BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó







                      SENATE COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY
                            Senator Loni Hancock, Chair              A
                             2013-2014 Regular Session               B

                                                                     2
                                                                     2
                                                                     6
          AB 2263 (Bradford)                                         3
          As Amended May 23, 2014
          Hearing date:  June 17, 2014
          Penal Code
          JRD:mc

                              VETERANS SERVICE ADVOCATE: 

                               CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES

                                           
                                       HISTORY

          Source:   Coalition of California Welfare Rights Organization

          Prior Legislation: None 

          Support:  California Correctional Peace Officers Association;  
                    California Public Defenders Association; Taxpayers for  
                    Improving Public Safety

          Opposition:None known  

          Assembly Floor Vote:  Ayes 77 - Noes 0



                                         KEY ISSUE
           
          SHOULD VETERANS SERVICE ORGANIZATIONS BE PERMITTED TO VOLUNTEER IN  
          STATE PRISONS, AS SPECIFIED? 






                                                                     (More)






                                                         AB 2263 (Bradford)
                                                                     Page 2




                                       PURPOSE

          The purpose of this legislation is to permit a veterans service  
          organization to volunteer as an advocate for inmate veterans in  
          state prisons.  
          
           Existing federal law  limits the veterans' benefits a veteran may  
          receive while he or she is incarcerated for a felony, except  
          provides a 60-day grace period where the incarcerated veteran  
          may still receive full benefits.  The withholding of benefits  
          begins on the 61st day of incarceration.  (38 U.S.C.S. §  
          5313(a)(1); 38 C.F.R. § 3.666(a).)

           Existing federal law  states that an incarcerated veteran is  
          entitled to full benefits while he or she is participating in a  
          work-release program or is residing in a halfway house.  (38  
          U.S.C.S. § 5313(a)(2).)

           Existing federal law  allows the dependents of an incarcerated  
          felon to receive an apportionment of the benefits to which the  
          incarcerated veteran would have been entitled, unless the  
          dependent is incarcerated for a felony.  (38 U.S.C.S. §  
          5313(b).)

          Existing federal law  prohibits compensation on behalf of a  
          veteran for any period during which he or she is a "fugitive  
          felon."  (38 U.S.C.S. § 5313B; 38 C.F.R. § 3.666(n).)

           Existing federal law  defines a "fugitive felon" as a person who  
          is a fugitive by reason of:

             a)   Avoiding prosecution, or custody or confinement after  
               conviction, for an offense, or an attempt to commit an  
               offense, which is a felony under the laws of the place from  
               which the person flees; or

             b)   Violating a condition of probation or parole imposed for  
               commission of a felony under Federal or State law.  (38  




                                                                     (More)






                                                         AB 2263 (Bradford)
                                                                     Page 3



               U.S.C.S. § 5313B(b).)

           Existing state law  requires restoration of withheld benefits if  
          a conviction is overturned on appeal.  (38 C.F.R. § 3.666(m).)  
           
           Existing state law  requires the California Department of  
          Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) to develop guidance  
          policies relative to the release of veterans who are inmates.  
          The policies shall be developed with the intent to assist  
          veterans who are inmates in pursuing claims for federal  
          veterans' benefits, or in establishing rights to any other  
          privilege, preference, care, or compensation provided under  
          federal or state law because of honorable service in the  
          military. In developing the policies, the department may  
          coordinate with the Department of Veterans Affairs and the  
          county veterans service officer or veterans service  
          organizations.  (Military and Veterans Code § 1840; Penal Code §  
          2695.)

           Existing state law  authorizes each county board of supervisors  
          to appoint a county veterans service officer to perform  
          specified veterans-related services, including assisting  
          veterans in pursuing claims for federal or state veterans'  
          benefits.  (Military and Veterans Code § 972.)



           Existing state law  contains a number of provisions aimed at  
          assisting California veterans, such as farm and home loan  
          assistance (Military and Veterans Code §§ 987.50 et seq.),  
          business enterprise opportunities (Military and Veterans Code §§  
          999 to 999.13), and educational assistance (Military and  
          Veterans Code §§ 981 et seq.).

          This bill  would allow a veterans service organization to  
          volunteer at CDCR to serve as a veterans service advocate.  

           This bill  would require the veterans' service advocate to be  
          responsible for developing a veterans economic recidivism  




                                                                     (More)






                                                         AB 2263 (Bradford)
                                                                     Page 4



          prevention plan within 180 days prior to the inmate's release  
          date. 

           This bill  would require the veterans economic recidivism  
          prevention plan to include:

                 Facilitating access of each inmate who is a veteran to  
               county veterans service officers, California Department of  
               Veterans Affairs and United States Department of Veterans  
               Affairs officers and personnel, so that the inmate may  
               pursue claims for federal veterans' benefits or any other  
               privilege, preference, care, or compensation provided under  
               federal or state law because of the inmate's service in the  
               military.
                 Developing a plan for how an inmate who is a veteran  
               will access earned veterans' benefits that he or she may be  
               eligible for upon the inmate's release.

