A comprehensive prison reform bill sponsored by a conservative Republican includes a provision to ease restrictions on felon voting.

The 31-page bill from Sen. Mike Carrell, R-Lakewood, includes at the end a rather vague statement on restoring felon voting rights. It says:

The legislature recognizes that the restoration of civil rights to former felons is important in reintegrating those individuals back into the community after release. However, the legislature also recognizes the importance of an individual's continued compliance with the terms of release, including the payment of legal financial obligations. It is the intent of this legislature to restore a former felon's civil rights as early as practicable while optimally ensuring the payment of restitution to the victims of this state.

Under state law — now under review by the state Supreme Court — a felon cannot get voting rights restored until all terms of a sentence have been completed, including full payment of restitution, fines and court costs. The ACLU, representing a group of felons, filed suit, saying it's unconstitutional to tie the right to vote to a person's ability to pay.

Carrell said the goal is to find a way to restore voting rights sooner, while still ensuring that victims receive their compensation. He said if someone released from prison has been making timely payments and continues to do that, voting rights could be restored.

"It'd be trust, but verify," he said. Carrell said the bill he has been working on with Sen. Debbie Regala, D-Tacoma, is meant to reduce repeat offenders, lessen the prison population, and drop costs for state and local governments. Restoring voting rights, he said, may help reduce recidivism among felons.

Sen. Jim Hargrove, D-Hoquiam, chairman of the Human Services and Corrections Committee, told my colleague Ralph Thomas that the felon voting language in the bill is only a place-holder, with details still to come. He said Carrell's involvement in the issue is important, calling it a "Nixon to China" moment since many Republican have opposed speedier restoration of felon voting rights.