Reentry resources in Michigan - what you need to do and where to go after prison

QUICK FACTS BAR

State DOC: Michigan Department of Corrections (MDOC)

Parole Board: Michigan Parole Board

Medicaid expansion: YES (full expansion - 2014, "Healthy Michigan Plan")

Voting rights: Restored upon release from prison - people on parole CAN vote in Michigan (since 2024 constitutional amendment)

SNAP drug felony ban: Full opt-out - no ban regardless of conviction

Expungement / Sealing: Strong - Michigan Clean Slate Act (2021) provides automatic sealing after 7-10 years for most convictions; petition-based available sooner; one of the best frameworks in the Midwest

Ban the box: Public AND private employers - Michigan's statewide law (2023) and Detroit/Lansing local ordinances

INTRO

Michigan has made more meaningful reentry law improvements in the period from 2021 to 2024 than in the previous two decades combined. The Michigan Clean Slate Act, signed in 2021, created automatic sealing for most felony and misdemeanor convictions after 7-10 years - one of the most significant record relief expansions in Midwest history. A 2024 constitutional amendment restored voting rights to people on parole - previously Michigan parolees could not vote; now they can. The Healthy Michigan Plan (Medicaid expansion) has been in place since 2014 and is one of the stronger Medicaid programs in the Midwest. Michigan also enacted statewide ban-the-box legislation in 2023 covering both public and private employers. The practical reentry landscape in Michigan is strongest in Wayne County (Detroit), Kent County (Grand Rapids), Genesee County (Flint), and Ingham County (Lansing). The Upper Peninsula is significantly underserved. Transportation between MDOC institutions - many of which are located in rural northern Michigan - and the urban centers where most people return is a persistent structural barrier.

FIRST 30 DAYS CHECKLIST

Day 1-3:

Report to your Michigan Parole Board agent as directed. Michigan parole officers are employees of MDOC through the Office of Community Corrections. Report on the scheduled date with all required documentation.

Day 1-3:

Register to vote. Michigan's 2024 constitutional amendment restored voting rights to people on parole - you can vote the day you leave state prison. Register at mvic.sos.state.mi.us (Michigan Voter Information Center). Michigan has same-day registration at local clerk offices during early voting and on Election Day.

Day 1-7:

Confirm Medicaid (Healthy Michigan Plan) enrollment. MDOC has a pre-release Medicaid enrollment process. Confirm with your case manager whether enrollment has been initiated. If not, apply at michigan.gov/mdhhs or call 1-855-275-6424. The Healthy Michigan Plan covers most low-income adults - enrollment is typically fast for people meeting the income threshold.

Day 1-14:

Apply for Michigan SNAP (Food Assistance Program). Michigan has fully opted out of the federal drug felony ban - everyone meeting income and residency requirements qualifies. Apply at mibridges.com or your local Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) office.

Day 1-30:

Obtain Michigan state ID or driver's license. Michigan Secretary of State: michigan.gov/sos. MDOC provides a Michigan state ID to qualifying individuals at release through a partnership with the Secretary of State. Ask your case manager before your release date.

Day 30+:

Assess Clean Slate eligibility. If your conviction is 7-10 years old and you have been offense-free, automatic sealing may be approaching or may have already occurred. Review the expungement section below and contact Michigan Legal Help for a free eligibility check.

ID RESTORATION

Birth certificate:

Michigan Department of Health and Human Services Vital Records - michigan.gov/mdhhs/vitals. Cost: $34 per copy. MDOC assists with pre-release birth certificate requests - confirm with case manager.

Social Security card:

SSA.gov/ssnumber. Free. Locate nearest office at ssa.gov/locator.

State ID / Driver's License:

Michigan Secretary of State - michigan.gov/sos. MDOC has a partnership to issue Michigan state IDs to qualifying individuals at release. Bring proof of identity, Social Security number, and Michigan residency. Cost: $10 for state ID.

Outstanding license issues: Michigan suspends driver's licenses for many reasons including unpaid fines, drug convictions, and other violations. Check your license status at michigan.gov/sos before going in. Michigan has a Driver License Restoration process - for cases involving alcohol/drug revocation, the Driver Assessment and Appeal Division (DAAD) handles restoration hearings.

ID Assistance Programs:

Michigan Legal Help (michiganlegalhelp.org) provides statewide guidance. Alternatives for Girls (alternativesforgirls.org) in Detroit assists women. Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries (drmm.org) provides ID assistance as part of reentry services in Detroit. MDOC works with Catholic Social Services and other nonprofits for ID assistance at transitional facilities.

VOTING RIGHTS

Michigan voters approved Proposal 2 in November 2024, which amended the Michigan Constitution to restore voting rights to people on parole. As of 2024, people on parole can vote in Michigan - the day you leave state prison, your voting rights are restored.

