Bill Text: AZ HB2626 | 2023 | Fifty-sixth Legislature 1st Regular | Introduced

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Bill Title: Correctional oversight committee

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2023-02-08 - House read second time [HB2626 Detail]

Download: Arizona-2023-HB2626-Introduced.html

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REFERENCE TITLE: correctional oversight committee

 

 

 

 

State of Arizona

House of Representatives

Fifty-sixth Legislature

First Regular Session

2023

 

 

 

HB 2626

 

Introduced by

Representative Carter

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

An Act

 

amending title 41, Arizona Revised Statutes, by adding chapter 20; relating to corrections oversight.

 

(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)

 

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:

Section 1. Title 41, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding chapter 20, to read:

CHAPTER 20

CORRECTIONAL OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE

ARTICLE 1. GENERAL PROVISIONS

START_STATUTE41-2351. Definitions

In this article, unless the context otherwise requires:

1. "Committee" means the CORRECTIONAL OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE.

2. "Covered issues" includes:

(a) Sanitation in prison facilities.

(b) Access to proper nutrition and a clean and adequate water supply.

(c) Livable temperatures in prison facilities.

(d) Physical or sexual abuse from fellow inmates.

(e) Physical or sexual abuse from Department staff or contractors.

(f) Credible threats against an inmate from other inmates, prison staff or contractors.

(g) Neglect of prison staff or contractors that results in physical or sexual trauma.

(h) Denial of rights afforded to inmates under federal or state law.

(i) Access to visitation and communication with family and legal representation.

(j) Any instance in which the committee determines an action or behavior to be such that it constitutes abuse or neglect against an inmate.

(k) Access to medical or mental health care or substance abuse treatment.

(l) Access to educational and rehabilitative programming, drug and mental health treatment and inmate jobs and vocational training.

(m) Access to the department's administrative remedies process for inmates and inmate representatives, including the availability of complaint and grievance forms and the timely and unbiased resolution of grievances.

(n) Adequate and qualified staff in each facility.

(o) Capital improvements or repairs that may be needed for facilities.

3. "Department" means the state department of corrections.

4. "Family member" includes an inmate's grandparent, parent, sibling, spouse, domestic partner, child, grandchild, aunt, uncle, cousin, niece or nephew or any other person who is related to the inmate by blood, adoption, marriage or a fostering relationship.

5. "Good cause" means a violation of a federal or state law, public corruption, fraud, DERELICTION of duty or abuse of office.

6. "Prison" or "facility" includes any place of confinement, not including county jails, that is operated by the Department or any nonprofit, for-profit, nongovernmental or private entity that enters into a contractual arrangement with this state or the Department to operate or maintain a place of confinement. END_STATUTE

START_STATUTE41-2352. Correctional oversight committee; members; public hearings; voting requirements; quorum; subpoena enforcement

A. The correctional oversight committee is established consisting of the following members:

1. Two members of the senate who are not members of the same political party.  the president of the senate shall select one member and The senate minority leader shall select one member.

2. Two members of the house of representatives who are not members of the same political party.  The speaker of the house of representatives shall select one member and the house of representatives minority leader shall select one member.

3. The following members who are appointed by the governor:

(a) One member who represents an inmate advocacy organization.

(b) One member who represents an organization that provides inmate training or rehabilitation programs.

(c) One male member of the general public who was previously incarcerated in the department. 

(d) One female member of the general public who was previously incarcerated in the department.

(e) One member who is a physician licensed pursuant to title 32, chapter 13 or 17 and who specializes in family medicine or internal medicine.

(f) One member who is a mental or behavioral health professional, who is licensed pursuant to title 32, chapter 19.1 or 33 and who has a history of providing mental health services or counseling to adults.

(g) One member who is a grandparent, parent, child, sibling, spouse or domestic partner of a person who completed a term of at least three years of incarceration in one or more facilities and who received an absolute discharge from the department within the five years preceding the date of the member's appointment.

(h) One member who represents an association or organization that represents correctional staff.

(i) Two public members.

B. Members who are appointed pursuant to subsection A, paragraph 3 of this section:

1. serve five-year terms and may not serve more than two consecutive terms. 