           This bill  would require the CDCR to facilitate access by the  
          advocate to each inmate who is a veteran, subject to those  
          department screening and clearance guidelines and training  
          requirements that are imposed on other visitors and volunteers.

           This bill  would require CDCR to provide the advocate with access  
          to existing resources, including, but not limited to, computer  
          and Internet access, that would assist the advocate in  
          implementing the veterans economic recidivism prevention plan,  
          to the extent it does not pose a threat to the security or  
          safety of the facility, or to inmates and staff.

           This bill  would require the advocate to coordinate with the  
          United States Department of Veterans Affairs in order to provide  
          each inmate who is a veteran with access to earned veterans'  
          benefits.

            This bill  would require the advocate to coordinate with the  
          California Department of Veterans Affairs and the county  
          veterans service officer in the county in which the facility is  
          located for advice, assistance, and training, and to evaluate  




                                                                     (More)






                                                         AB 2263 (Bradford)
                                                                     Page 5



          the effectiveness of the veterans economic recidivism prevention  
          plan.

           This bill  provided the following definitions: 

                 "Advocate" means a veterans service organization that is  
               federally certified and has volunteered to serve as a  
               veterans service advocate pursuant to this title.

                 "Veteran" means a person who has been discharged from  
               the United States Army, United States Navy, United States  
               Air Force, United States Marine Corps, United States Coast  
               Guard, the Merchant Marine, or the American Red Cross.

                    RECEIVERSHIP/OVERCROWDING CRISIS AGGRAVATION

          For the last several years, severe overcrowding in California's  
          prisons has been the focus of evolving and expensive litigation  
          relating to conditions of confinement.  On May 23, 2011, the  
          United States Supreme Court ordered California to reduce its  
          prison population to 137.5 percent of design capacity within two  
          years from the date of its ruling, subject to the right of the  
          state to seek modifications in appropriate circumstances.   

          Beginning in early 2007, Senate leadership initiated a policy to  
          hold legislative proposals which could further aggravate the  
          prison overcrowding crisis through new or expanded felony  
          prosecutions.  Under the resulting policy, known as "ROCA"  
          (which stands for "Receivership/ Overcrowding Crisis  
          Aggravation"), the Committee held measures that created a new  
          felony, expanded the scope or penalty of an existing felony, or  
          otherwise increased the application of a felony in a manner  
          which could exacerbate the prison overcrowding crisis.  Under  
          these principles, ROCA was applied as a content-neutral,  
          provisional measure necessary to ensure that the Legislature did  
          not erode progress towards reducing prison overcrowding by  
          passing legislation, which would increase the prison population.  
            





                                                                     (More)






                                                         AB 2263 (Bradford)
                                                                     Page 6



          In January of 2013, just over a year after the enactment of the  
          historic Public Safety Realignment Act of 2011, the State of  
          California filed court documents seeking to vacate or modify the  
          federal court order requiring the state to reduce its prison  
          population to 137.5 percent of design capacity.  The State  
          submitted that the, ". . .  population in the State's 33 prisons  
          has been reduced by over 24,000 inmates since October 2011 when  
          public safety realignment went into effect, by more than 36,000  
          inmates compared to the 2008 population . . . , and by nearly  
          42,000 inmates since 2006 . . . ."  Plaintiffs opposed the  
          state's motion, arguing that, "California prisons, which  
          currently average 150% of capacity, and reach as high as 185% of  
          capacity at one prison, continue to deliver health care that is  
          constitutionally deficient."  In an order dated January 29,  
          2013, the federal court granted the state a six-month extension  
          to achieve the 137.5 % inmate population cap by December 31,  
          2013.  

          The Three-Judge Court then ordered, on April 11, 2013, the state  
          of California to "immediately take all steps necessary to comply  
          with this Court's . . . Order . . . requiring defendants to  
          reduce overall prison population to 137.5% design capacity by  
          December 31, 2013."  On September 16, 2013, the State asked the  
          Court to extend that deadline to December 31, 2016.  In  
          response, the Court extended the deadline first to January 27,  
          2014 and then February 24, 2014, and ordered the parties to  
          enter into a meet-and-confer process to "explore how defendants  
          can comply with this Court's June 20, 2013 Order, including  
          means and dates by which such compliance can be expedited or  
          accomplished and how this Court can ensure a durable solution to  
          the prison crowding problem."

          The parties were not able to reach an agreement during the  
          meet-and-confer process.  As a result, the Court ordered  
          briefing on the State's requested extension and, on February 10,  
          2014, issued an order extending the deadline to reduce the  
          in-state adult institution population to 137.5% design capacity  
          to February 28, 2016.  The order requires the state to meet the  
          following interim and final population reduction benchmarks:




                                                                     (More)






                                                         AB 2263 (Bradford)
                                                                     Page 7




                 143% of design bed capacity by June 30, 2014;
                 141.5% of design bed capacity by February 28, 2015; and
                 137.5% of design bed capacity by February 28, 2016. 