Previously, Michigan required completion of parole before voting rights were restored. The 2024 amendment changed this. People on probation already had voting rights before this amendment.

People currently serving a sentence in a Michigan prison or jail cannot vote.

Register at mvic.sos.state.mi.us. Same-day registration is available at your local clerk's office during early voting (which runs for 9 days before Election Day in Michigan) and on Election Day itself.

Absentee voting: Michigan allows no-excuse absentee voting. People on parole or probation who are registered can request an absentee ballot at mvic.sos.state.mi.us.

BENEFITS ACCESS

HEALTHY MICHIGAN PLAN (MEDICAID):

Michigan's Medicaid expansion - called the Healthy Michigan Plan - has been in place since April 2014. Most low-income adults at or below 138% of the federal poverty level qualify. Apply at michigan.gov/mdhhs or call 1-855-275-6424, or at mibridges.com. MDOC has initiated pre-release Medicaid enrollment for eligible individuals - confirm with case manager before release.

Michigan's Medicaid program covers physical health, behavioral health, substance abuse treatment, dental, and vision for most enrollees through managed care plans including Molina, Blue Cross Complete, Meridian, and others.

SNAP (Michigan Food Assistance Program):

Michigan has fully opted out of the federal drug felony ban on SNAP. Everyone meeting income and Michigan residency requirements qualifies regardless of any drug felony conviction. Apply at mibridges.com or your local MDHHS office.

TANF (Family Independence Program):

Michigan has fully opted out of the TANF drug felony ban. Eligible families are not excluded based on drug felony history. Apply at mibridges.com.

Housing:

Michigan does not have a single statewide transitional housing program. Federal RRCs serve federal inmates under RRM Detroit (eastern Michigan) and RRM Chicago (western Michigan - assigned to RRM Chicago for some counties). State-contracted community residential programs serve MDOC releases. Wayne County (Detroit) has the most developed reentry housing network. Grand Rapids (Kent County), Lansing (Ingham County), and Flint (Genesee County) have significant but smaller networks. The Upper Peninsula is critically underserved for reentry housing.

Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA): michigan.gov/mshda - administers state and federal housing programs. Returning citizens are not categorically excluded.

EXPUNGEMENT AND RECORD RELIEF

Michigan Clean Slate Act (2021):

Michigan enacted the Clean Slate Act in October 2021 - one of the most significant record relief expansions in the country. Key provisions:

Automatic sealing (beginning 2023, phased implementation):

- Misdemeanor convictions: automatically sealed 7 years after conviction or release from jail (whichever is later) if the person has been offense-free

- Felony convictions (most non-violent, non-assaultive felonies): automatically sealed 10 years after conviction or release from prison (whichever is later) if offense-free

- The automatic sealing is processed by the Michigan State Police without requiring the individual to file a petition or pay a fee

- Marijuana convictions: automatically set aside (expunged) under separate marijuana conviction expungement law, effective 2020

Petition-based expungement (available sooner than automatic sealing):

- Misdemeanors: eligible for petition after 3 years

- Felonies: eligible for petition after 5 years (one felony) or 7 years (multiple felonies - Clean Slate expanded eligibility to allow up to three felony convictions to be expunged, with conditions)

- The prior rule of one expungement per lifetime was eliminated by Clean Slate

What CANNOT be expunged or sealed:

- Convictions for crimes punishable by life in prison

- Traffic offenses where death or serious injury resulted

- Most child abuse convictions

- Domestic violence (can be expunged under limited circumstances, only once)

- Sex offenses on the Sex Offenders Registration Act (SORA) list

- Violations of conditional release for these categories

Effect of expungement: The conviction is set aside - it does not appear on most public background checks. Employment applications, rental applications, and most licensing applications: the person can legally answer that they have not been convicted. Law enforcement, courts, and some specific licensing boards retain access.

Legal resources:

- Michigan Legal Help: michiganlegalhelp.org - free statewide self-help tools with Clean Slate eligibility screener

- Legal Aid and Defender Association: ladadetroit.org / (313) 967-5542 / Detroit

- Michigan Immigrant Rights Center: michiganimmigrant.org - for immigration-related record issues

- Michigan Advocacy Program: michadvocacy.org - statewide legal aid

- State Bar of Michigan Lawyer Referral: michbar.org / (800) 968-0738

EMPLOYMENT AND LICENSING

Ban the box - Michigan Certified Application (statewide, 2023):

Michigan enacted the Michigan Fair Employment Practices Act amendments in 2023, extending ban-the-box protections to most private employers in addition to public employers. Employers with one or more employees are covered. Criminal history inquiries are restricted until after a conditional offer of employment. This makes Michigan one of the stronger statewide private employer ban-the-box states.

