A bill from Assembly Speaker Toni Atkins, D-San Diego, aimed at reducing the rate of released inmates committing new crimes was signed into law Friday by Gov. Jerry Brown.
AB 1056, the Second Chance Program for Community Reentry, uses savings generated by last year's voter-approved Proposition 47 to provide housing support and re-entry services for former inmates.
"Housing can be a barrier to successfully integrating formerly incarcerated individuals," Atkins said. "AB 1056 seeks to reduce recidivism and enhance the safety of our communities by ensuring that these former inmates have a place they can call home as they assimilate back into their communities."
She said that under the new law, the state will provide grant funding for collaborative, community-based proposals to assist ex-inmates with housing, behavioral health care, drug treatment and other services.
The bill gained support from groups like Housing California, the National Center for Youth Law, Californians for Safety and Justice, the California Police Chiefs Association, Legal Services for Prisoners with Children and the Drug Policy Alliance, according to Atkins.
