Bill Ties Inmate Privileges To Work, School Measure Aimed At Making Prisons Uncomfortable Places To Return To

The state’s 11,000 inmates will have to work or go to school to get privileges such as television, weightlifting and conjugal visits under a measure signed Thursday by Gov. Mike Lowry.

“I’m pleased that he signed it,” said House Corrections Chairwoman Ida Ballasiotes, R-Mercer Island. “It’s a start” in her quest to make prisons more uncomfortable in hopes fewer inmates will return.

Lowry vetoed a section of the measure that would have required Corrections Secretary Chase Riveland to cut prison recreation program leaders, a decision that displeased Ballasiotes.

“The secretary is still going to have to make cuts because they are mandated in the budget. What we are afraid of with this veto is that the cuts will be made in correctional officers and other line staff,” she said.

Lowry said the veto was needed because prison officials need flexibility to decide staffing levels, including the number of recreation leaders.

The governor, however, preserved the heart of the bill - a mandate that prison privileges be linked to working or going to school for inmates who are able.

“This bill means that prisoners can’t decide to take a vacation in prison and then expect to go out and get privileges,” Sen. Jim Hargrove, D-Hoquiam, said earlier.

The bill was softened during negotiations between the House and Senate. Initially, it simply would have required the state’s 11,000 inmates to work or go to school.

Here are the main elements of the bill:

Privileges such as TV, weight-lifting and extended family visits would be withheld if inmates refused work in prison jobs or attend classes to learn the three Rs.

For the first time, inmates must help cover the cost of doctor visits - $3 for every visit. While the amount seems small, lawmakers contend it still can be expected to cut down on unnecessary visits to prison clinics. Inmates deemed “indigent” would not have to pay the co-payment.

The Department of Corrections must put new limits on inmate possession of obscene, sexually explicit or violent material.