BILL NUMBER: AB 1255 INTRODUCED
BILL TEXT
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Wright
FEBRUARY 26, 1999
An act to add and repeal Chapter 1.3 (commencing with Section
1210) of Title 8 of Part 2 of the Penal Code, relating to sentencing.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1255, as introduced, R. Wright. Sentencing: intensive
correctional supervision program.
Existing law provides as a sentencing option for convicted felons,
that the felon be placed on probation with court-ordered conditions
of probation, if eligible, or sentenced to a term of imprisonment in
the state prison.
This bill would set forth legislative findings and declarations of
intent in regard to prison overcrowding and the need for
community-based intermediate sanctions as an alternative to prison.
This bill would authorize counties to establish an intensive
correctional supervision program, as specified, to which a convicted
felony offender who meets enumerated criteria could be sentenced by a
court for up to 9 months and upon completion of which the offender
would be required to be placed on probation for up to 4 years. The
bill would require that the programs commence on or after July 1,
2002.
This bill would require the probation officers of participating
counties to make an investigation of the offender's eligibility and
suitability for intensive correctional supervision, the results of
which would be included in the probation officer's recommendation to
the court.
This bill would specify that the chief probation officer of each
participating county would be responsible for the county program
under the bill and for coordinating and contracting for all related
services. The bill would also specify that the Department of
Corrections would have administrative responsibility for, and
oversight of, the county programs.
The bill would additionally state the Legislature's intent that
funds be redirected from paying for state prison incarceration costs
to paying for the costs of intensive correctional supervision for
eligible persons under these provisions.
The bill would require that a county intensive supervision program
established pursuant to the bill be financed by the state and
county, as specified, and would provide that funding for the bill is
contingent upon a Budget Act appropriation establishing the Intensive
Correctional Supervision Account from which the Department of
Corrections would be required to provide funds to counties for the
purposes of the bill.
This bill would also require the Department of Corrections, on or
before January 1, 2007, to evaluate, as specified, the intensive
correctional supervision programs and report the conclusions of its
evaluations to the Legislature.
The bill would provide that its provisions shall remain in effect
until January 1, 2008, and as of that date are repealed.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the
State-Local Corrections Partnership Act of 2000.
SEC. 2. (a) The Legislature finds and declares the following:
(1) The state prison population on June 30, 1998, was 158,207
compared to 72,121 on June 30, 1988, an annual compounded growth of
8.2 percent.
(2) Without some significant change in this growth, or alternative
sentencing programs, the state will be forced to spend billions of
dollars in new state prison construction.
(3) The practice of the imprisonment of new commitments and parole
violators in the state prison who serve one year or less offers
little opportunity to implement strategies to manage offender
behavior and to sustain long-term behavior change that would promote
public safety.
(4) The 24-member Blue Ribbon Commission on Inmate Population
Management, including the 13 members appointed by the Governor,
unanimously agreed in its final report that "... insufficient
prevention efforts, intermediate sanctions, and programs for those
incarcerated exist, and as a result, there are offenders incarcerated
and on probation who judges and parole authorities would, and
should, manage differently if those sanctions were available."
(5) The commission found that certain individuals with no history
of violence and noncareer offenders are likely target populations for
punishment options other than prison.
(6) The commission recommended intensive probation supervision,
residential and nonresidential substance abuse treatment programs,
and other community-based punishment options as alternatives to state
prison for minor parole violators and nonviolent offenders facing
short prison commitments.
(7) Intensive correctional supervision programs have reduced
recidivism and prison overcrowding in other states which have adopted
similar programs.
(8) State and local corrections should be viewed as an
interconnected system that provides an array of appropriate
punishment alternatives, including intermediate punishment options.
(9) A strategy of realigning juvenile and adult justice
responsibilities of state and local correctional systems in a manner
that maintains public safety, increases accountability, and reduces
costs is needed.
(10) It is the intent of the Legislature that local government be
given the opportunity to participate in a state-local partnership to
house specified populations of the state prison. A dedicated revenue
source equal to state savings shall be provided to participating
local governments as a part of this transaction.
(b) It is the intent of the Legislature to endorse the commission'
s findings as to the need for community-based intermediate sanctions
and to implement a program of intensive correctional supervision,
drug testing and treatment, intermediate punishment options, and
mandatory educational and employment programs.
