Bill Text: CA AB277 | 2019-2020 | Regular Session | Introduced

California Assembly Bill 277 (Prior Session Legislation)

Introduced

Bill Title: Parole: reintegration credits.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)

Status: (Failed) 2020-02-03 - From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56. [AB277 Detail]

Download: California-2019-AB277-Introduced.html

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2019–2020 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill

No. 277

Introduced by Assembly Member McCarty
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Eggman and Quirk)

January 28, 2019

An act to add Article 1.4 (commencing with Section 3007.5) to Chapter 8 of Title 1 of Part 3 of the Penal Code, relating to parole.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 277, as introduced, McCarty. Parole: reintegration credits.

Under existing law, except as otherwise exempted, a person completing a term of imprisonment in the state prison shall be released for a period of supervised parole. Existing law specifies the length of parole for various classifications of inmates. Under existing law, an inmate is released to the county of their residence before incarceration or, when the interest of public safety is best served, to another location specified by the Board of Parole Hearings. Existing law authorizes the Board of Parole Hearings to establish and enforce rules and regulations governing parole. Existing regulations prohibit a parolee from traveling more than 50 miles from their residence without the approval of a parole agent.

This bill would create a program under which the length of a parolee’s period of parole would be reduced through the successful completion of specified education, training, or treatment programs, or by participating in volunteer service, while adhering to the conditions of parole. The bill would make this program inapplicable to a person who is required to register as a sex offender. The bill would also increase the 50-mile travel restriction for a parolee who successfully participates in the program, subject to certain restrictions. The bill would require the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and the Board of Parole Hearings to adopt regulations to carry out the program.

Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NO

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

Article 1.4 (commencing with Section 3007.5) is added to Chapter 8 of Title 1 of Part 3 of the Penal Code, to read:

Article 1.4. Reintegration Credits

3007.5.

(a) A parolee serving a determinate period of parole is entitled to earn reintegration credits to reduce the term of that parole. This section does not apply to a person who is required to register pursuant to Section 290.

(b) A parolee subject to lifetime parole may earn reintegration credits to advance the date of the parolee’s discharge review.

(c) Reintegration credits shall be earned at the following rates for completing the following programs or activities while on parole:

(1) (A) For the completion of an accredited academic program or course, as follows:

(i) For a general equivalency high school diploma, 12 months of credit.

(ii) For an associate’s degree, 12 months of credit.

(iii) For a bachelor’s degree, 12 months of credit.

(iv) For the completion of any quarter, trimester, or semester-long course taken towards an academic degree for which a passing grade was received and for which credit was not awarded for the completion of a degree, six weeks of credit.

(B) For purposes of this paragraph, “accredited” means that the program or course is accredited by an accrediting agency recognized by the United States Department of Education or the State of California.

(2) For the completion of a certified career or technical education or training program or certificate, six months of credit. For purposes of this paragraph, “certified” means that the career or technical education or training program or certificate is offered by an institution that is approved, certified, or sponsored by a government agency or state-recognized professional licensing or certification body that licenses or certifies persons in a particular profession, occupation, trade, or career field.

(3) For the completion of a cognitive behavioral treatment program, two months of credit.

(4) For the completion of a substance abuse treatment program or residential treatment program that is not ordered by a court, three months of credit.

(5) For the completion of a minimum of 12 voluntary service hours per month, 10 days of credit per month.

(6) Reintegration credits may be awarded pursuant to this section for academic achievements completed while on parole in cases in which the parolee began the academic program during the period of incarceration.

(d) Reintegration credits earned during the 12-month period before each annual review shall be awarded at the annual review. The department shall reduce the period of parole imposed on a parolee pursuant to Section 3000 by the amount of reintegration credit awarded at the parolee’s annual review. Once awarded, earned credits shall not be revoked.

(e) Any reintegration credits earned during the 12-month period before each annual review may, at the discretion of the parole agent, be revoked and not awarded only if a parolee has had a new arrest or a parole violation during that 12-month period.

(f) A parolee may not be awarded more than 12 months of credit earned during a 12-month period. Excess credits earned in a 12-month period before an annual review shall not be awarded in a subsequent year.

(g) In revoking earned credits, the parole agent shall utilize the Parole Violation Decision-Making Instrument described in Section 3768.3 of Title 15 of the California Code of Regulations.

(h) A parolee shall be awarded retroactive credits pursuant to paragraph (1) or (2) of subdivision (c) for educational or training programs that were completed during the parolee’s current period of parole but before the effective date of this section, subject to the restrictions in this section.

(i) As used in this section, “voluntary service” means any time spent volunteering for a nonprofit or government agency, including time spent visiting prisons, jails, or juvenile detention facilities. Any volunteer activity shall be approved by a parole agent and documented by a site supervisor in a manner prescribed by the department.

3007.55.

(a) A parolee who successfully earns and is awarded any amount of reintegration credits pursuant to Section 3007.5 shall, except as prohibited by law and subject to the approval of the parole agent, have their 50-mile radius of restricted travel increased by 25 miles after each annual review during which credits are awarded.

(b) The total restricted radius of travel authorized shall not exceed 125 miles.

(c) An increase in travel area made pursuant to this section shall exclude any areas within 35 miles of a victim or witness described in subdivision (f) or (h) of Section 3003 and shall not authorize travel across state borders without a travel pass.