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HB 5603

AN ACT CONCERNING IMPLEMENTATION AND OVERSIGHT OF THE PROTECT ACT.

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Nick Gauthier and 5 co-sponsors

Establishes who implements and oversees the PROTECT Act in corrections, with a supervising agency, oversight body, and regular public reports affecting inmates, staff, and programs.

REF. TO JOINT COMM. ON Judiciary
#correctionalinstitutions #prisoners
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Bill Summary · HB 5603

HB 5603 — AN ACT CONCERNING IMPLEMENTATION AND OVERSIGHT OF THE PROTECT ACT

Status: Referred to Joint Committee on Judiciary (as of 2025-01-21); placed on General State Calendar 2025-05-13
Introduced: March 14, 2025
Subject area: Correctional institutions; Prisoners
Companion bill: SB 2812

Purpose / Intent

The bill’s title indicates its primary aim is to provide for implementation and oversight of a statute or program called the "PROTECT Act." The general objective of such legislation is typically to establish mechanisms, responsibilities and reporting requirements needed to put the PROTECT Act into practice and to create or strengthen oversight to ensure compliance, transparency and effectiveness of the Act’s provisions.

Note: The full bill text was not provided. The summary below describes the bill’s procedural history and likely scope based on the title and subject area. For definitive provisions, consult the bill text and committee report.

Legislative status and timeline

  • 2025-01-21: Referred to Joint Committee on Judiciary
  • 2025-03-14: Filed
  • 2025-04-07: Read first time; also referred to Transportation (cross-referral)
  • 2025-04-22: Public hearing held; testimony recorded; left pending in committee
  • 2025-04-25: Considered in formal meeting and reported favorably without amendment
  • 2025-05-10: Committee report filed and sent to Calendars
  • 2025-05-11–13: Considered in Calendars and placed on General State Calendar

Next steps: Likely consideration and vote by the full legislative chamber where the bill is calendared; if passed, companion Senate consideration (SB 2812) and concurrence/negotiation as required.

Key provisions (likely, given title and subject)

Because the bill text is not provided, the following items reflect common elements of "implementation and oversight" bills related to corrections and are hypothetical possibilities — they are not confirmed provisions of HB 5603:
- Designation of a state agency (e.g., Department of Correction) responsible for implementing the PROTECT Act.
- Creation of oversight or advisory body (board, inspector, or ombudsman) to monitor compliance and outcomes.
- Reporting requirements: periodic public reports, data collection and metrics (e.g., recidivism, program participation, incident rates).
- Policy or rulemaking authority: timelines for agency rules, standards or protocols needed to operationalize the Act.
- Training and personnel provisions for correctional staff or contractors.
- Complaint, investigation, or enforcement mechanisms for violations.
- Budgetary/fiscal provisions or instructions to prepare a fiscal impact statement.

Who would be affected

  • People incarcerated in state correctional facilities and residents supervised in community corrections programs.
  • Correctional staff, facility administrators, and state agencies (e.g., Department of Correction, parole/reentry agencies).
  • Courts, law enforcement partners, victim advocacy groups, and service providers who deliver programs required under the PROTECT Act.
  • Taxpayers if the bill includes new funding or mandates requiring appropriations.

Procedural notes and where to find more information

  • Committee report filed 2025-05-10; that report and testimony from the 2025-04-22 hearing may contain details about the bill’s contents, stakeholder positions and fiscal impacts.
  • For the precise statutory text, amendments, fiscal note and committee report, consult the state legislature’s website and search for HB 5603 and companion SB 2812. Stakeholders (corrections departments, advocacy groups) may also have submitted testimony accessible through the committee record.

If you want, I can retrieve and summarize the bill text, the committee report, and testimony (if available) to produce a detailed, provision-by-provision summary.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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