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West Virginia followed suit earlier this year, and similar bills have been introduced in Utah, Virginia and Arizona.

It varies state by state and ranging from 50% for wealthier states such as California to more than 70% for poor states such as Mississippi, Alabama and West Virginia.

Over the last few decades, blue-collar communities from Michigan to West Virginia have been hollowed out by the mass decline of American manufacturing, from steel to automobiles.

Van Hollen's rebuff came a day after another US member of Congress, West Virginia Republican Riley Moore, was allowed by Salvadoran authorities to enter the prison.

Much like its smaller counterpart in West Virginia, the Bureau of Prisons has dealt with severe problems, including staffing shortages, preventable deaths and overuse of solitary confinement in recent years.