Senate Bill S888

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S888

SPONSOR: SEPULVEDA
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the correction law, in relation to incarcerated individ-
uals wages

 
PURPOSE:

To raise inmate wages for the first time in 25 years.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 amends Section 187 of the correction law to raise incarcerated
individuals' wages to a minimum of one dollar and twenty cents per day
and shall be given biannual raises for adequate performance in such
assignments. It provides for a cost of living raise if the annually
published consumer price index is ten percent or greater upon review.
Incarcerated individuals unable to work due to age or impairment, will
be paid one dollar per day and shall receive a cost of living adjustment
every five years.
              

Section 2 sets the effective date one year after it shall become law.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Most inmates in New York state prisons receive a payment of sixty cents
per day for the work that they perform, including staffing the prison
libraries and kitchens, acting as clerks and assistants for programs
throughout the facility, working as classroom aides and peer tutors,
hospice aids and janitors. Inmates assigned to Corcraft industrial jobs
make a little more money than other inmates, around a dollar eighty per
day, for manufacturing furniture and goods for use by state agencies.
Unassigned inmates who cannot perform work because of illness or disa-
bility receive a stipend of forty-five cents per day. The inmates
perform vital services within the prison system, while developing work
ethic and gaining some experience that they can use when they re-enter
society.

Although some inmates receive money from their families, many others are
entirely dependent upon the money they earn from their prison work
assignments. The money that they earn goes in part to pay restitution
and court fees and in part to buy commissary purchases or catalog
purchases like ethnic food supplies, books, personal hygiene items and
other necessities and small luxuries, or gifts for their children or
other family members. Even though the wages are low, they act as a real
incentive for the inmate population to engage in productive activities.

New York's inmates earn among the lowest wages in any correctional
system in the country. An inmate in New York making sixty cents a day
must work four hours and forty minutes to buy a stamp. Commissary prices
rise every year, but inmate compensation has remained the same for
decades. The last time inmates in New York received a pay increase was
in 1993. While it would not be practical or appropriate to pay inmates
minimum wage for the work they perform, they should be able to make
modest commissary purchases with the money that they earn. Most inmates
come from poor families, so even small amounts of money are a welcome
addition to their personal economy and provide real relief to their
families who may otherwise sacrifice visits or telephone contact with
their incarcerated family members in order to send them money.

In drafting this bill, we looked to other states to see how much they
pay inmates for their labor. We matched New York inmate wages to those
of New Jersey, our nearest neighbor. New Jersey pays a minimum of one
dollar twenty cents per day, exactly twice the wage paid by New York.
This bill adopts New Jersey's minimum and provides for cost of living
raises every five years. New York inmates, the majority of whom are
people of color, should not be treated as free labor and should earn a
wage comparable to that of inmates in other states. A small labor
surcharge could be added to state purchases of Corcraft items in order
to cover the increase and to more accurately reflect the cost of
production without relying on underpaying inmates for their labor.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

S.467 of 2023-2024; Referred to Crime Victims, Crime and Correction;

S. 2104 of 2021-22, Referred to Crime Victims, Crime and Correction

S. 4778 of 2019-20, Referred to Crime Victims, Crime and Correction

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

Approximately 2.75 million dollars per year.

 
LOCAL FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act will take effect a year after it becomes law.