Local ordinances: Detroit and Lansing have local ban-the-box ordinances that predate the state law and in some cases provide additional protections.

Occupational licensing:

Michigan has enacted licensing reform through the Occupational Code. Licensing boards must conduct individualized assessments rather than automatically denying based on conviction history. People can request a preliminary determination from licensing boards before investing in training.

Notable restriction: Healthcare licenses involving patient care, childcare licenses, and law enforcement certification have additional statutory barriers that are separate from the general reform framework.

Employment assistance:

- Michigan Works! Agencies: michiganworks.org - Michigan's statewide workforce development network with local Michigan Works! service centers in every region. Reentry-specific employment services available.

- Goodwill Industries of Greater Detroit: goodwilldetroit.org - employment programs with reentry focus

- Michigan Prisoner ReEntry Initiative (MPRI): MDOC-administered program coordinating reentry employment services statewide - case managers coordinate with Michigan Works! agencies

KEY MICHIGAN REENTRY ORGANIZATIONS

Michigan Prisoner ReEntry Initiative (MPRI)

michigan.gov/mdoc/community-programs/mpri

MDOC-administered statewide reentry coordination program. MPRI case managers work with incarcerated individuals before release and connect with local service networks in the release community. One of the most developed state-administered reentry coordination systems in the Midwest.

Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries (DRMM)

drmm.org / (313) 993-4700 / Detroit

Transitional housing, substance abuse treatment, employment, ID assistance, and reentry services in Detroit. Significant presence in Wayne County.

Goodwill Industries of Greater Detroit

goodwilldetroit.org / (313) 964-3900 / Detroit metro

Employment training, job placement, and reentry services in the Detroit metropolitan area.

New Life Recovery Center

newliferecovery.org / (616) 454-5990 / Grand Rapids

Transitional housing and reentry services for men in Kent County. State-contracted provider.

Volunteers of America Michigan

voami.org / (313) 371-3533 / Detroit

Transitional housing, employment, and reentry services in Wayne County and surrounding area. Federal RRC operator and community programming.

Catholic Social Services of Washtenaw County

csswashtenaw.org / (734) 971-9781 / Ann Arbor

Reentry services, transitional housing, employment, and case management in Washtenaw County.

Michigan Legal Help

michiganlegalhelp.org / (800) 968-0738 (State Bar referral)

Free legal self-help tools statewide including Clean Slate eligibility screening, expungement guidance, and reentry legal resources.

Exodus Place

exodusplace.org / (616) 551-3900 / Grand Rapids

Transitional housing and reentry support for men in west Michigan.

STATE DOC REENTRY PROGRAMS

Michigan Prisoner ReEntry Initiative (MPRI):

MDOC's flagship reentry coordination program. MPRI employs reentry specialists who work with incarcerated individuals beginning 12-18 months before release to develop individualized reentry plans addressing housing, employment, substance abuse, mental health, and family connections. MPRI coordinators connect with local service networks at the release destination.

Vocational and Education Programs:

MDOC provides vocational programming (welding, building trades, auto mechanics, culinary arts, and others), GED preparation, and college coursework through partnerships with Michigan community colleges including Jackson College, Kellogg Community College, and others. Completion of vocational programs earns industry-recognized credentials.

Substance Abuse Treatment (SAT):

MDOC operates substance abuse treatment programs inside institutions and through community corrections. The Special Alternative Incarceration (SAI) program (Michigan's boot camp equivalent) includes intensive substance abuse treatment.

Parole Board:

Michigan's Parole Board reviews all discretionary parole decisions. The Board conducts in-person or video hearings. Preparation for a parole hearing - with a solid release plan verified for housing and employment - is the most controllable variable for a favorable outcome.

Residential Reentry Programs:

MDOC contracts with community residential programs (similar to halfway houses) for eligible parolees needing transitional housing. Catholic Social Services, Volunteers of America Michigan, and other organizations operate state-contracted residential programs.

HALFWAY HOUSES LINK BLOCK

Find halfway houses and reentry housing in Michigan ->

inmateaid.com/halfway-houses/michigan/

Michigan has federal Residential Reentry Centers under two BOP offices:

- RRM Detroit: covers eastern Michigan

- RRM Chicago: covers western Michigan (assigned by geography - western Michigan counties are within RRM Chicago's jurisdiction)

State-contracted residential programs serve MDOC releases. Wayne County (Detroit) has the largest concentration. Kent (Grand Rapids), Ingham (Lansing), and Genesee (Flint) counties have significant but smaller networks. The Upper Peninsula has very limited transitional housing options - MPRI coordinators work to identify UP-specific resources for people releasing to that region.