BILL ANALYSIS AB 2326 Page 1 Date of Hearing: April 21, 2010 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS Felipe Fuentes, Chair AB 2326 (Bass) - As Introduced: February 19, 2010 Policy Committee: Public SafetyVote: 7-0 Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: No Reimbursable: SUMMARY This bill expands the responsibilities, and extends the existence of, the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation's (CDCR) Reentry Advisory Committee (RAC). Specifically, this bill: 1)Extends the sunset on the RAC from January 2011 to January 2016. 2)Adds three members to the RAC: a) A public defender or private defense attorney b) A representative of a community-based organization familiar with the reentry needs of offenders in southern California c) A representative of a faith-based organization familiar with the reentry needs of offenders in northern California. 3)Requires the RAC to provide advisory reports regarding reentry programs and anti-recidivism efforts to the governor and the Legislature no less than annually. 4)Requires the RAC to develop a resource guide for community-based organizations, faith-based organizations, service providers, law enforcement agencies, and industry and governmental entities working to address reentry issues. AB 2326 Page 2 5)Requires the RAC to "immediately" apply for federal funding through the Second Chance Act of 2007: Community Safety Through Recidivism Prevention (Act). 6)Requires the RAC to develop, as required by the Act, a comprehensive strategic inmate reentry plan, with annual and five-year performance goals, aimed at reducing the recidivism rate of inmates served by the Act by 50% over five years. 7)Requires the RAC to submit an annual report to the Legislature and the U.S. Attorney General regarding performance outcomes. FISCAL EFFECT 1)Moderate annual (for the five-year RAC extension) GF costs, in the range of $750,000 annually, to expand and extend the mission of the RAC from the current 2011 sunset to 2016. CDCR has suspended support for the RAC, citing fiscal restraints, and the contract with UC Davis for meeting facilitation is being closed out. Should the sunset be extended, CDCR indicates ongoing costs would increase - aside from the proposed expansion of responsibilities - due to CDCR's inability to contribute additional personnel and services. (Preliminary estimates from CDCR suggest annual GF costs would exceed $1.2 million, plus one-time consulting costs of about $700,000.) New costs for the expanded duties proposed by this bill include: a) Annual GF reporting costs in the range of $100,000 (GF), for advisory reports to the Legislature and the governor. b) Annual GF reporting costs in the range of $100,000 (GF), for the report to the Legislature and the U.S. Attorney General. c) One-time GF costs, in the range of $150,000, to prepare a comprehensive strategic inmate reentry plan, as required by federal law for grant eligibility. AB 2326 Page 3 2)Potential federal grant awards that could range up to $750,000 per year, per project, which would require a 100% state match. Because at least half of the match must be cash, with the balance in-kind contributions, the state would have to expend potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars to qualify for federal funds. These funds would go to the development of reentry projects to support recidivism reduction strategies. COMMENTS 1)Rationale. The author's intent is to ensure California does not miss an opportunity to receive federal funds to help address the state's persistent prison overcrowding issues and to encourage CDCR to continue inmate reentry efforts beyond the 2011 sunset of the RAC. 2)Current law established the RAC, which includes representatives from local government, law enforcement, probation, the courts, teachers and parole officers, and providers in areas including substance abuse, employment, medical and mental health, and housing, to advise the CDCR secretary on inmate reentry strategies and services. 3)The federal Second Chance Act was signed into law by President Bush in April 2008. It authorizes federal grants to government agencies and community and faith-based organizations to provide employment assistance, substance abuse treatment, housing, family programming, mentoring, victims support, and other services to help reduce recidivism. In March 2009, President Obama signed an omnibus appropriations bill for the remainder of fiscal year 2009 that provides $25 million for Second Chance Act programs, including $15 million for state and local reentry demonstration projects and $10 million for grants to nonprofit organizations for mentoring and other transitional services. 4)Similar legislation, AB 845 (Bass) was vetoed last year for fiscal concerns. The governor stated, "This bill imposes several new duties upon the RAC without providing any new funding to pay for them. I cannot sign a bill that creates such unfunded mandates for the State of California during this time of fiscal crisis." Analysis Prepared by : Geoff Long / APPR. / (916) 319-2081 AB 2326 Page 4