2. May not be current department employees or contractors or have been employed by or contracted with the department for at least ten years before appointment.

3. May not have parents, children, spouses or domestic partners who are current department employees or contractors unless specifically allowed by law.

C. Members who are appointed Pursuant to subsection A, paragraph 3, subdivisions (a), (b) and (i) of this section may not be employed by or represent an organization with an active service agreement with or financial interest in the department or otherwise provide for-profit services to inmates or family members. 

D. Members who are appointed pursuant to subsection A, paragraph 3, subdivision (i) of this section may not be either of the following:

1. Current or former employees of a law enforcement agency, a county attorney's office or the United States attorney's office.

2. A victim or in the same family as a victim of a crime that was committed by a current inmate in a facility.

E. Members who are appointed pursuant to subsection A, paragraph 3, subdivisions (c) and (d) of this section must have completed a term of at least three years of incarceration in one or more facilities and received an absolute discharge from the department within the five years preceding the date of the member's appointment.

F. One member who is appointed pursuant to subsection A, paragraph 1 of this section and one member who is appointed pursuant to subsection A, paragraph 2 of this section shall serve as cochairpersons. The cochairpersons may not be from the same political party. 

G. The committee shall meet quarterly, as the cochairpersons deem necessary, or on the call of the majority of the members.

H. the presence of nine members of the committee constitutes a quorum and a majority vote of the members present is necessary for the committee to take action on a matter.

I. Committee members are not eligible to receive compensation but are eligible for reimbursement of expenses pursuant to Title 38, Chapter 4, Article 2.

J. The committee may:

1. Hire staff, contractors and unpaid volunteers and secure office space, equipment and other services necessary to carry out the duties of the committee. Any employee, contractor or unpaid volunteer who is hired or retained by the committee has the same authority and duties of the committee described in this article.  A staff member or volunteer may not:

(a) Have a family member who is an inmate.

(b) Have a family member who is a current employee or contractor of the department.

(c) Be a current employee or contractor of the department.

(d) Be a victim or have a family member who is a victim of a crime committed by a current inmate in a facility.

2. Contract with experts as needed to assist in monitoring and inspecting facilities, assessing data and reviewing, investigating or resolving complaints.

K. The committee shall hold at least one public hearing each year to present, review and discuss the COMMITTEE's inspections, findings, reports and recommendations set forth in the committee's annual report prescribed in section 41-2357 and shall hold quarterly public hearings to present, review and discuss any other data, reports or findings that the committee deems relevant.

L. The committee shall conduct random biannual inspections of a facility and shall visit different facilities on each inspection. The committee may not announce an inspection to any individual or entity outside of the committee before the inspection occurs. The department shall ensure full access to the facility, inmates and staff consistent with section 41-2353, subsection A.

M. The legislature shall provide the committee with office space, meeting space, supplies and administrative personnel as needed.

N. The committee cochairpersons shall Meet with the governor and the director of the department at least two times each year to report on the work and findings of the committee.

O. The Committee may issue subpoenas to the department for records, documents or data in the department's possession and for department staff, contractors or representatives to appear and testify before the committee.  After a subpoena is served and, on application to the court, the committee may enforce a SUBPOENA in the same manner provided by law for the service and enforcement of a subpoena in a civil action.  If an entity fails to comply with a subpoena, the committee may pursue enforcement of the subpoena in a court or refer the subpoena to the speaker of the House of Representatives, the president of the senate or the chairman of any committee of the legislature for enforcement in the same manner and subject to the same penalties prescribed in chapter 7, article 4 of this title. END_STATUTE

START_STATUTE41-2353. Committee authority; access to department records and facilities; subpoena

A. The committee must have access in the same manner as the director, on demand, in person or in writing and with or without prior notice, to all facilities, including all areas that are used by or are otherwise accessible to inmates, department staff and contractors, and to programs for inmates at reasonable times which, at a minimum, includes access during normal working hours and visiting hours and the opportunity to interview any inmate, Department employee or contractor or other person for the purpose of:

1. Providing information about individual rights and the services available from the committee, including the name, address and telephone number of the committee facilities or staff.

