Relating to: minimum wage for all inmates and residents of state correctional institutions and county jails and making an appropriation. (FE)

SB 743 establishes a minimum wage for inmates working in state correctional institutions and county jails, requiring facilities to pay at least the state's minimum hourly wage rate (currently $10.47/hour) for labor performed. The bill directly affects all inmates engaged in work programs within these facilities, including those in county jails under sheriff oversight. Key provisions include a $2.33/hour wage increase for existing rates and new state funding: $58.9 million for 2025-26 and $88.4 million for 2026-27 for state prison wages, plus $873,000 and $1.31 million for correctional enterprise programs. All wages must be held in trust accounts for inmates and cannot be garnished during their incarceration.