Bill > AB1645

This bill, known as the Humanizing and Uniting Generations Safely (HUGS) Act of 2026, aims to improve the visitation experience for incarcerated individuals and their families by amending existing laws and adding new provisions to the Penal Code. The core of the bill is to ensure that regulations governing prison visits recognize and prioritize the importance of nonsexual physical contact. It mandates that the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) consider the value of physical contact in visitation as a means to enhance safety, maintain family connections, and aid in rehabilitation and successful release. Specifically, the bill prohibits the CDCR from unreasonably restricting nonsexual physical contact during visits, listing examples such as hand-holding, hugging, kissing, and touching faces or hair, among other appropriate interactions. This initiative is grounded in research highlighting the positive impacts of family contact on reducing recidivism and improving the well-being of both incarcerated individuals and their families, and it seeks to address issues where such contact has been unduly restricted, sometimes leading to negative consequences for parole decisions and increased incarceration costs.

Justice

https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billStatusClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260AB1645