Subcommittee substitutes prison visitation bill for a study work group, advances measure unanimously

Senate Bill 276, sponsored by Senator Williams Graves, initially proposed restoring pre‑pandemic in‑person visitation in Department of Corrections facilities, extending visit length and access, and preventing automatic suspension of visits for nonviolent administrative infractions. Sponsors told the committee that in‑person visits had fallen by more than 90% after COVID‑era policy changes and cited an estimated drop from over 280,000 annual visits to fewer than 18,000 in the year following those changes.

Committee members and the Department of Corrections representative signaled support for improving visitation. A committee substitute converted the bill into a study bill that would create a work group to examine ways to improve visitor access; the subcommittee unanimously recommended the substitute to the full committee.

What happens next: The recommended study work group will be developed as the bill proceeds; sponsors said they expected DOC to work toward incremental improvements while the study proceeds.