N.H. Losing Federal Funds to Help Ex-Cons

MANCHESTER, N.H. — A three-year federal grant aimed at helping ex-convicts returning to the community expired in December, and New Hampshire’s Department of Corrections will have to return about $1 million after only helping 81 ex-cons to get rehabilitative services.

The grant, the Serious Violent Offenders Re-entry Initiative, was supposed to help ex-cons with housing, jobs, mental-health care, and drug and alcohol treatment. It was awarded in March 2003 but officials had trouble launching the program.

For the first year of its implementation, the department was unable to hire anyone for the program because the former governor had imposed a statewide hiring freeze to help budget shortfalls. The department also had difficulties hiring, training and retaining other staff for the program because of the short duration of the grant.

The $1.8 million grant was intended to keep paroled prisoners from committing new crimes, but never created a sound structure for ex-cons to rely on, according to officials.

The department will continue to work on similar programs and the department has plans to help inmates transition from prison back into communities throughout the state.