PA Chamber Voices Support for Probation Reform Legislation

As a workforce crisis continues to plague Pennsylvania’s business community, the PA Chamber urged action last week on legislation that will help facilitate employment opportunities for reentrants and individuals with a criminal record.

Senate Bill 913 would update and improve Pennsylvania’s probation law by including the following provisions that would help reentrants obtain and maintain employment:

  • Incentivizing those on probation to pursue education and job training programs by allowing sentences to be reduced once a program is successfully completed;
  • Limiting when a technical violation can lead to probation revocation, which can disrupt employment and discourage employers from hiring individuals on probation; and
  • Directing courts to consider scheduling confinement around a probationer’s work schedule in the event of revocation for a technical violation.

In a memo to committee members, the PA Chamber voiced support of these commonsense reforms in order to benefit individuals and employers – especially those for whom the workforce crisis has posed significant challenges.

Senate Bill 913 now awaits further consideration by the full Senate.

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Founded in 1916, the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry is the state's largest broad-based business association, with its membership comprising businesses of all sizes and across all industry sectors. The PA Chamber is The Statewide Voice of BusinessTM.