SEC. 3. Chapter 1.3 (commencing with Section 1210) is added to
Title 8 of Part 2 of the Penal Code, to read:
CHAPTER 9. STATE-LOCAL CORRECTIONS PARTNERSHIP ACT OF 2000
1210. This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the
State-Local Corrections Partnership Act of 2000.
1210.1. As used in this chapter, the following definitions apply:
(a) "Intensive correctional supervision" means a program,
established pursuant to this chapter, of highly structured and
closely supervised probation which emphasizes appropriate
interventions, including, but not limited to, treatment of substance
abuse, education, counseling, employment development, and payment of
restitution to crime victims.
(b) "Officer" means a probation officer as listed in Section
830.5.
(c) "Offender" means a person who has been sentenced to, or
ordered to participate in, an intensive correctional supervision
program.
1210.2. (a) Counties may establish an intensive correctional
supervision program applicable to probationers who are qualified
pursuant to Section 1210.5. The programs may commence on or after
July 1, 2002.
(b) Each intensive correctional supervision program shall conform
to the requirements of this chapter and the regulations as shall be
established by the administering agencies consistent with this
chapter.
1210.3. Each intensive correctional supervision program shall
include the following:
(a) Intensive supervision teams, consisting of at least two
officers, who shall supervise no more than 40 offenders at one time.
(b) Close supervision and observation of offenders being
supervised, including, but not limited to, all of the following:
(1) Face-to-face contact between an officer and the offender at
least two times per week.
(2) Frequent chemical testing for the use of alcohol, controlled
substances, or both, where their use has been prohibited as a
condition of participation in the program.
(3) At least weekly contact by an officer and the offender's
employer, educational institution, treatment program, or counselor.
(c) Inpatient and outpatient treatment programs for alcohol and
drug abuse which shall be ordered when appropriate and made available
as needed for any offender with substance abuse problems.
(d) Job training, placement, education programs, or any
combination of these, which shall be mandatory for any offender who
is not employed full time or is not a full-time student and is
medically capable of participating in the programs.
(e) A requirement that each offender be occupied five days each
week, with employment, education, a job search, community service,
counseling, treatment, or a combination of these activities as
directed by an officer, except where this is not possible because of
health constraints.
(f) A case management approach utilizing a community corrections
advisory committee consisting of appropriate representatives,
including, but not limited to, those from probation, local law
enforcement, substance abuse counseling and treatment, mental health,
employment development, and education. The community corrections
advisory committee shall work with intensive supervision teams and
assess and address the needs of each offender.
1210.4. An intensive correctional supervision program may also
include any or all of the following:
(a) House arrest.
(b) Electronic monitoring.
(c) Community service.
(d) A probation treatment program involving restitution to the
victim by the offender.
(e) Placement in a substance abuse community correctional center
as a sanction for a violation of the terms and conditions of
intensive correctional supervision, if available.
1210.5. (a) An offender who has been convicted of a felony or
felonies may be sentenced by a court to a county probation intensive
correctional supervision program if he or she meets all of the
following criteria:
(1) The present offense is for a crime punishable by 16 months,
two or three years, or one, two, or three years in the state prison,
or for an attempt to commit such a crime, which did not involve
violence against the person of another, molestation of a minor, or
drug trafficking.
(2) The offender has not been convicted of a violent felony, as
defined by subdivision (c) of Section 667.5, or a serious felony, as
defined by subdivision (c) of Section 1192.7, or convicted of
violating any of the following provisions:
Section 69 or 191.5, subdivision (b) or paragraph (1) or (3) of
subdivision (c) of Section 192, subdivision (a) of Section 217.1,
Section 243, 243.1, or 243.3, subdivision (a) or (c) of Section
243.4, Section 244, 245, 245.3, 246, 266f, 266h, or 273.5,
subdivision (a) of Section 273a, Section 273d or 285, subdivision (b)
of Section 286, Section 288a, subdivisions (b), (h), or (i) of
Section 289, subdivision (b) of Section 311.2, subdivision (c) of
Section 311.4, or Section 314, 417.6, 647.6, 4131.5, or 4501.5 of the
Penal Code, or Section 2800.2 or 20001 or subdivision (b) of Section
23104 of the Vehicle Code.
(3) The offender has not been sentenced and placed in the custody
of the sheriff or correctional administrator to be punished by
incarceration or supervised or treated at the local level for a
period in excess of one year, but in no case for a period that would
result in a period of total incarceration in excess of the period for
which the defendant would otherwise have been incarcerated in the
state prison.