2. Conducting official inspections as prescribed in sections 41-2352 and 41-2355.

3. Inspecting, viewing, photographing and video recording all areas of the facility that are used by or are accessible to inmates.

B. When accessing inmates, the department must give the committee the opportunity to meet and communicate privately and confidentially with inmates regularly, with or without prior notice, both formally and informally, by telephone, mail and electronic communication and in person. Department employees or contractors may not monitor, record or be present when the committee communicates with inmates.  With consent of the inmate, members of the committee may record meetings with inmates. A committee recording of an inmate is confidential and is not accessible to a department employee or contractor.

C. Access to department employees or contractors includes the opportunity to meet and communicate privately and confidentially with individuals during an inspection or normal working hours, with or without prior notice, both formally and informally, by telephone, mail and electronic communication and in person. With the consent of the department employee or contractor, committee members may record the meeting with the department employee or contractor.

D. The Committee may access, inspect and copy all relevant information, records or documents that are in the possession or control of the Department and that the committee considers necessary to investigate a complaint. The Department must assist the committee in obtaining the necessary releases for those documents that are specifically restricted or privileged for use by the committee.

E. Following notification from the committee with a written demand for access to Department records, the designated Department staff must provide the committee with access to the requested documentation not later than twenty business days after the committee's written request for the records. If the requested records pertain to an inmate death, threats of bodily harm, including sexual or physical assaults, or the denial of necessary medical treatment, the department must provide the records within five days, unless the committee consents to an extension of that time frame.

F. The committee must work with the Department to minimize disruption to the operations of the Department due to committee's activities and must comply with the department's reasonable security clearance processes, if these processes do not impede the activities allowed by this section.

G. The committee may subpoena records, documents or data that are in the department's possession or department staff, contractors or representatives to appear and provide information to the committee. A SUBPOENA that is issued by the committee must be served and, on application to the court, may be enforced in the manner provided by law for the service and enforcement of subpoenas in a civil action. If an entity fails to comply with a subpoena, the committee may pursue enforcement of the subpoena in a court or refer the subpoena to the committee for enforcement in the same manner and subject to the same penalties as a legislative subpoena pursuant to chapter 7, article 4 of this title. END_STATUTE

START_STATUTE41-2354. Confidential communications

A. All Correspondence and communication with the COMMITTEE are confidential and privileged.

B. The committee shall establish confidentiality rules and procedures for all information maintained by the committee to ensure that the identity of a complainant remains confidential before, during and after an investigation to the greatest extent practicable.  The committee may disclose a complainant's identifying information for the sole purpose of carrying out an investigation. END_STATUTE

START_STATUTE41-2355. Inspection authority; report

A. The committee shall inspect each facility and release a public report within two years after the effective date of this section. The committee shall conduct subsequent inspections on a staggered schedule depending on the facility's safety and compliance classification.

B. During an inspection, the committee shall assess or review all of the following:

1. The facility's policies and procedures that relate to the care of inmates. 

2. The conditions of confinement.

3. The availability of educational and rehabilitative programming, drug and mental health treatment and inmate jobs and vocational training.

4. Policies and procedures relating to visitation.

5. Medical facilities and medical procedures and policies.

6. Lockdowns at the facility that occurred since the last inspection. For the initial assessment, the committee shall review lockdowns that occurred during the previous three years.

7. Facility staffing, including the number and job assignments of correctional staff, the ratio of staff to inmates at the facility and the staff position vacancy rate at the facility.

8. Physical and sexual assaults at the facility that occurred since the last inspection.  For the initial assessment, the committee shall review assaults that occurred during the previous three years.

9. Inmate or staff deaths that occurred at the facility since the last inspection. For the initial assessment, the committee shall review inmate and staff deaths that occurred during the previous three years.

10. Department staff recruitment, training, supervision and discipline.

11. The availability of complaint and grievance forms at a facility and the accessibility of the administrative remedies process to inmates and inmate representatives.

12. Any other aspect of facility operations that the committee deems necessary over the course of an inspection or that relates to a covered issue.

