(a) The Department shall provide inmate workers for Illinois Correctional Industries to work in programs established to train and employ committed persons in the production of food stuffs and finished goods and any articles, materials or supplies for resale to State agencies and authorized purchasers. It may also employ committed persons on public works, buildings and property, the conservation of natural resources of the State, anti-pollution or environmental control projects, or for other public purposes, for the maintenance of the Department’s buildings and properties and for the production of food or other necessities for its programs. The Department may establish, maintain and employ committed persons in the production of vehicle registration plates. A committed person’s labor shall not be sold, contracted or hired out by the Department except under this Article.
     (b) Works of art, literature, handicraft or other items produced by committed persons as an avocation and not as a product of a work program of the Department may be sold to the public under rules and regulations established by the Department. The cost of selling such products may be deducted from the proceeds, and the balance shall be credited to the person’s account under Section 3-4-3.