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 7 of this bill requires offenders to be paid a living wage, which is an hourly wage that is equivalent to the state minimum wage or, if applicable, the prevailing wage that is required pursuant to the federal Prison Industry Enhancement Certification Program of the Bureau of Justice Assistance of the United States Department of Justice. Existing law requires the State Forester Firewarden to establish and carry out a program for operating conservation camps in this State, which may use offenders to perform certain tasks. (NRS 209.457) Existing law also requires the State Forester Firewarden to determine the amount of wages that must be paid to offenders who participate in conservation camps. (NRS 209.231, 472.040) Sections 3 and 10 of this bill require that these wages be a living wage. Existing law authorizes the Director of the Department of Corrections to make certain deductions from the wages earned by an offender, including deductions for: (1) restitution by the offender to victims of his or her crime; (2) obligations for the support of the family of the offender; 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 8 of this bill: (1) eliminates all existing categories of deductions currently authorized to be taken from the wages of an offender, except those deductions relating to obligations for the support of family and restitution for victims; and (2) establishes a deduction for an amount to be deposited in the individual account of the offender, the contents of which will be disbursed to the offender upon his or her release from prison. Thus, section 8 now requires, in the following order of priority, deductions from wages earned by an offender for: (1) restitution for victims of his or her crime; (2) obligations for the support of his or her family; and (3) an amount to be placed into the described individual account for the offender. Section 8 also provides that the amount deducted for deposit into such an individual account must be equal to the difference between the wages remaining after any deductions for obligations for the support of the offender's family and restitution for victims of his or her crime and the amount of wages that would have been earned by the offender based on the wages that were effective on July 1, 2023. 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 administer the Fund and 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 into the community. (NRS 209.511) Section 9 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 programs for the employment of offenders. (NRS 209.192) Existing law also 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 2 and 4-6 of this bill make conforming changes as a result of the creation of the Offenders' Release Fund and to reflect the elimination of certain deductions into the other funds pursuant to section 8. Existing law requires the Director to establish by regulation criteria for a reasonable deduction from money credited to the account of an offender to defray, as determined by the Director, a portion of the costs paid by the Department for medical care of the offender. (NRS 209.246) Section 4 of this bill provides that an offender shall not be required to pay more than a copayment of $3.47 for each medical care treatment. Section 9 requires the Director to discharge the balance of debts owed by the offender to the Department for copayments for medical care treatment when an offender is released from prison by expiration of his or her term of sentence, by pardon or by parole.

Statutes affected:
As Introduced: 209.192, 209.231, 209.246, 209.247, 209.2475, 209.461, 209.463, 209.511, 472.040
BDR: 209.192, 209.231, 209.246, 209.247, 209.2475, 209.461, 209.463, 209.511, 472.040