(4) The offender does not have a significant criminal history
which would render him or her unsuitable for the program.
(5) It appears from all information available that the offender
would benefit from, and that public safety would not be threatened
by, sentencing the offender to an intensive correctional supervision
program. Public safety shall be the primary consideration.
(6) The offender agrees in writing to the terms and conditions of
intensive correctional supervision.
(7) The offender otherwise would have been committed to the state
prison for one year or less. For the purpose of this chapter, the
term "committed to the state prison for one year or less" refers to
the length of the prison sentence less preprison credit for time
served and less maximum credit available under Article 2.5
(commencing with Section 2930) of Chapter 7 of Title 1 of Part 3.
(b) In any case in which an offender may be eligible for a county
probation intensive correctional supervision program, the probation
officer shall, as part of his or her investigation pursuant to
Section 1203, make an investigation of the offender's eligibility and
suitability for intensive correctional supervision. The probation
officer shall consider (1) the criteria contained in this chapter,
(2) whether or not the defendant would benefit from education,
treatment, and rehabilitation, and (3) whether or not the offender
would pose a threat to public safety if sentenced to intensive
correctional supervision. The probation officer shall include this
information in his or her recommendation to the court.
(c) It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this chapter
that offenders who have substance abuse problems be given priority in
participating in the program.
(d) Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to limit the
ability or obligation of a court to impose confinement in a county
jail or a community correctional facility as a condition of probation
before an offender is sentenced to the intensive correctional
supervision program.
(e) In sentencing a person to intensive correctional supervision,
a court shall impose terms and conditions consistent with the
requirements of this chapter and shall, as an additional condition,
require the offender to waive any right to a hearing to contest
imposition by a probation officer of the intermediate sanctions
specified in subdivision (b) of Section 1210.9. The court may also
impose additional terms and conditions as provided for by law for
persons placed on probation or given a conditional sentence under
Section 1203.
(f) An offender may be sentenced to intensive correctional
supervision for a period of up to nine months. After completion of
intensive correctional supervision, the offender shall be placed on
supervised probation for up to four years.
(g) Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to limit an
offender's right to petition for termination of a period of probation
under Section 1203.3 or to seek dismissal of the accusations or
information under Section 1203.4. However, an offender may exercise
his or her rights under these sections only upon successful
completion of intensive correctional supervision.
(h) Offenders sentenced pursuant to this section shall be deemed
to have served a prior state prison term for purposes of this code.
(i) The chief probation officer of each county shall be
responsible for the county probation intensive correctional
supervision program and for coordinating and contracting for all
related services.
(j) This section shall not apply to a person committed to the
Department of Corrections on or before January 1, 2001.
1210.6. (a) The Department of Corrections shall have
responsibility for oversight of county probation intensive
supervision programs and shall adopt regulations as may be necessary
for the administration and oversight of this chapter. All
regulations, procedures, and criteria shall be adopted on or before
September 30, 2001.
(b) Funding for this chapter is contingent upon a Budget Act
appropriation establishing the Intensive Correctional Supervision
Account. From this account the Department of Corrections shall
provide funds to counties which may be used only for intensive
supervision probation programs operated by the county probation
department for persons who would otherwise be sentenced to the state
prison, and alcohol and substance abuse testing and treatment,
education, employment assistance, and mental health counseling for
persons in these programs. Funds may also be used for the purpose
specified in Section 1210.4 for persons in these programs.
(c) It is the intent of the Legislature that funds be redirected
from paying for cost of incarceration in the state prison to paying
for the cost of intensive correctional supervision for persons
eligible for these programs.
(d) The cost of the intensive correctional supervision program
established by this chapter shall be financed in each participating
county by the state in accordance with the following:
(1) On or before October 1 of each year, beginning in 2002, the
governing body of each county shall adopt an intensive Correction
Supervision Plan and budget for the following fiscal year and shall
submit the plan and budget to the Department of Corrections in
accordance with procedures specified by the department.
(2) For the 2002-03 fiscal year, each county shall submit a plan
and budget on or before December 31, 2001.
(3) Funds limited to 50 percent of the average cost of
incarcerating an offender in the state prison system shall be
allocated to counties for each person sentenced to the intensive
correctional supervision program who would otherwise have been
sentenced to the state prison. The funding for each offender shall
be prorated to reflect the amount of time actually served by the
offender in the intensive correctional supervision program. Any
costs of the state under this program for the benefit of the county
shall be transferred to, and assumed by, the benefitted county.
