BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                     SB 343


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          SENATE THIRD READING


          SB  
          343 (Hancock)


          As Amended  June 1, 2015


          Majority vote


          SENATE VOTE:  39-1


           ------------------------------------------------------------------ 
          |Committee       |Votes|Ayes                  |Noes                |
          |                |     |                      |                    |
          |                |     |                      |                    |
          |                |     |                      |                    |
          |----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------|
          |Public Safety   |7-0  |Quirk, Melendez,      |                    |
          |                |     |Jones-Sawyer, Lackey, |                    |
          |                |     |Lopez, Low, Santiago  |                    |
          |                |     |                      |                    |
          |----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------|
          |Appropriations  |16-1 |Gomez, Bigelow,       |Gallagher           |
          |                |     |Bloom, Bonta,         |                    |
          |                |     |Calderon, Chang,      |                    |
          |                |     |Nazarian, Eggman,     |                    |
          |                |     |Eduardo Garcia,       |                    |
          |                |     |Holden, Jones, Quirk, |                    |
          |                |     |Rendon, Wagner,       |                    |
          |                |     |Weber, Wood           |                    |
          |                |     |                      |                    |
           ------------------------------------------------------------------ 










                                                                     SB 343


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          SUMMARY:  Requires the California Department of Corrections and  
          Rehabilitation (CDCR) to strongly consider the use of libraries  
          and librarians in its literacy programs.  Specifically, this  
          bill:


          1)Requires CDCR, in complying with its goals to reduce  
            illiteracy, to give strong consideration to the use of  
            libraries and librarians in its prison literacy programs.  


          2)Repeals provisions of law concerning the fiscal formula for  
            supporting the academic education program for inmates.  


          3)Includes the completion of a community college or four-year  
            academic degree by an inmate in the existing requirement that  
            CDCR incentivize inmate participation in educational  
            programming.


          EXISTING LAW:


          4)Requires CDCR to implement literacy programs designed to  
            ensure that upon release inmates are able to achieve specified  
            goals, such as, increasing reading levels to at least a  
            ninth-grade level, obtaining a general education development  
            certificate or its equivalent, or a high school diploma.  
          5)Requires CDCR, in complying with its goals to reduce  
            illiteracy, to give strong consideration to computer-assisted  
            training.  


          6)Provides for $40 per inmate for each fiscal year to be  
            provided, upon appropriation, to CDCR to support academic  
            programs for inmates.  










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          7)Specifies proportional increases or decreases to the funding  
            level in relation to median salaries for full-time high school  
            teachers.  


          8)Requires CDCR to determine and implement a system of  
            incentives to increase inmate participation in academic and  
            vocational education.  


          FISCAL EFFECT:  According to the Assembly Appropriations  
          Committee:


          1)Potential future moderate cost pressure (General Fund) on CDCR  
            to the extent the consideration of the use of libraries and  
            librarians in CDCR literacy programs results in the future  
            funding for additional materials, training, and staff.  If  
            three institutions hire a librarian each, the cost to CDCR  
            would exceed $200,000.


          2)Potential unknown savings (General Fund) if the inmate  
            education incentives encourage inmates to pursue and obtain a  
            college education, which may allow for their earlier release,  
            thereby reducing incarceration costs and the likelihood of  
            recidivism.


          COMMENTS:  According to the author, "SB 343 requires the CDCR to  
          strongly consider integrating its libraries and correctional  
          librarians into the department's prisoner literacy program.   
          Prison libraries foster literacy, self-improvement, insight,  
          pro-social behavior, the ability to navigate an information age  
          society and provide valuable parole planning resources."


          1)Educational Programs in Prisons:  According to the CDCR Web  
            site, "As part of CDCR's Division of Rehabilitative Programs,  








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            the Office of Correctional Education (OCE) offers various  
            academic and education programs at each of California's adult  
            state prisons.  The goal of OCE is to provide offenders with  
            needed education and career training as part of a broader CDCR  
            effort to increase public safety and reduce recidivism."   
            (.)
            One of the services offered through the OCE is library  
            services.  The CDCR Web site states the following in regard to  
            its library services:  "Library services are offered at all  
            institutions, and provide inmates with an extensive collection  
            of recreational fiction and non-fiction books as well as  
            reference reading materials; e.g. selected periodicals,  
            encyclopedias, selected Career Technical Education and College  
            level textbooks, and basic literacy materials recommended by  
            the American Library Association and the American Correctional  
            Association.  Additionally, institution libraries provide  
            legal research materials, as required by the courts, along  
            with rehabilitative support services which include resources  
            on employment, community reentry, and life skills."   
            (<  http://www.cdcr.ca.gov/rehabilitation/library-services.html  >. 
            ) 


          2)California Rehabilitation Oversight Board (C-ROB)  
            Recommendations:  C-ROB is required to regularly examine and  
            annually report to the Governor and the Legislature regarding  
            rehabilitative programming provided to inmates and parolees by  
            CDCR.  (Penal Code Section 6141.)  In its last report issued  
            September 2014, C-ROB noted the following regarding CDCR  
            libraries:
            "The current vacancy rate for CDCR librarians is approximately  
            25 percent.  Libraries are a fundamental program support area  
            for literacy, reentry resources, continuing education,  
            tutoring, legal research, and recreational reading.  Many  
            librarians from non-reentry institutions have independently  
            created reentry binders for inmates containing information on  
            housing, employments, social services agencies, family  
            services, and other reentry information specific to counties  
            in California.  Not all institutions offer this type of  








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            service, yet inmates are released from non-reentry  
            institutions on a regular basis.  Libraries are a logical  
            nexus to find information specific to the county the inmate  
            will be released, regardless of whether the inmate is released  
            under county supervision or assigned to a parole agent.   
            (Sept. 15, 2014 Annual Report, p. 13,  
            .)  The C-ROB report noted that there  
            were 87 budgeted librarian positions, but only 68 filled.   
            (Id. at p. 40.)  C-ROB recommended that CDCR "develop a  
            strategy to address the chronic staffing shortages of CDCR  
            librarians across the state."  (Ibid.)  "The strategy should  
            address recruitment and retention of qualified librarians and  
            plans to increase librarian positions to provide access to  
            library programs."  (Ibid.)




          Analysis Prepared by:                                             
          Sandy Uribe / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744  FN: 0001610