An Act Regarding Dignity for Women in Correctional Facilities
Maine Legislature, Session 130, LD 1721
Committee: Criminal Justice and Public Safety
Sponsors: TALBOT ROSS, LAWRENCE, EVANS, FECTEAU, GRAMLICH, MILLETT, PLUECKER, WARREN, BREEN, HICKMAN
Amends: 22 MRSA §4003, 30-A MRSA §1651, 34-A MRSA §1402, 34-A MRSA §3001-A, 34-A MRSA §3031, 34-A MRSA §3039, 34-A MRSA §3050, 34-A MRSA §3051

Legislative Document
No. 1721
H.P. 1276
House of Representatives, May 19, 2021
An Act Regarding Dignity for Women in Correctional Facilities
Reference to the Committee on Criminal Justice and Public Safety suggested and ordered 
printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative TALBOT ROSS of Portland.
Cosponsored by Senator LAWRENCE of York and
Representatives: EVANS of Dover-Foxcroft, Speaker FECTEAU of Biddeford, GRAMLICH 
of Old Orchard Beach, MILLETT of Cape Elizabeth, PLUECKER of Warren, WARREN of 
Hallowell, Senators: BREEN of Cumberland, HICKMAN of Kennebec.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  22 MRSA §4003, sub-§4, as amended by PL 1999, c. 731, Pt. AA, §4, is 
further amended to read:
4.  Permanent plans for care and custody.  Promote the early establishment of 
permanent plans for the care and custody of children who cannot be returned to their family. 
It is the intent of the Legislature that the department reduce the number of children 
receiving assistance under the United States Social Security Act, Title IV‑E, who have been 
in foster care more than 24 months, by 10% each year beginning with the federal fiscal year 
that starts on October 1, 1983; and
Sec. 2.  22 MRSA §4003, sub-§5, as enacted by PL 1999, c. 731, Pt. AA, §5 and 
amended by PL 2013, c. 368, Pt. CCCC, §7, is further amended to read:
5.  Report Status report.  Require the department to report monthly to the joint 
standing committees of the Legislature having jurisdiction over appropriations and 
financial affairs and health and human services matters, beginning in July 2000, on the 
status of children served by the Office of Child and Family Services.  The report must 
include, at a minimum, information on the department's caseload, the location of the 
children in the department's custody and the number of cases of abuse and neglect that were 
not opened for assessment.  This information must be identified by program and funding 
source.; and
Sec. 3.  22 MRSA §4003, sub-§6 is enacted to read:
6.  Children of incarcerated parents or primary caregivers report.  Require the 
department to report annually to the joint standing committees of the Legislature having 
jurisdiction over appropriations and financial affairs and health and human services 
matters, beginning in January 2022, on the current number and case specifics of children 
served by the Office of Child and Family Services.  The report must include, at a minimum, 
data regarding where the department is in the reunification process of children with whom 
the Office of Child and Family Services is involved and who have parents or primary 
caregivers who are incarcerated in a jail or correctional facility and the number of cases of 
abuse and neglect that were not opened for assessment.
Sec. 4.  30-A MRSA §1651, sub-§2, as enacted by PL 2003, c. 482, Pt. A, §1, is 
amended to read:
2.  Appointment.  The sheriff for each county shall appoint a board of 5 7 visitors for 
each correctional facility under the sheriff's supervision.
A.  Members of the boards of visitors serve for terms of one year except that, of the 
initial appointments, 2 must be for terms of 3 years, 2 must be for terms of 2 years and 
one must be for a term of one year.
B.  Members of the boards of visitors are eligible for reappointment at the expiration 
of their terms.  The boards of visitors must be representative of a broad range of 
professionals, family members and citizens interested in the well-being of prisoners, 
including representatives of advocacy groups for human and civil rights, medical and 
psychiatric professionals, persons who have served in corrections settings and other 
interested citizens. One member of each board of visitors must be a person with 
knowledge of issues related to the incarceration of women.  One member of each board 
of visitors must be a woman who has been incarcerated in the State and who has had 
prior involvement with the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Child 
and Family Services.
C.  A member of the Legislature may not serve on a board of visitors.
D.  The sheriffs of 2 or more counties, at their discretion, may appoint a joint board of 
visitors of 5 7 or more members.
Sec. 5.  34-A MRSA §1402, sub-§5, as amended by PL 2009, c. 1, Pt. S, §3, is 
further amended to read:
5.  Grievance procedures.  The commissioner shall establish procedures for hearing 
grievances of clients.  The commissioner shall establish a separate grievance process for 
addressing complaints by prisoners about their medical and mental health treatment, as well 
as a separate grievance process for addressing complaints regarding compliance with the 
standards established pursuant to sections 1208, 1208-A and 1208-B.
