H.R. 7247 — Prison Libraries Act of 2026

This section directs the Attorney General to establish, not later than one year after enactment, a grant program for eligible applicants to provide library services to incarcerated individuals to advance reintegration efforts, reduce recidivism, and increase educational opportunities.

This section establishes eligibility criteria for grants under the Act. An eligible grantee is any state or territory that submits an application including (1) a comprehensive plan for grant use with project objectives, program design, and evaluation process; (2) proof of a physical library at a correctional facility or intention to create one; and (3) demographic data on the facility's population demonstrating compelling need for funding, such as educational levels, recidivism rates, or socioeconomic breakdown.

This section requires grant funds to be used to provide library services to incarcerated individuals, as set forth in section 2, and permits their use for 24 specified purposes, including (1) education and job training; (2) acquisition of modern materials and equipment reflecting the prison population's interests, identities, abilities, and languages; (3) expansion of less restrictive library infrastructure; (4) hiring qualified librarians and staff with specified experience in management, cataloging, and event organization; and various training, programming, and activities such as digital literacy, career readiness, restorative justice, computer and internet access, audiobooks, artistic programming, financial literacy, family literacy, and coordination with local public libraries.

This section prohibits use of grant amounts for (1) purchasing food, clothes, shoes, or hygiene supplies; (2) payment of employee salary and benefits unassociated with prison libraries; (3) physical and mental care for incarcerated individuals; (4) incarcerated individual transportation; (5) staff training unrelated to library services; (6) general administrative functions or operations of the prison; (7) facility maintenance aside from the libraries; (8) other obligations imposed on the facility by law, including establishment and maintenance of a law library; or (9) any other use unrelated to library services, resources, and management.

This section directs the Attorney General, in awarding grants under this Act, to (1) prioritize applicants that follow local or national library management standards, prioritize post-secondary education curriculum in library programming, demonstrate plans for measurable positive impacts on prison populations (e.g., increasing literacy rates, secondary/post-secondary enrollment and graduation, technical/vocational skills, and post-release employment access, or other factors), and pursue numerous initiatives to maximize prison population benefits; (2) ensure geographic diversity among grantees across states/territories and urban/rural areas; and (3) establish a reporting system to monitor grantee progress, performance, and expenditures.

This section requires grantees to submit annual performance measures—including library activity statistics and program outcomes—and expenditure reports to systems established by the Attorney General under section 6(4).

This section prohibits grantees from charging fees to incarcerated individuals for (1) access to physical books, e-books, or audiobooks; (2) access to computers (including laptops) and the internet within the library; (3) educational and artistic materials (e.g., notebooks, pens, pencils, paints, and similar supplies); (4) printing services; or (5) any other library services or resources. The section also requires grantees to make library space available to post-secondary organizations and personnel for educational programming.