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BILL ANALYSIS |
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By: Hinojosa |
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
According to data compiled by the Legislative Budget Board, from September 2006 to March
2008, of the 65,000 offenders released from Texas prisons, the release of almost 14,000
offenders, about 20 percent, was contingent on the completion of a specified rehabilitation
program. During that same period, almost 7,000 offenders completed the assigned rehabilitative
program earlier than anticipated but were ineligible for release because their target release date
had not yet been reached. Currently, offenders who are required by the Board of Pardons and
Paroles to complete a treatment program as a condition of release are assigned a program start
date and a target release date based on an estimated completion date of the program. Offenders
sometimes complete the requirements for release earlier than the estimated target release date set
by the board but cannot be released, which leads to escalating costs and continued overcrowding
in prisons.
Reducing parole process delays for offenders who have finished their rehabilitative programs
earlier than the estimated target release date would help reduce the prison population. Granting
the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) this additional authority could decrease the
delay of time between program completion and release by up to 25 days, resulting in a shift of
offenders from prison to parole supervision. The shift from incarceration to parole will result in a
shift from a cost liability to a revenue enhancement for the state.
C.S.S.B. 1206 requires TDCJ, if an inmate successfully completes a TDCJ rehabilitation
program specified or approved by a parole panel before the parole month established for the
inmate, to promptly notify the parole panel for purposes of considering the inmate's immediate
release.
RULEMAKING AUTHORITY
It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.
ANALYSIS
C.S.S.B. 1206 amends the Government Code to require the Texas Department of Criminal
Justice (TDCJ), for an inmate who is required by a parole panel as a condition of release to
complete a specific TDCJ rehabilitation program before release, to place the inmate in a program
specified by the parole panel. The bill authorizes TDCJ to place the inmate in a different
program than the specified program with the approval of the parole panel. The bill requires
TDCJ, if an inmate successfully completes a TDCJ rehabilitation program specified or approved
by a parole panel and satisfies all other conditions of release specified by the parole panel before
the parole month established for the inmate, to promptly notify the parole panel for purposes of
considering the inmate's immediate release. The bill authorizes a parole panel, if the panel
determines that an inmate's release will not increase the likelihood of harm to the public, to
release the inmate on parole at an earlier time than the parole period established for the inmate.
EFFECTIVE DATE
September 1, 2009.
COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE
C.S.S.B. 1206 differs from the original by requiring the Texas Department of Criminal Justice
(TDCJ), if an inmate successfully completes a TDCJ rehabilitation program specified or
approved by a parole panel and satisfies all other conditions of release specified by the parole
panel before the parole month established for the inmate, to promptly notify the parole panel for
purposes of considering the inmate's immediate release, whereas the original requires a parole
panel to specify a range of dates, based on the date the inmate is likely to have completed the
specified program, during which TDCJ may release the inmate if the inmate successfully
completes such a program and satisfies all other conditions of release. The substitute differs from
the original by authorizing a parole panel to release an inmate on parole at an earlier time than
the parole month established for the inmate, rather than during any applicable range of dates
established by the parole panel as in the original, if the panel determines the release will not
increase the likelihood of harm to the public. The substitute omits a provision in the original
setting forth the requirements for the range of dates specified by the parole panel.