C. After completing an inspection, the committee shall prepare and publish a report, make the report available to the public on the internet and submit the report to the Governor, the Attorney General, the president of the Senate, the speaker of the House of representatives, the correctional oversight committee and the Director of the state Department of Corrections and provide a copy of this report to the secretary of state.  The report must include:

1. A summary of the facility's policies and procedures relating to inmate care.

2. A description of the conditions of confinement.

3. A catalogue of available educational and rehabilitative programming, drug and mental health treatment and inmate jobs and vocational training.

4. A summary of visitation policies and procedures.

5. A summary of medical facilities and medical procedures and policies.

6. A summary of the lockdowns reviewed by the committee.

7. A summary of facility staffing, including policies relating to staff recruitment, training, supervision and discipline.

8. A summary of physical and sexual assaults that occurred at the facility and that were reviewed by the committee.

9. A summary of inmate or staff deaths that occurred at the facility.

10. A summary of the availability of complaint and grievance forms at the facility, the accessibility of the administrative remedies process for inmates and inmate representatives and the facility's timely and unbiased resolution of complaints and grievances.

11. Recommendations for improving conditions and safety within the facility.

12. A safety and compliance classification with a recommended timeline for the next inspection.

D. After completing an inspection, the committee shall assign the facility a safety and compliance classification. The committee shall establish a classification system that consists of the following three tiers and that is determined based on the factors described in subsection B of this section:

1. Tier One, which requires subsequent inspection within twelve months. The committee must assign tier one to maximum security facilities and facilities that present clear violations of rights, risks to inmate safety or severe lack of quality programming for successful inmate rehabilitation.

2. Tier two, which requires subsequent inspection between eighteen months and thirty-six months. The committee must assign tier two to facilities that may have violations of rights, substandard conditions of confinement or substandard programming options.

3. Tier three, which requires subsequent inspection within thirty-six months. The committee must assign tier three to facilities that have adequate conditions of confinement and programming options.

E. The Department shall respond in writing to each inspection report issued by the committee within twenty business days after the report is issued. The department's response must include a corrective action plan. The committee shall monitor the Department's compliance with the corrective action plan and may conduct further inspections or investigations as necessary to monitor compliance. END_STATUTE

START_STATUTE41-2356. Authority to investigate complaints; prohibited investigations

A. The committee may initiate and attempt to resolve an investigation on its own initiative or after receiving a complaint from an inmate, family member, inmate representative, Department employee or contractor or other person regarding any of the following that may adversely affect inmate health, safety, welfare and rights:

1. Abuse or neglect.

2. Conditions of confinement. 

3. Department decisions or administrative actions.

4. Department inactions or omissions.

5. Department policies, rules or procedures.

6. Alleged violations of law by Department staff that may adversely affect inmate health, safety, welfare and rights.

B. The committee may decline to investigate any complaint. The committee shall inform the inmate that the inmate is entitled to use the department's policies regarding resolution of inmate grievances and shall provide information and a complete set of forms to the inmate to complete the resolution of inmate grievances. The department shall toll any procedural deadlines for filing a grievance and the administrative remedy process time frames do not begin until five business days after the inmate has received the information and forms from the committee by inmate legal mail process. The committee shall decline to investigate a complaint if the inmate has failed to first use the department's policies regarding resolution of inmate grievances unless the inmate provides evidence that the complaint is legitimate and the inmate has made a good faith attempt to exhaust the administrative remedy process and was impeded or procedurally defaulted by no fault of the inmate.

C. If the committee finds that inmates repeatedly assert their inability to use the administrative remedy process despite the inmates' good faith efforts, the committee may conduct an unannounced inspection of the facility where the issues are occurring to determine whether the facility is making the administrative process and grievance forms accessible to inmates.

D. If the committee does not investigate a complaint, the committee shall notify the complainant in writing of the decision not to investigate and the reasons for the decision. 

E. The committee's action or lack of action on a complaint may not be deemed an administrative procedure required for exhaustion of remedies before bringing an action pursuant to 42 United States code section 1997e or filing a notice of claim that is required by section 12-821.01.