(4) Each county probation department shall maintain a separate
account for funds received pursuant to this section. These funds
shall be used by county probation departments only for intensive
correctional supervision and to contract for services to offenders,
as authorized by this chapter and any regulations or guidelines
promulgated by the Department of Corrections.
(e) Allocation of funds in the Intensive Correctional Supervision
Account shall be made upon application by each participating county
to the Department of Corrections and shall be available for two
fiscal years subsequent to the fiscal year in which the original
appropriation was made.
(f) Allocation of the amount determined in paragraph (3) of
subdivision (d) shall be made to a participating county upon
submission of a plan and budget, as required by paragraphs (1) and
(2) of subdivision (d), and upon application for funds by the
governing body of the county to the Department of Corrections, based
upon criteria to be developed by the department in conjunction with
the counties.
(g) The criteria shall provide for reports of expenditures and
information and shall constitute a contractual obligation.
(h) Commencing in the 2003-04 fiscal year, the distribution of
funds pursuant to this chapter shall be made on a quarterly basis in
accordance with regulations adopted by the department.
(i) Unexpended funds from the Intensive Correctional Supervision
Account may be reallocated by the Director of Corrections.
(j) The department shall monitor the expenditures and funds of a
participating county to determine whether the funds are being
expended in accordance with all the requirements of this chapter.
The department shall also establish requirements for the evaluation
of programs supported by this chapter, including requirements
designed to demonstrate the effectiveness of these programs in
reducing state prison overcrowding.
(k) If the department finds that a participating county is not
acting in accordance with all of the requirements of this chapter, it
shall notify the county regarding the points of noncompliance, and
the county shall have 60 days to explain or justify its action in
writing to the Department of Corrections. If the explanation is not
satisfactory or if the point of noncompliance cannot be promptly
cured in the opinion of the department, the department may issue a
notice of noncompliance and may suspend payment of any funds due the
county under this chapter.
1210.7. Each intensive correctional supervision team shall
periodically review and evaluate the needs of each offender and his
or her performance in the program. The team may notify the level of
supervision of an offender, including transferring him or her to
regular probation supervision.
1210.8. (a) If it is determined after a hearing by the court that
an offender in an intensive correctional supervision program has
committed an additional public offense or has otherwise violated a
condition of probation, the court may revoke intensive correctional
supervision and order any disposition authorized by law for a
violation of the terms and conditions of probation.
(b) In ordering dispositions pursuant to subdivision (a), the
court shall consider intermediate sanctions, including, but not
limited to, more restrictive conditions of supervision, inpatient and
outpatient substance abuse treatment programs, house arrest,
electronic monitoring, placement in a substance abuse community
correctional center for up to 30 days, and other intermediate
sanctions permitted by law. However, the primary consideration shall
be public safety.
(c) As an additional intermediate sanction a court may order an
offender to serve up to 30 days in the county jail. Time served in
the county jail shall not be considered to be a part of the
prescribed period of intensive community corrections.
1210.9. County probation departments are authorized to contract
as necessary for substance abuse treatment, employment and education
assistance, mental health counseling, and other necessary services as
provided for in this chapter. Priority shall be given to utilizing
available and appropriate public agency services. Custody in secure
facilities shall be provided by sworn peace officers or correctional
officers as defined by state law.
1210.10. The Department of Corrections shall evaluate the
intensive correctional supervision programs established pursuant to
this chapter and report the conclusions of its evaluation to the
Legislature by January 1, 2007. The evaluation shall include an
analysis of the effectiveness of these programs in reducing prison
overcrowding, recidivism, substance abuse, and state and county
corrections costs.
1210.11. If any court renders a decision that would have the
effect of requiring all counties to participate in the state-local
corrections partnership program or if any legislation, regulation, or
rule is enacted that has the effect of penalizing counties that do
not participate in the program established by this chapter, this
chapter shall become inoperative.
1210.12. (a) Any county that participates in the program shall
have no obligation to continue services for offenders if the state
discontinues funding for the program.
(b) Any county that participates in the program may reduce the
services provided correspondingly with any reduction in state
funding.
1210.13. This chapter shall remain in effect until January 1,
2008, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted
statute, which is enacted before January 1, 2008, deletes or extends
that date.