Rhode Island Prison Reform Bills Stalled Again Before Election

Rhode Island residents cast ballots on Tuesday, Nov. 3, for state executive and legislative offices, while the state’s felony convicts remain ineligible to vote under current law. The 2026 legislative session ended in June without advancing three bills that would have altered conditions at the Adult Correctional Institutions in Cranston. Each measure was placed in committee for further study and died with the session.

The Rhode Island Department of Corrections (RIDOC) reported an average population of 2,344 in 2024, excluding those held out of state or on home confinement. The department’s May 12 letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee noted that Securus Technologies collected $795,000 from incarcerated individuals and their families for calls and video visits in 2025. This figure rose from $666,000 in 2024 and covered 2,542,786 interactions. The bill sponsored by Sen. Meghan Kallman would have made these calls free, but the committee held it after receiving the department’s letter.

RIDOC supported the intent of the free phone bill but cited concerns over cost and monitoring technology. The department already provides two free 20-minute calls and one free video session per person monthly. Tablets allow inmates to call from their cells, which the department describes as a privacy benefit. The House version of the bill, sponsored by Rep. Leonela Felix, was held on March 24.

A separate bill aimed at restricting solitary confinement also failed to advance. The Restrictive Confinement Oversight Act, led by Sen. Jonathan Acosta, proposed an oversight committee and minimum out-of-cell time. The bill required two hours of time out of a cell daily for those in disciplinary confinement up to 15 days and three hours for longer stays. The House Judiciary Committee held its companion bill on April 2, and the Senate Judiciary Committee held the Senate version on May 12. This is the fourth session in which similar solitary confinement bills have been stalled.

The third measure, H 7651, would have required courts to set reasonable bail for people accused of probation violations. Rep. Batista sponsored the bill, which included a presumption of release. House Judiciary held the measure for further study on April 30. Attorney General Peter Neronha’s office previously argued that judges, rather than automatic rules, should decide bail cases.

The bills are now gone from the record and must be reintroduced in the new session starting in January 2027. Sen. Matthew LaMountain of Warwick chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee, and Rep. Carol Hagan McEntee of South Kingstown chairs the House committee. The governor’s office, which appoints Parole Board members, will change hands in January when the winner of Tuesday’s election takes office.

Gov. Dan McKee lost the Sept. 9 Democratic primary to Helena Foulkes, who faces independent candidate Ken Block and Republican Aaron C. Guckian on election day. State law dictates that the right to vote returns upon discharge from incarceration, and the Department of Corrections must provide written notice and registration forms to released individuals.