Sen. Blake Miguez wants permanent punishment for ex-offenders by denying them workforce training

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Stringent anti-crime laws the Louisiana Legislature approved in a February special session will put more people in prison and keep them there longer. 

But that’s apparently not tough enough on crime for Sen. Blake Miguez, who is intent on placing not just his thumb but an entire fist on the scales of justice. The Republican from New Iberia, best known for his sharpshooting prowess, is taking the fish-in-a-barrel approach with his amendment to a GOP-backed bill that otherwise would be progressive. 

Rep. Paula Davis, R-Baton Rouge, wrote House Bill 748 to expand the number of people who could benefit from the M.J. Foster Promise Program, which covers tuition for qualifying students at the state’s two-year community colleges and technical schools. Her proposal lowers the age to take part in the program from 21 to 17, and she also intended to end a prohibition against convicted violent offenders who have paid their debt to society. 

Trey Godfrey, policy director for the Baton Rouge Area Chamber (BRAC), helped Davis craft the proposal with the intent of addressing workforce shortages. The legislation also has the support of the powerful Louisiana Association of Business and Industry (LABI).       

“What this bill does is it builds pathways toward opportunity towards high-wage, high-demand employment for out-of-school youth and (the) formerly incarcerated,” Godfrey told the House Committee on Education in March. “(With) this bill, we expect to have a really good or significant impact on recidivism.”

Republicans and Democrats in the House overwhelmingly approved Davis’ bill with a 96-4 House vote, but major changes were in store once it landed in the Senate Committee on Education. It was there that Miguez offered an amendment to keep violent ex-offenders out of the program. 

At the mid-April hearing, Miguez mentioned a ban on “rapists, murderers, child molestors and terrorists” specifically, but he failed to note other crimes of violence that would cause someone to be excluded from the program. Such offenses include purse snatching, simple robbery and simple burglary of an inhabited dwelling.

Remember, all these offenders still have to serve time and pay any fines and restitution that are part of their sentences, regardless of whether they have any post-prison career aspirations. Miguez’s amendment crushes any such opportunity for these ex-offenders before they can even take their first steps back into society. It continues to punish them even after they meet their obligations to the criminal justice system. 

The added punitive measure also confirms the dwindling rehabilitative capacity of Louisiana’s correctional system. Miguez’s move sends the message to violent offenders that not only does the state believe they are beyond help, but that the Legislature will take the extra step to ensure they will never be productive citizens. In doing so, lawmakers also increase the likelihood ex-offenders must rely on the government for some form of sustenance or, worse yet, become repeat offenders. 

Unfortunately, Godfrey and LABI remained silent when Miguez’s amendment was added to the Davis bill last month, and the bill was quickly advanced without discussion among members of the Senate education committee. Could this have been an indication that a deal had been struck behind the scenes to make the change? 

Another vetting of the proposal will take place when the Senate Committee on Finance considers its financial impact. Its members are expected to meet at least once more before the legislative session ends. The legislative fiscal staff calculates the cost will land somewhere between $7.1 million and $13.3 million based on averages for the current number of scholarship recipients and two-year college enrollment.

Whatever additional expense the formerly incarcerated would add to the program is negligible, especially considering that lawmakers have approved a measure to lift the spending cap on the Foster Promise Program from $10 million to $40 million annually. The proposal awaits the governor’s signature. 

The finance committee hearing provides perhaps the last best chance for lawmakers to rectify the short-sightedness of Miguez’s Draconian stance. If they are worried about appearing soft on violent criminals, they can easily justify the return on a minimal investment in workforce training against the much higher price of repeat incarceration and lifelong government dependence.

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