After pushing unsuccessfully for a constitutional amendment for automatic restoration of rights, McDonnell eventually made the process for nonviolent felons as automatic as he thought it could be through executive power.
He dramatically streamlined the process and has restored the rights of more than 7,500 felons who had completed their terms.
Before leaving office on January 11, 2014, Governor Bob McDonnell has proposed funds totally more than $3 million in his budget for prisoner re-entry and for restoration of civil rights.
The governor’s office says his proposed budget will include:
• $533,517 in each year of the two-year budget to enable the Department of Corrections to provide temporary lodging for hard-to-place inmates upon their release.
• $331,660 for the first year and $482,773 the second year in general fund support to increase funding for inmate education.
• State funding to match a federal grant the Department of Corrections received for residential substance abuse. The grant program serves more than 300 inmates in 11 correctional facilities. For fiscal year 2014, which ends June 30, the state match is $342,147. The state match for the first year of the new two-year budget that begins July 1 is $537,660 and $586,538 for the second year.
• $197,309 in the first year and $243,052 for the second year of the new budget in general fund support to aid the automatic restoration of civil rights. The money is to fund four additional staff positions for the biennium.
Gov. McDonnell absolutely is correct for attempting to budget for these initiatives. Currently only a handful of inmates are able to get college courses and those are generally through private grants. Tools like education make reentry into society much easier. Furthermore, education and increased skill set are critical to obtaining a much-needed job. Many corporations simply won’t hire convicted felons so an increased skill set is an asset to anyone trying to do the right thing. The job pool is more limited to start with.
Restoration of civil rights is just the right thing to do for people who have served their time and have kept their nose clean. Voting should be a basic right. Gun ownership…the jury is out on that one. Gun ownership, even for those incarcerated for non-violent crimes should have a high bar.
Meanwhile, the governor streamlined the process and more than 7,500 felons have had their rights restored during his tenure as governor. Thumbs up on this one, Governor McDonnell.
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Good for McDonnell! It’s easy to lock people up, but how does one ensure that once someone has served their time, they can become a productive citizen.
That’s the real failing point of most prison systems. Also, its difficult for some people to remember that not everyone is a career criminal. There are plenty of people who make tragic mistakes that land them in prison.
McDonnell is also proposing to dump a boat-laod of money into the Virginia mental health system. Good for McDonnell. Tim Kaine should have done it right after the Virginia Tech Massacre.
One of my very worst habits is crawling all over people for doing something bad and then praising them when they do right…sort of my theory on child raising also.
[Note to blog folks…Elena hates me when I do this….]
Isn’t that being fair?