RALEIGH -- A bill that passed the State Senate this week will allow formerly incarcerated persons to earn a certificate that enables them to apply for professional licenses that convicted felons were prohibited from getting.
House Bill 641, which was ratified today at the General Assembly, is awaiting signature into law by Gov. Bev Perdue.
The bill automatically becomes law after 10 days without Perdue's signature, Russell Miles, a legislative librarian said this afternoon.
The bill on Wednesday, passed overwhelmingly in the senate by a vote of 50 to 0.
Nearly two weeks before, the House also voted near-unanimously in favor of the measure by a vote of 116 to 1.
The measure, sponsored by W. David Guice, a Republican from Brevard, will aim to help stop former criminal offenders from repeating their crimes by removing barriers that prevent them from finding lawful employment.
Guice was unavailable for comment this afternoon.
Former offenders have about a 50 percent chance of returning to prison within three years of their release, according to the state's sentencing commission, costing taxpayers about $27,000 per inmate a year.
Guice earlier this week, noted that steady employment is critical in determining whether a formerly incarcerated person will commit another crime or become a productive citizen.
The bill, which was co-sponsored by Elmer Floyd, a Democrat from Cumberland County, garnered bipartisan support from lawmakers, law enforcement and non-profit groups that advocate on behalf of ex-offenders.
The legislation includes a number of conditions that former offenders would have to meet before they are granted a court-sanctioned certificate that makes them eligible to apply for professional licenses.
Under current law, anyone convicted of a felony in North Carolina is prohibited from obtaining licenses for about 700 different occupations, including barbering, nursing and pest control.
Dennis Gaddy, director of the Community Success Initiative, a nonprofit in Raleigh that lobbies the legislature on behalf of ex-offenders, said the passage of the bill is "going to make a lot of things happen."
In addition to clearing away major roadblocks towards employment for the formerly incarcerated, Gaddy said the new law will also make former inmates more accountable by giving them more incentive to stay on the straight and narrow.
Gaddy also predicted that the new law is will create new programs of support for the formerly incarcerated: mentors, faith-based networks, along with the creation of new substance abuse and anger management classes.
Ultimately, Gaddy added, it's about helping the formerly incarcerated become productive citizens.
"Jobs and licenses," he said. "That's the greatest deterrent there is."
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