Existing law does not require offenders to be paid the federal or state minimum wage for their employment in a program for the employment of offenders. (NRS 209.461) Section 6 of this bill requires such offenders to be paid a living wage and defines “living wage” as an hourly wage that is equivalent to the state minimum wage. Existing law authorizes the Director of the Department of Corrections to make certain deductions from the wages of offenders, including deductions for: (1) obligations for the support of the family of the offender; (2) restitution by the offender for victims of his or her crime; and (3) deposits into the Fund for New Construction of Facilities for Prison Industries. Existing law also sets forth the order of priority for such deductions. (NRS 209.463) Section 7 of this bill: (1) eliminates all existing categories of deductions currently authorized to be taken from the wages of offenders, except those deductions relating to obligations for support of family and restitution for victims; and (2) establishes a deduction for an amount to be placed in an individual account for the offender, the contents of which will be disbursed to the offender upon his or her release from prison. Thus, section 7 now requires, in the following order of priority, deductions from wages for: (1) obligations for the support of his or her family; (2) restitution for victims of his or her crime; and (3) an amount to be placed into the described individual account for the offender. Specifically, section 7 provides that the amount deducted for deposit into such an individual account must be equal to the difference between the wages remaining after the deductions for obligations for the support of the offender's family and restitution for victims of his or her crime and the average wages earned by any offender in the pay period encompassing July 1, 2021. Section 1 of this bill: (1) creates the Offenders' Release Fund, which is the Fund that houses the described individual accounts of the offenders; (2) requires the Director to perform certain duties relating to the Fund, including the duty to distribute the balance of each individual account to the respective offender upon his or her release from prison; and (3) delineates the distribution of interest and income earned on money in the Fund. Existing law places certain duties on the Director related to the release of offenders from prison, including several duties related to the reentry of offenders. (NRS 209.511) Section 8 of this bill requires the Director, to the extent practicable, to place an offender in certain programs that aim to facilitate the employment of the offender upon his or her release from prison in a position that utilizes skills similar to those used by the offender in a program for the employment of offenders. Existing law creates the Fund for New Construction of Facilities for Prison Industries and requires money in the Fund to be expended for certain purposes related to certain programs for the employment of offenders. (NRS 209.192) Section 2 of this bill makes a conforming change to reflect the elimination of deductions from offenders' wages for deposit in the Fund. Existing law creates the Prisoners' Personal Property Fund as a trust fund for the deposit of certain money received by offenders in individual accounts. (NRS 209.241) Sections 3-5 of this bill make conforming changes related to the Prisoners' Personal Property Fund as a result of the creation of the Offenders' Release Fund.

Statutes affected:
As Introduced: 209.192, 209.246, 209.247, 209.2475, 209.461, 209.463, 209.511