Incarcerated parents

AN ACT Relating to programs and services for incarcerated parents 1
at the department of corrections; and amending RCW 72.09.588 and 2
9.94A.6551. 3
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:4
Sec. 1. RCW 72.09.588 and 2018 c 41 s 1 are each amended to read 5
as follows: 6
(1) The department must make reasonable accommodations for the 7
provision of available midwifery or doula services to ((inmates)) 8
incarcerated individuals who are pregnant or who have given birth in 9
the last six weeks. Persons providing midwifery or doula services 10
must be granted appropriate facility access, must be allowed to 11
attend and provide assistance during labor and childbirth where 12
feasible, and must have access to the ((inmate's)) incarcerated 13
individual's relevant health care information, as defined in RCW 14
70.02.010, if the ((inmate)) incarcerated individual authorizes 15
disclosure. 16
(2) For purposes of this section, the following definitions 17
apply: 18
(a) "Doula services" are services provided by a trained doula and 19
designed to provide physical, emotional, or informational support to 20
a pregnant ((woman)) individual before, during, and after delivery of 21
S-0108.2
SENATE BILL 5182
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2025 Regular Session
By Senators Nobles, Frame, Bateman, Hasegawa, Saldaña, Trudeau, and
C. Wilson
Prefiled 01/08/25. Read first time 01/13/25. Referred to Committee
on Human Services.
p. 1 SB 5182
a child. Doula services may include, but are not limited to: Support 1
and assistance during labor and childbirth; prenatal and postpartum 2
education; breastfeeding assistance; parenting education; and support 3
in the event that ((a woman)) an individual has been or will become 4
separated from ((her)) their child. 5
(b) "Midwifery services" means medical aid rendered by a midwife 6
to ((a woman )) an individual during prenatal, intrapartum, or 7
postpartum stages or to ((a woman's )) an individual's newborn up to 8
two weeks of age. 9
(c) "Midwife" means a midwife licensed under chapter 18.50 RCW or 10
an advanced registered nurse practitioner licensed under chapter 11
18.79 RCW. 12
(3) Nothing in this section ((requires the department to 13
establish or provide funding for midwifery or doula services, or )) 14
prevents the department from adopting policy guidelines for the 15
delivery of midwifery or doula services to ((inmates)) incarcerated 16
individuals, or from contracting with a nonprofit organization or 17
partnering with volunteers to deliver these services to incarcerated 18
individuals. Services provided under this section may not supplant 19
health care services routinely provided to the ((inmate)) 20
incarcerated individual. 21
Sec. 2. RCW 9.94A.6551 and 2024 c 193 s 1 are each amended to 22
read as follows: 23
(1)(a) Except as provided in (b) of this subsection, for an 24
incarcerated individual not sentenced under RCW 9.94A.655, but 25
otherwise eligible under this section, no more than the final 12 26
months of the incarcerated individual's term of confinement may be 27
served in partial confinement as home detention as part of the 28
parenting program developed by the department. 29
(b) For an incarcerated individual not sentenced under RCW 30
9.94A.655, but otherwise eligible under this section, who is 31
participating in the residential parenting program at the department, 32
no more than the final 18 months of the incarcerated individual's 33
term of confinement may be served in partial confinement as home 34
detention as part of the parenting program developed by the 35
department. 36
(2) The secretary may transfer an incarcerated individual from a 37
correctional facility to home detention in the community if it is 38
p. 2 SB 5182
determined that the parenting program is an appropriate placement and 1
when all of the following conditions exist: 2
(a) The incarcerated individual is serving a sentence in which 3
the high end of the range is greater than one year;4
(b) The incarcerated individual has no current conviction for a 5
felony that is classified as a sex offense or a serious violent 6
offense; 7
(c) The incarcerated individual has no current conviction for a 8
violent offense, or where the incarcerated individual has a current 9
conviction for a violent offense, he or she has not been determined 10
to be a high risk to reoffend; 11
(d) The incarcerated individual signs any release of information 12
waivers required to allow information regarding current or prior 13
child welfare cases to be shared with the department and the court;14
(e) The incarcerated individual is: 15
(i) A parent with guardianship or legal custody of a minor child;16
(ii) An expectant parent; ((or))17
(iii) A biological parent, adoptive parent, custodian, or 18
stepparent with a proven, established, ongoing, and substantial 19
relationship with a minor child ((that existed at the time of the 20
offense)); or21
(iv) An individual expected to take over the duties of a parent 22
and be responsible for exercising the day-to-day care and control of 23
a minor child; and 24
(f) The department determines that the incarcerated individual's 25
participation in the parenting program is in the best interests of 26
the child. Nothing in this section provides the department with 27
authority to determine placement of a minor child.28
(3) Except for sex offenses and serious violent offenses, prior 29
juvenile adjudications are not considered offenses when considering 30
eligibility for the parenting program developed by the department.31
(4) When the department is considering partial confinement as 32
part of the parenting program for an incarcerated individual, the 33
department shall inquire of the individual and the department of 34
children, youth, and families whether the agency has an open child 35
welfare case or prior substantiated referral for abuse or neglect 36
involving the incarcerated individual. 37
(5) If the department of children, youth, and families or a 38
tribal jurisdiction has an open child welfare case, the department 39
will seek input from the department of children, youth, and families 40
p. 3 SB 5182
or the involved tribal jurisdiction as to: (a) The status of the 1
child welfare case; and (b) recommendations regarding placement of 2
the incarcerated individual, services agreed to by the incarcerated 3
individual working voluntarily with the department, or services 4
ordered by the court within the incarcerated individual's child 5
welfare case. The department and its officers, agents, and employees 6
are not liable for the acts of incarcerated individuals participating 7
in the parenting program unless the department or its officers, 8
agents, and employees acted with willful and wanton disregard.9
(6) All incarcerated individuals placed on home detention as part 10
of the parenting program shall provide an approved residence and 11
living arrangement prior to transfer to home detention.12
(7) While in the community on home detention as part of the 13
parenting program, the department shall: 14
(a) Require the individual to be placed on electronic home 15
monitoring; 16
(b) Require the individual to participate in programming and 17
treatment that the department determines is needed after 18
consideration of the individual's stated needs; 19
(c) Assign a community corrections officer who will monitor the 20
individual's compliance with conditions of partial confinement and 21
programming requirements; and 22
(d) If the individual has an open child welfare case with the 23
department of children, youth, and families, collaborate and 24
communicate with the identified social worker in the provision of 25
services. 26
(8) The department has the authority to return any incarcerated 27
individual serving partial confinement in the parenting program to 28
total confinement if the individual is not complying with sentence 29
requirements. 30
(9) For the purposes of this section: 31
(a) "Expectant parent" means a pregnant or other parent awaiting 32
the birth of his or her child, or an adoptive parent or person in the 33
process of a final adoption. 34
(b) "Minor child" means a child under the age of eighteen.35
(c) "Residential parenting program" means a correctional nursery 36
program administered by the department that allows pregnant, minimum 37
security incarcerated individuals that meet eligibility criteria 38
established by the department to keep their newborn children with 39
p. 4 SB 5182
them after giving birth in a designated unit and receive support and 1
education in alliance with skilled early childhood educators.2
--- END ---
p. 5 SB 5182