III 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. RES. 644 

Expressing support for the designation of April 1, 2024, through April 30, 

2024, as ‘‘Fair Chance Jobs Month’’. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

APRIL 16, 2024 

Mr. MARKEY (for himself, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Ms. BUTLER, Ms. DUCKWORTH, 

Mr. DURBIN, Mr. MERKLEY, Mr. PADILLA, Ms. WARREN, and Mr. 

WELCH) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing support for the designation of April 1, 2024, 

through April 30, 2024, as ‘‘Fair Chance Jobs Month’’. 

Whereas, in the United States— 

(1) nearly 80,000,000 people have a record of arrest 

or conviction; 

(2) an estimated 19,000,000 people have felony convictions; 

(3) nearly 13,000,000 people are charged each year 

with misdemeanor offenses; 

(4) 600,000 people are released each year from Federal and State prisons; 

(5) Black, Indigenous, and Latino people are 5, 4.2, 

and 2.4 times more likely than White people to be incarVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:32 Apr 17, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR644.IS SR644

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•SRES 644 IS 

cerated, respectively, and also face higher rates of arrest; 

and 

(6) LGBTQ+ individuals are 3 times more likely to 

be incarcerated and also face higher rates of arrest; 

Whereas people who have been convicted of a crime and 

served their sentence continue to face consequences after 

release due to systemic biases and stigmas against formerly incarcerated individuals; 

Whereas recidivism rates in the United States are among the 

highest in the world, with almost 44 percent of people 

who are released returning to incarceration within 1 year; 

Whereas, in the United States, nearly 2⁄3 of the formerly incarcerated population is jobless at any given time; 

Whereas, in the United States, nearly 14,000 laws and regulations and 48,000 collateral consequences restrict formerly incarcerated individuals from getting professional 

licenses needed to work in some jobs; 

Whereas 20 States and the District of Columbia allow occupational licensing boards to categorically reject applicants 

with prior convictions; 

Whereas obstacles to employment, such as difficulty obtaining 

identification needed for employment, add undue burdens 

on returning citizens and formerly incarcerated individuals; 

Whereas formerly incarcerated individuals earn nearly $100 

less per week than the average worker; 

Whereas fair-chance employers can leverage financial incentives, such as the work opportunity tax credit, to benefit 

from hiring formerly incarcerated individuals; 


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•SRES 644 IS 

Whereas employing returning citizens and formerly incarcerated individuals will result in a robust, vibrant, diverse, 

and resilient workforce; 

Whereas having jobs that pay living wages, are conducive to 

health, provide opportunities for skillset development, 

provide opportunities for promotion, and provide benefits 

will facilitate stable employment and reduce recidivism; 

Whereas returning citizens who have received vocational 

training while incarcerated are 28 percent more likely to 

obtain employment within 1 year of reentry into society 

than those lacking such training; and 

Whereas, in addition to employment insecurity, returning citizens and formerly incarcerated people face numerous 

other obstacles to reentry and societal reintegration, including— 

(1) housing insecurity and homelessness rates that 

are 10 times higher than the general public; 

(2) near total restrictions in 12 States on access to 

temporary assistance for needy families established under 

part A of title IV of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

601 et seq.) or the supplemental nutrition assistance program established under the Food and Nutrition Act of 

2008 (7 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.); and 

(3) greater prevalence of chronic health conditions, 

lower quality and coverage of health insurance, and mortality rates that are 13 times higher than the general 

public: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) expresses support for the designation of 

3 April 1, 2024, through April 30, 2024, as ‘‘Fair 

4 Chance Jobs Month’’; and 


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•SRES 644 IS 

1 (2) supports efforts to— 

2 (A) ensure that people directly impacted by 

3 incarceration obtain stable and high-quality em4 ployment, housing, healthcare, and nutrition; 

5 (B) dismantle structural barriers to fair6 chance hiring and employment, such as licens7 ing restrictions, employer liability, and insur8 ance restrictions; 

9 (C) expand workforce development pro10 grams for returning citizens, formerly incarcer11 ated individuals, and others directly impacted 

12 by incarceration, including— 

13 (i) pre-apprenticeship programs; 

14 (ii) registered apprenticeship pro15 grams; 

16 (iii) career coaching, re ́sume ́-building, 

17 technology literacy, and other skillset de18 velopment programs; and 

19 (iv) programs that educate employers 

20 on best practices for, and the benefits of, 

21 fair-chance hiring; 

22 (D) match jobs providers with returning 

23 citizens and formerly incarcerated individuals 

24 seeking jobs; 


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•SRES 644 IS 

1 (E) support efforts from labor unions and 

2 worker organizations to engage returning citi3 zens and formerly incarcerated individuals who 

4 are seeking jobs; 

5 (F) publicize work opportunities that are 

6 open to applicants with prior arrest or convic7 tion records; and 

8 (G) foster greater collaboration and dia9 logue between Federal, State, and local govern10 ment agencies, community-based organizations, 

11 advocacy groups, employers, labor unions, cur12 rently and formerly incarcerated individuals, 

13 and others directly impacted by incarceration to 

14 enhance fair-chance hiring and employment and 

15 help to heal communities impacted by mass in16 carceration. 

Æ 


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