Sec. 6.  34-A MRSA §3001-A, sub-§1-A is enacted to read:
1-A.  Board of visitors for women's services; membership.  The Governor shall 
appoint a board of visitors for women's services to inspect correctional facilities used for 
female clients and, with regard to female clients, perform the duties assigned to facility 
boards of visitors.  The board of visitors for women's services shall ensure that the 
incarceration of and services provided to female clients are designed to meet their gender 
identity needs and reflect best practices established for such incarceration and services.  
The board of visitors for women's services must include one member who was formerly 
incarcerated in the custody of the Department of Corrections, one member who represents 
a health care provider that provides sexual and reproductive health care and education, one 
member who is a health care practitioner who provides sexual and reproductive health care 
and education to women and one member who has an understanding of or experience with 
domestic violence.
Sec. 7.  34-A MRSA §3031, sub-§8, as amended by PL 2019, c. 139, §2, is further 
amended to read:
8.  Visitation.  A reasonable opportunity to visit with relatives and friends, in 
accordance with departmental policies and institutional procedures, provided except that 
the department may restrict or prohibit visits when the restriction or prohibition is necessary 
for the security of the institution.  Departmental policies and institutional procedures must 
be sufficient to provide to a person in a correctional or detention facility opportunities and 
conditions for visits with the child of the person that provide time together in a manner that 
meets the standards of Title 22, section 4041, subsection 1-A, paragraph A, subparagraph 
(1), division (c) and that provide as positive a parent-child interaction as can practicably be 
achieved while ensuring the emotional and physical well-being of the child; and
Sec. 8.  34-A MRSA §3039, sub-§5 is enacted to read:
5.  Billing.  A correctional or detention facility may not bill an indigent client for future 
payment of services and medications.
Sec. 9.  34-A MRSA §3050 is enacted to read:
§3050.  Report regarding juveniles in custody
By February 1, 2022 and annually thereafter, the department shall report to the joint 
standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over criminal justice and public 
safety matters on the number of juveniles in the custody of the department as juvenile 
detainees or juvenile clients or under department supervision on probation whose parents 
or primary caregivers are known to the department to be in the custody of the department 
or under the supervision of the department.
Sec. 10.  34-A MRSA §3051 is enacted to read:
§3051.  Transportation of female prisoners to and from medical appointments
Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, a correctional or detention 
facility shall ensure the presence of a female law enforcement officer during the 
transportation of a female prisoner between that facility and a medical facility in connection 
with a medical appointment of that female prisoner.
Sec. 11.  Provision of contact information for Office of Child and Family 
Services required.  The Department of Corrections shall adopt rules to provide any 
person residing in a correctional or detention facility in the State with the contact 
information for the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Child and Family 
Services, as well as information on the relevance of that contact to the family reunification 
provisions of the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 22, section 4041.  Contact with the Office 
of Child and Family Services must be provided at no cost to the person.  Rules adopted 
pursuant to this section are routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, 
subchapter 2-A.
SUMMARY
This bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services to report annually on 
the current number and case specifics of children served by the department's Office of Child 
and Family Services, including where the department is in the reunification process of 
children with whom the Office of Child and Family Services is involved and who have 
parents or primary caregivers who are incarcerated in a jail or correctional facility or 
detention facility and the number of cases of abuse and neglect that were not opened for 
assessment.
The bill adds a person with knowledge related to the incarceration of women and a 
woman who has been incarcerated in the State and who has had prior involvement with the 
Office of Child and Family Services to the board of visitors of each jail.  The bill establishes 
a board of visitors for women's services to serve with regard to women who are incarcerated 
in Department of Corrections correctional and detention facilities and requires the 
Commissioner of Corrections to establish a separate grievance process for complaints 
regarding compliance with standards for county and municipal detention facilities, jails and 
other detention housing.  The bill prohibits a correctional or detention facility from billing 
an indigent client for future payment of services and medications.
The bill adds to the rights of a person who is incarcerated in the custody of the 
Department of Corrections opportunities and conditions for visitations with the child of the 
person that parallel those opportunities and conditions for visitation for families receiving 
family reunification services from the Department of Health and Human Services. The bill 
requires the Department of Corrections to report annually to the joint standing committee 
of the Legislature having jurisdiction over criminal justice and public safety matters on the 
number of juveniles in the custody of the department as juvenile detainees or juvenile 
clients or under department supervision on probation whose parents or primary caregivers 
are known to the department to be in the custody of the department or under the supervision 
of the department.
The bill requires that a correctional or detention facility ensure the presence of a female 
law enforcement officer during the transportation of a female prisoner to and from medical 
appointments.  Finally, the Department of Corrections is required to provide all persons 
residing in a correctional or detention facility in the State with the contact information for 
the Office of Child and Family Services and information on the relevance of that contact 
to the family reunification process.  Contact with the Office of Child and Family Services 
must be provided at no cost.