BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                                  SB 127
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   August 9, 2000

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS 
                              Carole Migden, Chairwoman

                    SB 127 (Polanco) - As Amended:  June 6, 2000 

          Policy Committee:                             Public  
          SafetyVote:5-2

          Urgency:     No                   State Mandated Local Program:  
          No     Reimbursable:               

           SUMMARY  

          This bill:

          1)Requires the state paroling authority - the Department of  
            Corrections (CDC) or the Board of Prison Terms (BPT) -  in  
            cases where an inmate has participated in an in-prison drug  
            treatment program or a mental illness treatment program,  to  
            give "serious consideration" to paroling that person to a  
            county with an aftercare treatment program appropriate for the  
            in-prison program and the needs of the inmate. If the inmate  
            has the primary responsibility for children, priority would be  
            given to placement in a county that has an aftercare program  
            that allows children to be present.

          2)Requires a report to the Legislature on or before March 1,  
            2002.

          3)Sunsets January 1, 2003.

           FISCAL EFFECT  

          1)Moderate GF costs - in excess of $150,000 - to the extent that  
            parolees who would otherwise not receive aftercare services do  
            so as a result of this bill. At a cost of about $50 per day,  
            if 20 parolees received aftercare treatment for six months as  
            a result of this bill, the annual cost would be about   
            $180,000. 

          2)Absorbable costs to the CDC to produce a report.

           COMMENTS  








                                                                  SB 127
                                                                  Page  2


           1)Rationale  . According to the author, "The one consistent  
            message I get from inmate-addicts who are serious about their  
            recovery is that they will not get to go into an aftercare  
            drug treatment program upon their release because their county  
            of last legal residence doesn't have such a program. I have  
            also heard from parolees who want to attend such a program who  
            have been told by their parole agent that they cannot attend  
            an out-of-county program."

            "This bill is fiscally responsible by ensuring that the  
            millions of taxpayer dollars spent on in-prison drug treatment  
            is not wasted because there is no follow-up in the community.   
            The bill would give parole agents the option of allowing a  
            parolee to participate in a drug treatment program outside of  
            the county where they would normally be paroled."  

           2)Current law  (a) requires the BPT, in the case of  
            indeterminately sentenced inmates, or the CDC, in the case of  
            determinately sentenced inmates, to parole an inmate to the  
            county that was the last legal residence of the inmate prior  
            to incarceration; and (b) allows for an inmate to be released  
            to another county if its in the best interests of the public.   
             

           3)Suggested Amendment  . To address local concerns that this bill  
            could result in an over-concentration of parolees in counties  
            with aftercare programs, the bill could be amended to require  
            the BPT and the CDC to consider the input of county boards of  
            supervisors and county sheriffs relating to out-of-county  
            placements.

           Analysis Prepared by  :    Geoff Long / APPR. / (916)319-2081