U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said the grants are being pulled because a transgender woman is allowed to live in a women’s prison.
AUGUSTA, Maine — Advocates in Maine are speaking up after the U.S. Department of Justice announced it will be pulling specific federal grants from the Maine Department of Corrections.
The decision stems from a political clash over prison housing policies, but groups focused on addiction recovery and prisoner support say the real impact will be felt by people trying to rebuild their lives—both inside and outside prison walls.
“When somebody is ready for treatment, we have to be ready there to deliver it,” said Tom Doherty, executive director of Milestone Recovery, who stresses that substance use treatment inside prisons is often the first step toward long-term recovery.
One of the grants being cut specifically supports adults re-entering society after incarceration. According to Doherty, that transitional period is especially critical for those in recovery.
“The temptations that got you into jail don’t go away,” he said. “You need strategies and support to avoid relapse.”
Another federal grant facing elimination addresses the needs of incarcerated parents and their children—a resource that Joseph Jackson, executive director of the Maine Prisoner Advocacy Coalition, says is essential.
“Roughly 20,000 children in Maine have a parent behind bars,” Jackson said. “Removing those supports has a major impact on their future and well-being. It puts a burden on the state.”
The cuts come in response to Maine’s decision to house a transgender woman in a women’s prison, a move that U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said led the Trump Administration to label certain federal funds as “nonessential.”
So far, the Maine Department of Corrections says it is still reviewing the full impact of the funding changes. But advocates worry the consequences could be far-reaching.
The corrections department says the third and final grant being canceled is the “Smart Probation: Innovations in Supervision Initiative.” That program helps reduce instances of people committing crimes again once they are out of prison.
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