Here are a couple of links to help you determine the cost of living in each state.

Oregon is rather pricey, which I have often heard from a couple of registrants.

https://tinyurl.com/q7j9zmc

https://tinyurl.com/y8u3a74l

You said, “We would love to move to Oregon but I am worried about the high cost of living. Does anyone here have personal experience with Utah, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Washington, or NY?”

From talking to other registrants, NY state seems to be pretty good for sex offenders as is Utah. Pennsylvania is decent and so is Washington state. I would rule out Massachusetts.

rewdiazepam

May I ask why you would rule out MA?

To be honest, I am not quite sure why I said to avoid Massachusetts.

The main concern I have is twofold----1) Massachusetts lost track of almost 2,000 registrants last year and I think they will tighten the laws for sex offender registrants, and 2) Frankly, I don’t have any contacts in Massachusetts, so I would hesitate to suggest that state. With most of the states I have at least one contact, but not with Massachusetts. I just do not know much about the situation in Massachusetts.

rewdiazepam

NY the cost of living is high and they are not in favor of S.O. Depending on the level of registration. While on parole they are very strict with the distance and where to reside.

Any thoughts on VT vs PA? I want to stay in the West in UT or OR but my husband is pushing for the east coast.

A registrant friend of mine was from Vermont. When he moved to another state, Vermont really screwed him over. I would forget Vermont.

Pennsylvania is one of the better states for a sex offender, probably in the top 10. If it were me, I would head for Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania will be much better than Vermont.

rewdiazepam

Thanks, one more...Utah v PA?

There are several factors I used to determine the suitability of a state for sex offender registrants.

From my years of experience, I have contacts all over the United States. Many of the offenders/wives/mothers/sons I help are from different states, so I have an idea of the atmosphere there, as we have discussed it. I probably have contacts in well over half the states.

Secondly, I read all the time about sex offender issues and the laws that pertain to sex offender registrants, so I have an idea about the laws there and if they are overly burdensome.

Thirdly, I don’t have families nor do I read any negative press about certain states. If I never hear much about a state, then usually the state is fairly reasonable.

As far as Utah vs Pennsylvania, I don’t think there is a lot of difference in either state as far as the conditions for sex offenders. I know quite a bit about Pennsylvania as I know some folks that live there and most of what I hear is positive. Also, several months ago a man name Muniz---a registrant---sued Pennsylvania over the conditions of the sex offender registry. He won when the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled that parts of the registry were punitive. As a result, Pennsylvania will be forced to rewrite some of their registry laws, which tells me that at least the state is progressive and on the right path to make laws less burdensome for registrants.

https://tinyurl.com/y8xpud6y

I don’t know a lot about Utah, but I never hear anything bad about it, so I have to surmise it is a decent state.

I think the cost of living is about the same in both Utah and Pennsylvania, but jobs may be easier to get in Utah. I do like Utah as I like wide open spaces, but Pennsylvania is not a bad state to consider when moving.

I don’t think you will be hurt if you move to either Utah or Pennsylvania.

rewdiazepam

Thank you so much for your help!

Hopefully my last question about states. How about Minnesota, North Dakota, and Michigan?

Before I even mention any individual states, I want to caution you that if you and your husband decide to re-locate to a state that has lifetime registration requirement, it might try to burden him with a lifetime registration even if his offense did not require lifetime registration in the native state. I have seen this happen.

I helped a mother with a son from Ohio. He only had a 10 year requirement in Ohio, but when he moved to another state they tried to give him a lifetime registration.

Find the state you are really interested in and message me. I will look everything over to make sure that does not happen. The best approach to this is to write the Attorney General of the receiving state and ask them. Or you could write or email the department that handles the sex offender registration. I have all those phone numbers.

I would definitely stay away from Minnesota. Minnesota has created a mess with their civil commitment scheme. Any state with the mindset that it is OK to keep a person confined AFTER he has completed his court mandated sentence is not a good place for sex offender registrants.

While I don’t know a lot about North Dakota, they have implemented some residency restrictions and buffer zones.

Michigan is a unique situation. A couple of years ago the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that parts of the Michigan sex offender registry were punitive and they ordered the lawmakers to rewrite the registration laws. They have not taken any measures to comply with the court ruling. I wrote about it here on another board----

https://tinyurl.com/ycn6kc55

So we don’t know what will happen in Michigan. My thoughts are that they may make some minor changes to comply with the court ruling, but nothing else. I would probably stay away from Michigan.

rewdiazepam

Thank you! We are moving and are 100% open about where to go. I want to pick the best place to minimize impacts. I’m thinking NEbraska, Oregon, Washington, Utah, and Pennsylvania are where I will focus my research.

I just received this in an alert this morning. Apparently, Pennsylvania is tinkering with the idea of some outrageous residency restrictions.

I don’t think the 5,000 distance will pass, so I am hoping this bill is just the work of a careless lawmaker who wants to get some extra votes in the next election.

I posted this on another board earlier this AM------

The radicals in Pennsylvania have proposed a law that would prevent a sex offender registrant from residing within 5,000 feet of any public school, private school, parochial school or preschool for the duration of the required period of registration.

tinyurl.com/y98t8osy

I don’t think this asinine proposal will be voted into law, but this is outrageous. Five thousand feet is one mile and double the distance of the worst residency law in the United States.

rewdiazepam

Such a difficult decision. I want to pick OR but the cost may deter me. Looking into some areas away from Portland. I think Nebraska, Washington, and Utah May be best