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SB 632

Relating to public charter school eligibility for grants from the Student Investment Account; declaring an emergency.

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Daniel Bonham

Creates a dedicated women's prerelease unit in Baltimore with on site, gender-responsive housing, education, health, and employment services available before release.

In committee upon adjournment.
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Bill Summary · SB 632

SB 632 — “Monica Cooper Prerelease Act”

Status: Rereferred to Judiciary (introduced Feb 20, 2025)
Primary subject: Correctional Services — comprehensive rehabilitative prerelease services for female incarcerated individuals (Maryland)

Purpose / intent

SB 632 revises and accelerates Maryland’s statutory framework for a dedicated prerelease unit for women and expands requirements for comprehensive, gender‑responsive prerelease and reentry services. The bill aims to ensure adequate facility size and programming, require procurement steps to advance construction, mandate service availability to eligible women before facility completion, and strengthen reporting and accountability.

Key provisions

  • Facility location & capacity

    • Requires the prerelease unit to be located in Baltimore City on a site of at least 3 acres.
    • Facility must accommodate at least 1.25 times the number of women at the Maryland Correctional Institution for Women (MCI‑W) who were eligible for prerelease status in calendar year 2023 (per DPSCS October 2024 report).

  • Procurement and construction timing (DGS / DPSCS)

    • Department of General Services (DGS) must review existing proposals for compliance by June 1, 2025.
    • If none qualify, DGS must issue an expedited RFP (per §13‑108) for planning, design, and construction by August 1, 2025, and award a contract as soon as practicable.
    • Revised project timeline: identify site, acquire property and design by Dec 31, 2025; begin construction/renovation by July 1, 2026; begin operation and provide services by June 1, 2027.

  • Contract and facility features

    • Contracts must comply with statutory facility requirements and, to the extent practicable, include: single/double occupancy housing, ADA‑accessible rooms and ramps, privacy‑focused bathrooms, administrative offices, indoor/outdoor meeting/visiting spaces, classroom, career center, nonemergency medical suite, on‑site recreational/creative/athletic facilities, and access to public transportation.

  • Services & delivery

    • Expands “comprehensive rehabilitative prerelease services” to require evidence‑based and gender‑responsive programs addressing education, vocational training, family reunification, trauma‑informed mental health and substance use treatment, individualized reentry planning, benefits screening/application assistance, guaranteed assistance to secure stable housing (expected to remain available for at least one year post‑release), employment preparation, and obtaining essential documents at release (birth certificate, SS card, ID, medical records, insurance info).
    • Services must be made available to all female incarcerated individuals with prerelease status regardless of current facility assignment.
    • These services must be provided to eligible individuals before final construction/occupancy of the new prerelease unit; the Department must develop an on‑site plan at MCI‑W by Sept 1, 2025 and implement comprehensive services by July 1, 2026.
    • Once the facility is occupied, services may not require transport to another facility to access them.

  • Reporting & funding

    • DPSCS must provide preliminary and construction progress reports to specified legislative committees (prelim by July 1, 2025; update by Sept 1, 2025).
    • The Social Work Unit must submit an annual (by Jan 1) report to the Governor and General Assembly with program goals, outcomes, participant counts, and other evaluation data.
    • Up to $500,000 from the Performance Incentive Grant Fund may be used to implement these services.

Who is affected

  • Primary: female incarcerated individuals at MCI‑W and any women with prerelease status in Maryland.
  • State agencies: Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services (DPSCS) and Department of General Services (DGS).
  • Contractors/designers/builders awarded the prerelease project; Baltimore City (site/transportation impacts).
  • State capital project portfolio (potential budgetary/cash‑flow effects).

Fiscal and implementation notes

  • Fiscal note: no material FY2025 staffing effect expected, but the bill likely increases project costs and delays completion; higher project costs could reduce or delay funding for other capital projects. Local effects minimal.
  • Deadlines: multiple near‑term procurement and reporting deadlines (June–Sept 2025) and construction/service milestones through mid‑2027.

Bottom line

SB 632 tightens location, capacity, procurement, programming, and reporting requirements for Maryland’s women’s prerelease unit, mandates expanded gender‑responsive prerelease services be available before the facility opens, and creates accountability milestones — while likely increasing project scope, cost, and schedule risk for the state.

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

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