Expand capacity of CJI housing voucher program.
Develop admission and eviction policies for public housing that consider individual circumstances.
Eliminate blanket prohibitions in public housing against individuals with criminal histories.
Encourage government and nonprofit housing programs to develop housing options accessible to people leaving jail.
Coordinate with Public Housing Authority to adopt more inclusive eligibility criteria for Section 8.
Leverage funding for traditional public safety to be used in development of supportive transitional housing.
Adopt an evidence-based assessment to determine level of need.
Seek funding for increased number of jail intake personnel.
Reduce the number of inmates leaving jail who become homeless or reliant upon public shelters.
Increase stability for marginally housed individuals leaving jail.
Educate inmates on strategies for finding and maintaining housing. Ensure transition planners are familiar with the
full range of available housing options.
Assess at intake the individual housing needs of inmates.
Leverage existing funding to support housing for former jail inmates.
Improve housing-market options for former inmates.
Objectives Strategies Proposed Activities
Provide family counseling and support services.
Provide workshops and literature on tenant rights and appropriate housing services.
Increase family stability for inmates who plan to live with their families.
Increase the number of inmates who retain existing housing during short-term incarcerations.
Goal 1: Improve the housing status of individuals leaving jail.
Offender Reentry Plan March 2011
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Analyze the local job market to identify labor market need.
Determine which industries and/or major employers hire workers with criminal histories.
Assess individual education and vocational needs using an evidence-based tool.
Engage community service providers to implement jail-based education programs.
Extend high school equivalency programs to all inmates regardless of age.
Provide jail-based trainings/workshops on financial management, employment skills and job-search.
Expand supported-employment programs for former inmates with disabilities.
Support inmates in initiating job-search prior to release.
Increase availability of evidence-based education, job training and vocational programs by expanding the current vocational training programs.
Increase the abilities of reentering individuals to compete in the labor market by expanding the King County Jobs Initiative.
Identify and develop skill-building volunteer or internship opportunities for those inmates with limited work experience.
Prepare inmates for entry and success in the mainstream labor market.
Provide basic education opportunities for inmates.
Provide vocational training that meets local labor market needs.
Objectives Strategies Proposed Activities
Review laws and policies that affect employment of people with criminal histories and eliminate those that are not directly tied to public safety.
Work with inmates to create written release- plans that include information on prospective employers, vocational/education opportunities, documentation of inmates’ unique skills and experience, and options to obtain ID card
Work with employers to increase and improve job opportunities for people leaving jail.
Create, expand and publicize incentives for hiring and retaining newly-released inmates.
Extend high school equivalence programs to all inmates and connect inmates to service providers in the community who can offer continued educational opportunities and/or connections to employment.