H.B. 5390, An Act Repealing Statutory Provisions That Impose Liability on an Individual for Repayment of Costs Incurred When the Individual Was Incarcerated

For nearly thirty years, the state of Connecticut has wreaked harm upon our residents. Once people finish their sentence, they should have the same opportunity to support themselves and their families as anyone else. Like all barriers to reentry, prison debt harms not just the person trying to build a new life but also their loved ones—living and dead. Because of current and historic systemic racism, prison debt disproportionately falls on Black and Latinx people, serving as another wall preventing people of color from building intergenerational wealth.

Connecticut’s nearly thirty year prison debt law is inhumane, unjust, and morally repugnant. The ACLU-CT wholly supports efforts to decisively end this practice in Connecticut. We encourage this Committee to go even further and completely abolish the practice of charging for prison debt in its entirety. As such, the ACLU-CT supports House Bill 5390, and enthusiastically encourages this Committee to support the bill as well.