F. The committee may not investigate either of the following complaints:

1. A complaint that relates to an inmate's underlying criminal conviction.

2. A complaint from a Department employee or contractor that relates to the employee's or contractor's employment relationship with the Department unless the complaint relates to inmate health, safety, welfare or rehabilitation.

G. The committee may refer the complainant and others to appropriate resources or state, Tribal or federal agencies. 

H. The committee may not levy any fees for the submission or investigation of complaints.

I. After investigating a complaint, the committee must render a public decision on the merits of each complaint, except that the documents supporting the decision are subject to the confidentiality provisions of section 41-2354.  The committee must inform the inmate and the department of the decision. The committee must state the recommendations and reasoning if, in the committee's opinion, the Department or any department employee or contractor should do any of the following:

1. Consider the matter further.

2. Modify or cancel any action.

3. Alter a rule, practice or ruling.

4. Explain in detail the administrative action in question.

5. Rectify an omission.

J. On the request of the committee, the Department, within the time specified, shall inform the committee in writing about any action taken on the recommendations or the reasons for not complying with the recommendations.

K. If the committee believes, based on the investigation, that there has been or continues to be a significant inmate health, safety, welfare or rehabilitation issue, the committee must report the finding to the Governor, the Attorney General, the president of the Senate, the speaker of the House of representatives, and the Director of the state Department of Corrections and shall provide a copy of this report to the secretary of state.

L. If the Department conducts an internal disciplinary investigation and review of one or more department staff members as a result of an investigation, the Department's disciplinary review may be subject to additional review and investigation by the committee to ensure a fair and objective process.

M. Before announcing a conclusion or recommendation that expressly or implicitly criticizes a person or the Department, the committee shall consult with that person or the Department.  The committee may request to be notified by the Department, within a specified time, of any action taken on any recommendation presented.

N. The Department and the department's employees and contractors may not discharge, retaliate against or in any manner discriminate against any person because that person filed a complaint or instituted or caused to be instituted a proceeding under or relating to this section.

O. The committee may consider any alleged discharge, retaliation against or discrimination against a complainant to be an appropriate subject of an investigation.

P. Any Department employee or contractor who believes that the employee or contractor has been discharged or otherwise discriminated against by any person in violation of this section, within thirty days after the violation occurs, may file a complaint with the Industrial Commission of Arizona and is entitled to pursue and receive the remedies provided in Title 23. END_STATUTE

START_STATUTE41-2357. Annual report

A. By December 31 of each year, the committee shall prepare and publish an annual report, make the report available to the public on the internet and deliver the report to the Governor, the Attorney General, the president of the Senate, the speaker of the House of representatives and the Director of the state Department of Corrections and provide a copy of the report to the secretary of state.  The annual report must include:

1. A summary of the COMMITTEE'S inspections and complaint investigations conducted that calendar year, including the committee's findings and recommendations and the Department's responses and corrective actions. 

2. A characterization of the conditions of confinement.

3. A summary of available educational and rehabilitative programming, drug and mental health treatment and inmate jobs and vocational training.

4. A summary of visitation policies and procedures.

5. A summary of medical facilities and medical procedures and policies.

6. A summary of the lockdowns reviewed by the committee.

7. A summary of the staffing at each facility and in the Department overall.

8. A summary of physical and sexual assaults reviewed by the committee.

9. A summary of inmate or staff deaths that occurred at a facility.

10. A summary of the committee's investigations, findings and resolutions of any complaints.

11. Recommendations to the legislature and the Department regarding the following:

(a) How the committee and the Department are funded and staffed.

(b) Improving staff retention, training, working conditions, compensation, benefits, morale and safety.

(c) Improving inmate health, safety, conditions of confinement, medical care and mental health care.

(d) Improving visitation and limiting lockdowns and administrative segregation or solitary confinement.

(e) Improving complaint investigation and resolution and the department's administrative remedies process.

(f) Improving access to and quality and availability of educational and rehabilitative programming, drug and mental health treatment and inmate jobs and vocational training.

(g) Improving transparency about conditions in the facilities and the Department overall.

(h) Improving the disciplinary process to hold staff accountable for mistreatment of inmates.

