I_PrisPop_2019A 10/30/2019 09:46:13 AM Committee Summary

The meeting was called to order.  Chair Herod made opening remarks and discussed the order of the meeting. She outlined the process for voting on bill draft requests and amendments. An agenda and a packet of bills and fiscal notes were distributed to the committee (Attachments A and B). 

Senator Gonzales presented Bill 3, concerning a study to examine operational processes within the criminal justice system.  She presented Amendment #1 (Attachment C).  She explained the merits of gaining a better understanding of how individuals move through the criminal justice system.  Committee members asked questions about the fiscal note and the costs of conducting the study as proposed in the bill. 

Bill Zepernick, Legislative Council Staff, answered questions about the fiscal note and the basis for the cost estimate. 

Aaron Greco, Legislative Liaison for the Department of Corrections, discussed the complexity of the study and the need for an outside contractor to conduct it. 

Committee members suggested that the bill include language about a partnership with the Judicial Branch, as well as provide more clarity and granularity of what the study hopes to accomplish. 

Senator Gonzales further discussed Amendment #1, which specifies the involvement of other organizations in the criminal justice system in the study and also provides a clearer explanation of what the study intends to capture. 

 

Committee members raised concerns that the bill may be outside of the committee's charge and discussion followed to that point.

Representative Herod explained Bill 2, concerning measures to manage the state prison population.  She recapped the recent prison tour by committee members. 

Committee discussion followed about private prisons, generally, and concerns were raised about the impact on rural communities if private prisons close.  Committee members discussed the committee's charge.  Questions were asked about private prisons housing prisoners from other states. 

Representative Herod returned to explaining the bill and discussed the importance of studying and creating a plan to close private prisons in the state. 

Discussion ensued about the role of private industry in corrections, and members raised concerns about making profits in this arena.  Further discussion was had about programming and recidivism rates in private versus state-run facilities.  The committee talked about balancing the needs of state and local communities.  Data collection and statistics were addressed. 

The committee discussed provisions in the bill that amend the escape statutes and earned time.   

 

Christie Donner explained the proposed amendments to the bill, starting with Amendment  #1 (Attachment D), which requires that reports be submitted to House and Senate Judiciary members.  Ms. Donner further claried that Amendments #3 and #4 (Attachments E and F) differentiate between escapees and walk-aways from community supervision.  She next explained Amendment #5 (Attachment G) about diversion hearings.  Lastly, she reported that Amendment #9 (Attachment H) addressed earned time.  She answered questions from the committee about the proposed absconding offense in the bill. 

 

Senator Rodriguez presented and explained Amendment #8 (Attachment I) to broaden the study of prison utilization beyond Centennial South Prison (CSP II). 

Senator Sonnenberg stated that he may submit amendments at the time of the vote. 

 

Representative Gonzales-Gutierrez explained Bill 1, concerning measures to improve outcomes for adults between the ages of 18 and 25 in the criminal justice system.  She explained the benefits of keeping this age group out of the adult Department of Corrections, as well as spoke to brain development and rehabilitation.  Representative Gonzales-Gutierrez explained her willingess to work with stakeholders on the bill as it moves through the process. 

 

Committee members brought up unintended consequences with the bill, such as the Victims Rights Act.  It was noted that district attorneys and victim-related organizations across the state oppose the bill as it is written.  The committee members discussed the fiscal note.   

 

 

Committee members discussed the age cut-offs in the bill.  Discussion ensued regarding how the bill needs additional work and stakeholder involvement. 

There was no public testimony.  Letters and commentaries about the bill drafts from interested parties were submitted for the record (Attachment J). 

The committee recessed. 

The committee resumed to vote on draft bill requests. Representative Gonzales-Gutierrez moved Bill 1 to Legislative Council , and it was seconded by Senator Gonzales. Committee discussion followed about the fiscal note and forthcoming stakeholder process. There were no amendments. Bill 1 passed by a vote of 4-2, with Senator Sonnenberg and Representative Pelton voting against it.

Representative Gonzales-Gutierrez and Senator Gonzales agreed to sponsor Bill 1.

Senator Gonzales moved Bill 2 to Legislative Council, and it was seconded by Reprentative Gonzales-Gutierrez.  

Amendment #1 to Bill 2 was moved by Senator Gonzales and seconded by Representative Gonzales-Gutierrez.  Passed without objection.

Amendment #3 was moved by Senator Gonzales and seconded by Representative Gonzales-Gutierrez.  Passed without objection. 

Amendment #4 was moved by Senator Gonzales and seconded by Representative Gonzales-Gutierrez.  Passed without objection.

Amendment #5 was moved by Senator Gonzales and seconded by Representative Gonzales-Gutierrez.  Passed without objection. 

Amendment #9 was moved by Senator Gonzales and seconded by Representative Gonzales-Gutierrez.  Passed without objection. 

Amendment #12 (Attachment K) was moved by Senator Rodriguez and seconded by Representative Gonzales-Gutierrez.  Passed without objection.

Amendment #11 (Attachment L) was introduced and moved by Senator Sonnenberg and seconded by Representative Pelton. Senator Sonnenberg explained that the amendment removes provisions regarding the study of eliminating private prisons.  The amendment failed on a vote of 2-4, with Senator Sonnenberg and Representative Pelton voting affirmatively.

Amendment #10 (Attachment M) was introduced and moved by Senator Sonnenberg and seconded by Representative Pelton.  Senator Sonnenberg explained that this amendment removes the one-for-one exchange between private prisons and CSP II.  The amendment failed on a vote of 2-4, with Senator Sonnenberg and Representative Pelton voting affirmatively.  

Amendment #2 (Attachment N) was introduced and moved by Senator Sonnenberg and seconded by Representative Pelton.  Senator Sonnenberg explained that this amendment allows for private prisons to take inmates from other states.  The amendment failed on a vote of 2-4, wtih Senator Sonnenberg and Representative Pelton voting affirmatively.   

The committee voted on a safety clause provision, moved by Representative Herod and seconded by Senator Gonzales.  The safety clause passed on a vote of 4-2, with Senator Sonnenberg and Representative Pelton voting against it.  

A final vote on Bill 2, as amended, was taken.  The bill passed on a vote of 4-2, with Senator Sonnenberg and Representative Pelton voting against it. 

Senator Gonzales and Representative Herod agreed to sponsor Bill 2. 

 

Senator Gonzales moved Bill 3 to Legislative Council and Representative Gonzales-Gutierrez seconded it.  

Amendment #1 to Bill 3 was moved by Senator Gonzales and seconded by Representative Gonzales-Gutierrez.  Passed without objection.  

Amendment #2 (Attachment O) was moved by Senator Gonzales and seconded by Representative Gonzales-Gutierrez.  Senator Gonzales explained that the amendment specifies the role of the Department of Law in the study.  Passed without objection.

A final vote on Bill 3, as amended, was taken.  The bill passed on a vote of 5-1, with Senator Sonnenberg voting against it.

Senator Gonzales and Representative Gonzales-Gutierrez agreed to sponsor the bill. 

Chair Herod discussed recommendations to the Department of Corrections from the interim committee, pursuant to SB 19-259.  She presented a draft letter regarding the recommendations, based on discussion during committee hearings regarding normalization, women, and treatment (Attachment P).  Committee members suggested a couple items to add to the letter.  There were no objections to submitting the letter to DOC. 

Chair Herod thanked the committee for their work and participation.