THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE RESOLUTION

INTRODUCED BY PARKER, BELFANTI, BISHOP, BRIGGS, BROWN, COHEN, CREIGHTON, DALEY, DePASQUALE, DONATUCCI, FABRIZIO, FRANKEL, FREEMAN, GEORGE, HARPER, HELM, JOHNSON, JOSEPHS, KIRKLAND, KORTZ, KULA, LENTZ, LONGIETTI, MANDERINO, McGEEHAN, MUNDY, MYERS, M. O'BRIEN, OLIVER, PAYTON, QUINN, ROEBUCK, SIPTROTH, STABACK, VULAKOVICH, WATERS, WHEATLEY, WILLIAMS AND YOUNGBLOOD, MARCH 26, 2009

REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON CHILDREN AND YOUTH, MARCH 26, 2009  

A RESOLUTION

Directing the Joint State Government Commission to establish an

advisory committee to study the effects of parental

incarceration on children of incarcerated parents; to

recommend a system for determining and assessing the needs of

children of incarcerated parents, services available to them,

and barriers to accessing those services; and making a report

with recommendations to the House of Representatives by

November 30, 2010.

WHEREAS, In the United States, more than 2 million children

have a parent who is currently incarcerated; and

WHEREAS, Nearly 10 million children in the United States have

or had a parent who was under correctional supervision at some

point in the child's life; and

WHEREAS, Approximately 65% of the women in State prison are

mothers of children under 18 years of age, and nearly two-thirds

of these mothers lived with their children before they were

arrested and incarcerated; and

WHEREAS, Approximately 55% of the men in State prison are

fathers of children under 18 years of age, and nearly half of

these fathers lived with their children before they were

arrested and incarcerated; and

WHEREAS, Parental imprisonment and involvement in the

criminal justice system can impose serious financial hardships

on a family and can lead to disrupted living arrangements for

children, factors which are linked to an increased risk of

delinquency; and

WHEREAS, Children of incarcerated parents suffer emotional

and psychological effects when separated from their parents,

beginning with the trauma of arrest and continuing through

incarceration; and

WHEREAS, Incarcerated parents often lose contact with their

children and once they lose contact, it is very difficult to

reestablish that relationship when the parent is released; and

WHEREAS, More than half of all incarcerated parents in the

United States report never receiving a personal visit from their

children; and

WHEREAS, Several barriers exist that affect the overall

experience of parent-child visits in prison, including

inadequate or inconvenient visiting hours, difficulty in

scheduling visits, geographical location of prison facilities,

visiting procedures or facilities that are uncomfortable or lack

child-friendly visiting areas; and

WHEREAS, Finding ways for a child to connect with his or her

incarcerated parent helps the child understand why his or her

parent is absent, eases family reunification when the parent

returns home and helps reduce the parent's chance of recidivism;

therefore be it

RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives direct the Joint

State Government Commission to establish an advisory committee

to study the effects of parental incarceration on the children

of incarcerated parents; to recommend a system for identifying

and assessing the needs of the children of incarcerated parents,

the services available to them and the barriers to accessing

those services; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the advisory committee be comprised of

approximately 30 members and include persons representing all

relevant aspects of the criminal justice and social welfare

systems, representatives of academia, the faith community, child

advocates, private and public organizations involved in criminal

justice and social welfare issues, and other persons who have an

interest and expertise in the issue of children of incarcerated

parents; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the advisory committee report to the House of

Representatives with its findings and recommendations no later

than two years from the date that this resolution is adopted.