Washington § 72.02.100 - Earnings, clothing, transportation, subsistence payments, and rental vouchers upon release of certain prisoners.

(1) Any person serving a sentence for a term of confinement in a state correctional facility, pursuant to court commitment, who is thereafter released upon an order of parole of the indeterminate sentence review board, or who is discharged from custody upon expiration of sentence, or who is ordered discharged from custody by a court of appropriate jurisdiction, shall be entitled to retain his or her earnings from labor or employment while in confinement and shall be supplied by the superintendent of the state correctional facility with suitable and presentable clothing, the sum of no less than $40 for subsistence, and transportation by the method of public transportation to the person's place of residence or the place designated in the person's reentry plan, or to the place from which committed if such person is being discharged on expiration of sentence, or discharged from custody by a court of appropriate jurisdiction: PROVIDED, That up to an additional $60 may be made available to the parolee for necessary personal and living expenses upon application to and approval by such person's community corrections officer. Public transportation provided by the department of corrections for a person unconditionally released or discharged by the department shall be limited to a location within the state, unless the person is subject to the interstate compact for adult offender supervision under RCW 9.94A.745, subject to an out-of-state warrant or detainer under chapter 9.100 RCW, subject to a demand for extradition under chapter 10.88 RCW, or subject to any other agreement between the state and another state or the state and the federal government. If in the opinion of the superintendent suitable arrangements have been made to provide the person to be released with suitable clothing and/or the expenses of transportation, the superintendent may consent to such arrangement. The superintendent reserves the right to review and make a determination whether to approve or deny any transportation expenses intended for one individual to ensure appropriate use of state funds and that the request is reasonable. If the superintendent has reasonable cause to believe that the person to be released has ample funds, with the exception of earnings from labor or employment while in confinement, to assume the expenses of clothing, transportation, or the expenses for which payments made pursuant to this section or RCW 72.02.110 or any one or more of such expenses, the person released shall be required to assume such expenses. If the department of corrections has made arrangements with a partnering nonprofit organization that will support the individual's reentry into the community, the department shall make a reasonable effort to coordinate the timing of the individual's release from the department's custody, including the timing of transportation to the person's place of residence or place from which discharged from custody.

(2)(a) The same requirements of subsection (1) of this section shall apply to any person who is serving a sentence for a term of confinement in a state correctional facility and is:

(i) Transferred to community custody under the supervision of the department of corrections pursuant to RCW 9.94A.501, or in lieu of earned release time under RCW 9.94A.729;

(ii) Transferred from a department correctional facility to partial confinement as home detention in the community as part of the graduated reentry program under RCW 9.94A.733 or the parenting program under RCW 9.94A.6551;

(iii) Transferred from a department correctional facility to partial confinement in lieu of earned early release under RCW 9.94A.729, or as part of the work release program under chapter 72.65 RCW; or

(iv) Conditionally released by the indeterminate sentence review board with conditions of community custody under the supervision of the department pursuant to RCW 9.95.011, 9.95.420, 9.94A.730, or 10.95.030.

(b) The items and arrangements to be supplied by the superintendent of the state correctional facility under this subsection must be provided at the moment of the person's transfer from total confinement to partial confinement, or transfer from total confinement to community custody.

(3)(a) The department of corrections may only provide the funds for subsistence required by subsection (1) or (2) of this section one time to any person serving a sentence for a term of confinement in a state correctional facility.

(b) Any funds for subsistence provided to a person under this section shall not be subject to any deductions required under RCW 72.09.480 or chapter 72.11 RCW.

(4)(a) The department of corrections may provide temporary housing assistance for a person being released from any state correctional facility through the use of rental vouchers, for a period not to exceed six months, if the department finds that such assistance will support the person's release into the community by preventing housing instability or homelessness. The department's authority to provide vouchers under this section is independent of its authority under RCW 9.94A.729; however, a person may not receive a combined total of rental vouchers in excess of six months for each release from a state correctional facility.

(b) The department shall establish policies for prioritizing funds available for housing vouchers under this section for persons at risk of releasing homeless or becoming homeless without assistance while taking into account risk to reoffend.

(5) By December 1, 2026, and by December 1 [1st] every year thereafter, and in compliance with RCW 43.01.036, the department shall submit a report to the governor and the legislature on:

(a) The number of individuals who were provided transportation pursuant to this section during the previous year where the cost of the transportation exceeded $100; and

(b) Where the cost of the transportation provided to an individual exceeded $100, the method of transportation used and whether the department made arrangements with a partnering nonprofit organization to coordinate the timing of the individual's release from the department's custody.

Housing voucher program outcome evaluation and benefit-cost analysis—Transfer of residual funds to the general fund—2022 c 29: See notes following RCW 9.94A.729.