Honorable Jerry Madden, Chair, House Committee on Corrections
FROM:
John S O'Brien, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
HB3538 by Thompson ( Relating to the release of certain inmates on medically recommended intensive supervision or on super-intensive supervision parole.), Committee Report 1st House, Substituted
The bill would amend the Government Code as it relates to the release of certain inmates onto medically recommended intensive supervision or onto super-intensive supervision parole. Under the provisions of the bill, the Board of Pardons and Paroles would be required (BPP) to release on super-intensive supervision an elderly inmate, defined as 65 years of age or older, who reaches parole eligibility and is not serving a sentence for a offenses specified by the provisions of the bill (a violent offense, certain sex offenses, and certain organized crime offenses), or is subject to a major disciplinary action within the 12-month period preceding the inmate's scheduled release date, who has not been reclassified by the department to a less favorable classification, or who is considered by the department to be a high-risk for or very high risk of unsuccessful reentry into the community following release from the department. The bill would also require the BPP to release on medically recommended intensive supervision certain inmates who have been identified by the Texas Correctional Office on Offenders with Medical or Mental Impairments (TCOOMMI) through an examination by at least two physicians, as being terminally ill, requiring long-term care, being in a persistent vegetative state, or having an organic brain syndrome with significant to total mobility impairment unless the inmate is sentenced to death or life without parole. Inmates whose conditions existed at the time of sentencing and had not deteriorated or who were serving a sentence for an offense excluded based on the bill would not be eligible for release onto medically recommended intensive supervision. Under the provisions of the bill, the BPP would be allowed to consider 3g offenders and sex offenders for release to discretionary medically recommended intensive supervision. The bill would also permit the BPP to release on discretionary medically recommended intensive supervision an inmate who has been identified by TCOOMMI through an examination by at least two physicians as being elderly, having a physical disability, or being a person with a mental illness or mental retardation.
Requiring the automatic release of offenders is expected to result in decreased demands upon the correctional resources of the State due to shorter terms of confinement in prison. In fiscal year 2010, the BPP considered 96,451 cases (77,540 cases for release to parole supervision and 18,911 cases for release to discretionary mandatory supervision) for release to parole supervision. Of those cases reviewed, 62,920 were denied release (53,416 cases for release to parole supervision and 9,504 cases for release to discretionary mandatory supervision). After removing those cases for inmates younger than 65 and those ineligible for release as outlined in the provisions of the bill there were 208 offenders who would have been released to super-intensive supervision parole during the first year as a result of the provisions of the bill. In fiscal year 2010, there were 7 offenders who would have been eligible for release to medically recommended intensive supervision as a result of the bill. It is likely an additional number of currently incarcerated inmates would be released earlier as a result of the bill but the number and the savings realized would be contingent on the number of inmates who were 65 or older, who were not subject to disciplinary action within the last 12-month period, who also were incarcerated for parole eligible offenses on the effective date of the bill, and the ability of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice to process offenders for release.
Assuming sentencing patterns and release policies not addressed in this bill remain constant, the probable impact of implementing the provisions of the bill during each of the first five years following passage, in terms of daily demand upon the adult corrections agencies, is estimated as follows: