Gov. J.B. Pritzker signs a bill on Aug. 6, 2024, aimed at making it easier for formerly incarcerated people to get IDs. (Amanda Vinicky / WTTW News)
Want to rent an apartment? You’ll need an ID.
Open a bank account? It requires identification.
A valid driver’s license or ID is also typically needed to get a job, apply for benefits or visit the doctor.
That can present an obstacle for individuals who’ve been in prison or jail, during which time their IDs were lost or expired, along with documents like a birth certificate and Social Security card necessary to apply for a new form of identification.
“I can tell you firsthand that obtaining a state ID is one of those critical barriers for women coming home, because it creates considerable challenges with employment, housing and more,” said Colette Payne, director of the Women’s Justice Institute’s Reclamation Project, a Chicago-based effort to end women’s mass incarceration. “The worst thing about these kinds of barriers is that women are punished for surviving, but we cannot overcome them.”
Payne said a “woman with an X on her back” who can’t get a job or housing is at increased risk of going back to prison or getting trapped in an abusive situation.
A measure (Senate Bill 2803) Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed Tuesday morning at the Women’s Justice Institute’s Pilsen headquarters should remove obstacles individuals with criminal records experience getting a new ID.
The law branches from a pilot project initiated in 2021 for women exiting Illinois’ Logan Correctional Center.
Pritzker is moving to close Logan as soon as next month, then relocating a prison for women to Will County, citing the high price tag of $100 million in required maintenance.
Under the new law (Public Act 103-0782), if a committed person previously had a Illinois-issued ID, the secretary of state’s office can waive the requirements that an applicant provide a birth certificate.
Providing a birth certificate shouldn’t be necessary, Payne said, given that if people were in prison or jail, the state already knows who they are.
The secretary of state can also waive the Social Security card requirement if the office is able to get that information with the federal government.
“This eliminates the need for the physical card, which many incarcerated individuals cannot readily access,” Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias said.
According to Giannoulias’ office, prior to the law, incarcerated individuals couldn’t apply for a replacement Social Security card until 180 days before their scheduled release. Depending on turnaround time, that could delay getting a state ID or license, because the Social Security card was a prerequisite.
Those who didn’t previously have an Illinois license or ID will also get a simpler path to getting a temporary version within 30 days of their release (and thereafter a hard copy via mail), without paying state fees.
The law applies to anyone housed in a correctional facility in Illinois, whether a county-controlled jail or a federal prison.
Prisons controlled by the state will participate, but those run by counties or the federal government could opt-out.
“I strongly encourage each and every county to participate, because fulfilling the small but basic need reduces recidivism, saves taxpayer money, makes our economy stronger by disrupting cycles of economic hardship and shows that we care and are willing to support those that are willing to do the grueling, grueling work of turning their lives around,” Giannoulias, a Democrat, said.
Giannoulias said his office will hold seminars at prisons across the state to spread the word and encourage participation.
It’s part his office’s restorative justice initiative, Giannoulias said, which already included helping newly and soon-to-be released individuals get driver’s licenses and ID appointments.
Pritzker credited his wife, M.K. Pritzker, for making him aware of the need for state IDs for returning residents.
The state’s first lady said she has visited more than a dozen women’s correctional institutions since January 2019, after her husband was first sworn in as governor.
“I found that many of society’s stereotypes of incarcerated women are just not true,” M.K. Pritzker said. “Many have faced insurmountable, insurmountable economic hardships. These hardships not only have shaped the trajectory of their lives, but also because they’re heads of household, the lives of their families.”
Having a legal ID is an essential step in allowing people to successful return to society, she said.
Contact Amanda Vinicky: @AmandaVinicky | [email protected]
