Press Statement

Center for Community Alternatives Applauds Gov. Hochul’s Focus on Justice and Community Investment

As the 2022 Legislative Session Begins, Advocates Call for Passage of Legislation to End Perpetual Punishment & Address the Harms of Mass Incarceration

Support from Gov. Hochul Creates Key Momentum for Clean Slate, Fines & Fees Reform, Housing & Parole Justice

ALBANY – In response to Governor Hochul’s State of the State and start of the legislative session today, Marvin Mayfield, Lead Statewide Organizer at Center for Community Alternatives, said:

“As the 2022 legislative session begins and the highly contagious Omicron variant sweeps through New York, we call on New York’s lawmakers to prioritize health, safety, and justice for New Yorkers by passing the Justice Roadmap. Mass incarceration is a humanitarian and public-health crisis that disproportionately harms Black, brown, and low-income families and undermines the safety and wellbeing of our communities.

We applaud Governor Kathy Hochul for prioritizing the passage of the Clean Slate Act in 2022, which will open up opportunities for over 2.3 million New Yorkers as part of the Jail to Jobs agenda. We affirm her call for the elimination of parole supervision fees, but urge her to go further and support the End Predatory Court Fees Act.

More broadly, we are deeply heartened by Governor Hochul’s focus on community investment as the key component in creating safety and justice in New York State. Through our Freedom Commons housing project, we know the value of transitional housing for people returning home from jail and prison and are enthusiastic about Governor Hochul’s commitment to funding these services in such housing. Investments in community-based services will enhance public safety, whether it be pre-trial services, mental health and substance use, harm reduction, employment, education, or transitional reentry housing. These programs will put money back into the pockets of New Yorkers, who are currently sinking huge sums into a mass incarceration system that destroys the lives of individuals, families, and communities. We also strongly support the Governor’s initiative to transform community supervision, making it an agent of individual and community development. Together, these changes can begin righting the wrongs of decades of mass incarceration by investing in our communities.”