Democrats want to pay prisoners minimum wage.

(Sacramento, CA) — As talks continue in California on giving Black residents reparations, some legislators also want to ban prison labor. Since being modified in 1974, Article One, Section Six of the California Constitution states, “Slavery is prohibited. Involuntary servitude is prohibited except to punish crime.” A bill outlawing involuntary servitude did not make it on last November’s ballot even though some legislators think prisoners should be paid minimum wage for their labor. Governor Gavin Newsom’s administrations says paying prisoners to work could cost the state around one-point-five-billion-dollars a year. While Newsom works on the current budget deficit, cuts could be coming and some programs may not make the cut.