Connecticut, political power can be restored to urban communities
of color. For far too long, systemic discriminatory policies have disenfranchised urban voters
of color in a concerted effort to diminish the value of their vote. Referencing House District
59, where 13.9% of the district population was incarcerated and unable to exercise their
right to vote, Latino Justice and the Hispanic Federation make it clear that these prison
districts wield a disproportionate amount of power based upon the incarcerated population. In
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order to fulfil the Supreme Courts standard of one person, one vote, Connecticut must put a
stop to prison gerrymandering.
Mike Lawlor, Associate Professor of Criminal Justice, University of New Haven: Mr.
Lawlor is a former state legislator and lifelong advocate for criminal justice reform. Citing
many successful efforts in Connecticut to reform our criminal justice system, he
acknowledged that much work remains to be done, especially the elimination of prison
gerrymandering. Mr. Lawlor stated that a prisoner's body might be moved to a correctional
facility across the state, but their life remains within their community, where their family,
house, friends, churches and children remain. By failing to consider where an incarcerated
person will return following their release, Mr. Lawler believes that we are impeding upon the
ability of an incarcerated individual to successfully re-immerse themselves back into their
community upon their release. To further his point, Mr. Lawlor wrote that when he was the
state representative for East Haven, he would often address the concerns of the families of
incarcerated individuals from his district, even if they were incarcerated in Enfield, Somers,
Montville or Cheshire.
Kelly McConney Moore, Interim Senior Policy Counsel, American Civil Liberties Union
of Connecticut (ACLU-CT): The ACLU-CT identified Connecticuts current prison
gerrymandering practices as undemocratic and requiring major change. Prison
gerrymandering harms incarcerated individuals by undermining their dignity and identity.
Incarcerated people do not identify with the communities in which their prison or jail is
located, they are not able to take advantage of local resources in the community surrounding
the prison, and they are largely ignored by the legislators who represent the prison district.
Additionally, the ACLU-CT believes that the communities where incarcerated people reside
are adversely impacted by prison gerrymandering as well. Urban, low-income, people of color
have had their votes diluted and their representation diminished because their districts are
undercounted. In doing so, prison gerrymandering transfers political power and resources
from communities of color to communities that host prisons and have a predominantly white
population. Lastly, the ACLU-CT encouraged the committee to add a provision to SB 753 that
would extend the right to vote to incarcerated people.
Garry Monk, Executive Director, National Veterans Council for Legal Redress: In his
testimony, Mr. Monk discussed his familys story, in which his nephew was incarcerated at
the Enfield Correctional Institution. While his nephew might have been physically in Enfield,
his family, community and life remained in New Haven. Upon his release from prison, he left
Enfield and returned to his home in New Haven. At no time did his nephew develop any sort
of connection with the Enfield community. Mr. Monk identified the prison gerrymandering
system as a way to water down the votes of Black and Brown urban communities.
The following organizations submitted testimony in support of SB 753. They cited
reasons similar to those stated in the aforementioned testimonies:
Emily Byrne, Executive Director, Connecticut Voices for Children
Darryl Brackeen Jr, Chair, Generation Change CT
Gemeem Davis and Callie Gale Heilmann, Co-Directors, Bridgeport Generation Now Votes
State Employees Bargaining Agent Coalition
John Murphy, United Auto Workers Local 376 and the Connecticut Citizen Action Group
Jonathan Perloe, Co-founder and Steering Committee Member, Voter Choice Connecticut
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Cheri Quickmire Executive Director, Common Cause in Connecticut
Bilal Dabir Sekou, PhD, Board Chair, Common Cause in Connecticut
Tanya Rhodes Smith, Director, Nancy A. Humphreys Institute for Political Social Work
SEIU Healthcare, SEIU District 119NE Connecticut
Yale Democrats (various members)
Patricia Rossi, Board Secretary, League of Women Voters Connecticut (LWVCT)
Sal Luciano, President, AFL-CIO Connecticut
Natasha Brunstein, Law Student Intern, Peter Guber Rule of Law Clinic at Yale Law School
The Government Administration and Elections Committee received via email over 50
pieces of testimony in support of SB 753. They cited reasons similar to those stated in
the aforementioned testimonies. All copies of testimony are available on the
Committee website under Testimony.
NATURE AND SOURCES OF OPPOSITION:
None expressed.
Reported by: Trevor Hoffman Date: 03/29/2021
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