BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                     AB 512


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          Date of Hearing:   May 6, 2015


                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS


                                 Jimmy Gomez, Chair


          AB  
          512 (Mark Stone) - As Amended April 16, 2015


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          Urgency:  No  State Mandated Local Program:  NoReimbursable:  No


          SUMMARY:


          This bill increases, from six weeks to 18 weeks, the maximum  
          additional program credits that may be awarded to an eligible  
          state prison inmate, as specified, during any 12-month period of  
          continuous incarceration for the successful completion of  








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          certain programs offered by the California Department of  
          Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR).   This bill specifies the  
          individuals who would not be eligible for the program, and makes  
          the criteria retroactive. 


          FISCAL EFFECT:


          1)This bill will result in significant one-costs to CDRC in the  
            range of $600,000 to $1 million (GF) as follows:  


             a)   Reprogramming costs to the CDCR Strategic Offender  
               Management System could be in the range of $200,000 to  
               $500,000.


             b)   One-time costs of approximately $100,000 to promulgate  
               regulations.


             c)   A mass review and recalculation of cases will be  
               conducted to update all cases by hand to provide the  
               appropriate credit to individuals who may have taken a  
               course and would now be eligible for some credit.  This  
               will require overtime funding for existing staff in the  
               $300,000 - $400,000 range. 


          1)According to CDCR, the annual costs to house an inmate  
            out-of-state is approximately $29,000.  If an eligible inmate  
            receives the maximum additional credit of 12 weeks, annual  
            savings would be approximately $7,000 (GF) per inmate.   
            Restrictions on the maximum additional credit an inmate may  
            earn, based on the type of crime committed, may restrict the  
            use of the 12 additional weeks.  While it is not clear at this  
            time how many inmates will be able to participate in the  
            permissive program and how many will be able to receive the  








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            maximum credit, if 300 inmates participate for half the  
            additional credit (6 weeks), the savings to CDCR would be in  
            the $1 million range.  


          COMMENTS:


          1)Background. Current law provides that in addition to credit  
            awarded for good behavior, CDCR may also award an eligible  
            prisoner program credit reduction from his or her term of  
            confinement.  The Secretary of CDCR is responsible for  
            providing guidelines for credit reductions for inmates who  
            successfully complete specific programming performance  
            objectives for approved rehabilitative programming, including,  
            but not limited to, credit reductions of not less than one  
            week to not more than six weeks for each performance  
            milestone. Regulations promulgated by CDCR specify the credit  
            reductions applicable to distinct objectives, in a schedule of  
            graduated program performance objectives concluding with the  
            successful completion of an in-custody rehabilitation program.  
             A prisoner may not have his or her term reduced by more than  
            six weeks for credits awarded during any 12-month period of  
            continuous confinement.  However, a person serving a prison  
            term for the commission of a "violent" felony, or sentenced to  
            prison under the "Three strikes Law"; or required to register  
            as a convicted sex offender, is not eligible for the six-week  
            credit.


          2)Purpose.  According to the author, "In spite of a recent  
            reduction in the prison population due to realignment,  
            California's prisons continue to be overcrowded, which  
            compromises the safety of incarcerated people and prison staff  
            and reduces the effectiveness of rehabilitation efforts. As of  
            February 2015, the California prison system was at 136.6% of  
            design capacity. 










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            "Credit Earning Programs relieve prison overpopulation by  
            allowing eligible prisoners to modestly reduce their sentences  
            through certain approved education and life skills programs  
            that help prepare for life after release.  Research suggests  
            that people who participate in this type of rehabilitative  
            programming are significantly less likely to recidivate." 


          3)Argument in Support:  The American Civil Liberties Union  
            states, "AB 512 will expand the number of sentence reduction  
            credits eligible prisoners can receive, from a maximum of 6  
            weeks per year, to 18 weeks per year off their time served.  
            Under the bill, this expansion will apply retroactively. This  
            bill helps ensure that currently eligible prisoners have the  
            opportunity and incentive to continue to participate in and  
            complete recidivism-reducing curriculum.

            "The use of credits is a particularly effective way to reduce  
            the number of people in California's prisons because credits  
            received are directly tied to participation in rehabilitation  
            programs. Prisoners have to earn the credits through their  
            involvement in work, educational programs, and positive  
            programming, which will provide them skills that will be  
            useful once they leave prison and return to our communities."

          4)Argument in Opposition.  The California District Attorneys  
            Association states, "AB 512 goes too far by tripling the  
            enhanced credits available to eligible inmates. Given that  
            other laws have greatly curtailed the categories of inmates  
            who actually go to state prison, this level of increase in  
            credits seems excessive.



          5)Prior Legislation:  AB 624 (Mitchell), Chapter 266, Statutes  
            of 2013, authorized a sheriff or county director of  
            corrections to award a prisoner program credit reduction of no  
            more than six weeks during any 12-month  period, to be  
            deducted from an inmate's term of confinement for the  








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            successful completion of performance objectives for approved  
            rehabilitative programming.




          Analysis Prepared by:Pedro R. Reyes / APPR. / (916)  
          319-2081