GA Code § 42-5-59 (2021)
2021 Georgia Code|Title 42 - Penal Institutions|Chapter 5 - Correctional Institutions of State and Counties|Article 3 - Conditions of Detention Generally|§ 42-5-59. Employment of Inmates in the Local Community

  The commissioner shall extend the limits of the place of confinement of an inmate, if there is reasonable cause to believe the inmate will honor his trust, by authorizing the inmate, under prescribed conditions, to work at paid employment or participate in a training program in the community on a voluntary basis while continuing as an inmate of the institution to which he is committed, provided that:   Representatives of local union central bodies or similar labor union organizations are consulted;   The paid employment will not result in the displacement of employed workers, be applied in skills, crafts, or trades in which there is a surplus of available gainful labor in the locality, or impair existing contracts for services; and   The rates of pay and other conditions of employment will not be less than those paid or provided for work of a similar nature in the locality in which the work is to be performed.     An inmate authorized to work at paid employment in the community under subsection (a) of this Code section shall comply with all rules and regulations promulgated by the board relative to the handling, disbursement, and holding in trust of all funds earned by the inmate while under the jurisdiction of the department. An amount determined to be the cost of the inmate's keep and confinement shall be deducted from the earnings of each inmate, and such amount shall be deposited in the treasury of the department; provided, however, that, if the inmate is assigned to a county correctional institution, the deducted amount shall be deposited in the treasury of the county to which the inmate is assigned. After the deduction for keep and confinement, the commissioner shall:   Allow the inmate to draw from the balance a reasonable sum to cover his incidental expenses;   Retain to the inmate's credit an amount as is deemed necessary to accumulate a reasonable sum to be paid to him on his release from the penal institution;   Deduct from the inmate's funds any amounts necessary to cover the costs of medical or dental attention provided to the inmate, said deductions to be made in accordance with policies and procedures promulgated by the commissioner; and   Cause to be paid any additional balance as is needed for the support of the inmate's dependents.     No inmate employed in the community under subsection (a) of this Code section shall be deemed to be an agent, employee, or involuntary servant of the department while working in the community or going to and from his employment.   The willful failure of an inmate to remain within the extended limits of his confinement or to return within the time prescribed to an institution designated by the commissioner shall be deemed an escape from a penal institution and shall be punishable by law.    (Ga. L. 1956, p. 161, § 13; Ga. L. 1968, p. 1399, § 1; Ga. L. 1969, p. 602, § 1; Ga. L. 1971, p. 435, § 1; Ga. L. 1973, p. 1299, § 1; Ga. L. 1986, p. 1596, § 1; Ga. L. 1994, p. 97, § 42.)   Law reviews.   - For annual survey on workers' compensation, see 61 Mercer L. Rev. 399 (2009).   JUDICIAL DECISIONS   Confinement even when participating in work release programs.    - Even when an inmate was physically at a bakery on a work release program, the inmate was still legally "confined" under O.C.G.A. § 42-5-59(a). Thus, there was no error in finding that the inmate's participation in the work release program was part of the inmate's punishment and that, as a result, the inmate was not entitled to workers' compensation benefits. Clarke v. Country Home Bakers, 294 Ga. App. 302, 669 S.E.2d 177 (2008).    Cited in Overby v. State, 150 Ga. App. 319, 257 S.E.2d 386 (1979); Wise v. Balkcom, 245 Ga. 126, 263 S.E.2d 158 (1980); Whiddon v. State, 160 Ga. App. 777, 287 S.E.2d 114 (1982).   OPINIONS OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL   Statutory provisions mandatory.    - Language of Ga. L. 1968, p. 1399, § 1 (see now O.C.G.A. §§ 42-5-5042-5-51, and42-5-59) is mandatory. 1977 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 77-71.   Performance of federal contracts.   - This section fully complies with requirements set forth in Executive Order 11755 which provides that nonfederal prison inmates may be employed in performance of federal contracts if the inmate participates in the work-release program on a voluntary basis, if representatives of local labor organizations have been consulted, if the inmate's employment will not result in the displacement of employed workers or result in a surplus of laborers in the locality, and if the rates of pay and other conditions of employment are not less than those provided for similar work in the locality. 1974 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 74-125.   Work-release programs.   - County may not recover the county's expenses in maintaining prisoners employed in work-release programs. 1969 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 69-248.   Room and board charges of prisoners on work release must be deposited into the state treasury. 1969 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 69-363.   Work-release program does not authorize compensation of inmates for work performed in institutions. 1973 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 73-7.   There is no authority for the superintendent of a correctional institution to allow work releasees to reside in their homes; a work releasee shall continue to be a prisoner of the institution to which the releasee has been committed. 1974 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 74-116.   RESEARCH REFERENCES   Am. Jur. 2d.   - 60 Am. Jur. 2d, Penal and Correctional Institutions, § 139.   ALR.    - Validity of statute empowering administrative officials to transfer to penitentiary inmate of reformatory, 95 A.L.R. 1455.   What justifies escape or attempt to escape, or assistance in that regard, 70 A.L.R.2d 1430.   Immunity of public officer from liability for injuries caused by negligently released individual, 5 A.L.R.4th 773.