Noting encouraging results from “Returning Citizens Stimulus program”

Stateline has this new article, headlined “Cash assistance may curb recidivism among people leaving prison, study says,” reporting on encouraging early results from a notable recidivism reduction program.  I recommend the full article and underlying study which are briefly described (and linked) in these excerpts:

[M]ore than 10,000 formerly incarcerated people across 28 cities [have] received support through the Center for Employment Opportunities’ stimulus program, which launched in April 2020.  The national organization works with local agencies to distribute up to $2,750 in cash over 60 days, contingent on participants completing basic milestones, such as creating a resume or attending a job readiness workshop. More than 80% of participants complete their milestones and receive the full payments.

People leaving prison often face staggering rates of joblessness, homelessness and food insecurity. Most program participants used the funds to cover food, rent, utilities or public transportation fare. Some participants also used the money to pay off credit card and medical debt.

“The basics of survival are this acute challenge in those early days of reentry, and then you layer on that sort of the big structural challenges,” said Sam Schaeffer, the executive director and CEO of the Center for Employment Opportunities. “Just putting food on the table, just getting to work, just getting that set of interview clothes is so critical.”

The new study supports that assessment.  According to the study — which was conducted by MDRC, a research organization focusing on poverty reduction — participants were significantly less likely to violate parole than peers who did not receive payments.  Within the first six months after release, parole violations fell by more than 41%, with violent parole violations dropping by 64%.  The study evaluated the outcomes of people who were released in 2020 in Los Angeles and Alameda counties in California.