          If a benchmark is missed the Compliance Officer (a position  
          created by the February 10, 2016 order) can order the release of  
          inmates to bring the State into compliance with that benchmark.   


          In a status report to the Court dated May 15, 2014, the state  
          reported that as of May 14, 2014, 116,428 inmates were housed in  
          the State's 34 adult institutions, which amounts to 140.8% of  
          design bed capacity, and 8,650 inmates were housed in  
          out-of-state facilities.   

          The ongoing prison overcrowding litigation indicates that prison  
          capacity and related issues concerning conditions of confinement  
          remain unresolved.  While real gains in reducing the prison  
          population have been made, even greater reductions may be  
          required to meet the orders of the federal court.  Therefore,  
          the Committee's consideration of ROCA bills -bills that may  
          impact the prison population - will be informed by the following  
          questions:

                 Whether a measure erodes realignment and impacts the  
               prison population;
                 Whether a measure addresses a crime which is directly  
               dangerous to the physical safety of others for which there  
               is no other reasonably appropriate sanction; 
                 Whether a bill corrects a constitutional infirmity or  
               legislative drafting error; 
                 Whether a measure proposes penalties which are  
               proportionate, and cannot be achieved through any other  
               reasonably appropriate remedy; and,
                 Whether a bill addresses a major area of public safety  
               or criminal activity for which there is no other  
               reasonable, appropriate remedy.





                                                                     (More)






                                                         AB 2263 (Bradford)
                                                                     Page 8



                                      COMMENTS

          1.   Need for Legislation

           According to the author:

               Recidivism rates among veterans continues to be an  
               issue primarily for economic reasons.  Currently the  
               Department of Corrections has been doing a good job of  
               trying to provide veteran inmates with information and  
               forms to apply and receive VA benefits.  However, the  
               process for qualifying for VA benefits is often  
               burdensome for even people with a four year college  
               degree.

               One of the major problems is that facilities do not  
               have a designated person responsible for assuring that  
               veterans are able to have access to VA benefits upon  
               release.
               
               AB 2263 allows veteran service organizations that are  
               federally certified to volunteer to serve as a  
               veterans service advocate at prisons under the  
               jurisdiction of CDCR.

               The advocate would be responsible for developing a  
               veteran's economic recidivism prevention plan within  
               180 days prior to an inmate's release date.

               The advocate would also be responsible for assisting  
               veteran inmates by facilitating access to county  
               veteran service officers, United States Department of  
               Veterans Affairs and California Department of Veterans  
               Affairs' personnel.









                                                                     (More)











          2.    Effect of the Legislation  

          An article appearing in Science Daily on March 13, 2007,  
          discussed a study conducted by the University of California-San  
          Francisco and the San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center  
          finding that approximately one-third of veterans returning from  
          Iraq received one or more mental health or psychosocial  
          diagnoses.  (See Mental Illness Appears Common among Veterans  
          Returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, Science Daily (Mar. 13,  
          2007).)   Another study reported in the New England Journal of  
          Medicine in 2004 stated that the rate of post-traumatic stress  
          syndrome (PTSD) among Iraq and Afghanistan veterans increased in  
          a linear manner with increased exposure to combat.  (Hoge,  
          Combat Duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, Mental Health Problems, and  
          Barriers to Care (2004) 351 N. Engl. J. Med. 13-22.) 

          Studies also indicate that PTSD may drive or exacerbate drug and  
          alcohol abuse by veterans.  (Stress & Substance Abuse: A Special  
          Report, National Institute on Drug Abuse (Sept. 12, 2005).)   
          Mental health and substance abuse problems are linked to future  
          incarceration in veterans.  In a Bureau of Justice study, 35% to  
          45% of incarcerated veterans reported symptoms of mental health  
          disorders in the previous 12 months, including mania, psychotic  
          disorders, and major depressive episodes.  (Noonan & Mumola,  
          U.S. Dep't of Justice, Veterans in State and Federal Prison,  
          2004 (2007).)  Three-quarters of veterans in state prisons  
          reported past drug use and one-quarter reported being on drugs  
          at the time of the offense for which they were incarcerated.  
          (Id. at p. 5.) 

          Veterans appear to be disproportionately represented in the  
          prison population. Veterans make up 10% of state prisoners.   
          (Noonan & Mumola, supra, at p. 1.)  By 2004, veterans of the  
          current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan already comprised 4%  
          of the veterans in state and federal prisons. (Id.) 

          The goal of this legislation is to reduce recidivism among  
          veterans by providing incarcerated veterans with assistance in  
          planning and pursuing claims for federal veterans' benefits or  




                                                                     (More)






                                                         AB 2263 (Bradford)
                                                                     Page 10



          any other privilege, preference, care, or compensation provided  
          under federal or state law.  

          IS IT APPROPRIATE TO PLACE SPECIFIC MANDATES ON VOLUNTEER  
          ORGANIZATIONS?  


                                   ***************