(i) Preventing future violations of inmate rights that are protected under state and federal law.

(j) Improving facilities, including any necessary capital improvements and repairs.

B. On the request of the committee, the Department, within the time specified, shall inform the committee in writing about any action taken on the recommendations or the reasons for not complying with the recommendations. END_STATUTE

START_STATUTE41-2358. Inmate and family member complaint forms; hotline

A. The committee shall provide the following secure online forms:

1. The family form, which is made available on the committee's website and which allows family members, friends and advocates to submit complaints and make inquiries regarding covered issues on behalf of an inmate. 

2. The Inmate Form, which is made available in paper form and on the Department's secure intranet network and to which inmates may submit complaints and inquiries regarding covered issues on the inmate's own behalf.

B. The Director of the state department of corrections shall ensure that the Inmate Form is available and operating on at least twelve computers within each facility and is accessible to all inmates from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. each day. For inmates in administrative segregation or solitary confinement, the Department shall ensure that department employees and contractors provide inmates with access to paper copies of the Inmate Form or the online form on a computer or computer tablet on the inmate's request.  The Department shall make paper copies of the Inmate Form available, at no cost to inmates, in each facility's library, law library and recreational and medical facilities and shall ensure that an adequate supply of forms are available.

C. The committee shall create the Inmate Form in a secure format that excludes any electronic monitoring or reproduction by the Department and the department's employees and contractors. Department employees and contractors must treat paper copies of the Inmate Form as confidential and privileged in the same manner as legal correspondence or communication.  The paper form must have a preaddressed envelope for the inmate to seal the contents of the form and once sealed by the inmate may not be opened or otherwise damaged by a department employee or contractor. The department must accept the paper form and envelope sealed by the inmate and may not require inspection of the envelope contents before forwarding the paper form and envelope to the committee.

D. The committee shall establish a telephone hotline that family members, friends and advocates of inmates can call to file complaints and make inquiries regarding covered issues on behalf of an inmate.

E. The committee shall establish a secure telephone hotline that is available to all Department employees, contractors and inmates to file complaints and make inquiries regarding covered issues on their behalf.  The committee shall ensure that the telephone hotline is working and is properly monitored by performing random calls to the telephone hotline each month. The Director of the state department of corrections shall ensure that the secure telephone hotline and the hotline's use are made available to all inmates free of charge. The committee and the Director of the state Department of corrections shall ensure that calls to the secure telephone hotline are not monitored or recorded by Department employees or contractors.

F. On receiving a complaint or inquiry from a family form, an inmate form or a hotline, the committee shall do all of the following:

1. Confirm receipt of the complaint or inquiry within five business days.

2. Determine whether an investigation is warranted within seven business days after confirming receipt of the complaint and notify the complainant.

3. If the committee determines an investigation is unwarranted, provide a written statement regarding its decision to the complainant.

G. The Department and the department's employees and contractors may not discharge, retaliate against or in any manner discriminate against any person because that person has filed a complaint or instituted or caused to be instituted any proceeding under or relating to this section.

H. The committee may consider any alleged discharge, retaliation against or discrimination against a complainant to be an appropriate subject of an investigation.

I. A Department employee or contractor who believes that the employee or contractor has been discharged or otherwise discriminated against by any person in violation of this section, within thirty days after the violation occurs, may file a complaint with the Industrial Commission of Arizona and is entitled to pursue and receive the remedies provided in Title 23.

J. The committee's action or lack of action on a complaint made pursuant to this section is not deemed an administrative procedure required for exhaustion of remedies before bringing an action pursuant to 42 United States code section 1997e or filing a notice of claim pursuant to section 12-821.01. END_STATUTE

Sec. 2. Initial terms of the members of the correctional oversight committee

A. Notwithstanding section 41-2352, Arizona Revised Statutes, as added by this act, the initial terms of committee members who are appointed pursuant to section 41-2352, subsection A, paragraph 3, Arizona Revised Statutes, as added by this act, are:

1. Three terms ending January 1, 2027.

2. Three terms ending January 1, 2028.

3. Four terms ending January 1, 2029.

B. The governor shall make all subsequent appointments as prescribed by statute.