Bill Text: HI SCR119 | 2011 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Earned-Time Program

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 6-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2011-03-21 - (S) Referred to PGM. [SCR119 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2011-SCR119-Introduced.html

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THE SENATE	S.C.R. NO.	119
TWENTY-SIXTH LEGISLATURE, 2011
STATE OF HAWAII

SENATE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

 

 

REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY TO determine the feasibility of establishing an earned-time program.

 

 

 

     WHEREAS, at least thirty-one correctional jurisdictions use an incentive system that rewards inmates for positive behavior while incarcerated; and

 

     WHEREAS, these incentive systems reward inmates with "earned-time credits"; and

 

     WHEREAS, these credits are earned when the inmate participates in prison programs or activities including but not limited to education, substance abuse treatment, or vocational training; and

 

     WHEREAS, earned-time credits are a proven model that offers selected inmates a shortened prison stay if they complete educational, vocational, or rehabilitation programs that boost their chances of successful reentry into the community and the labor market; and

 

     WHEREAS, the opportunity to earn sentence credits provides a significant incentive to prisoners who currently are penalized for misconduct but rarely rewarded for positive efforts; and

 

     WHEREAS, awarding earned-time credits is a common correctional practice nationally; and

 

     WHEREAS, there is no evidence that permitting earned-time credits presents a risk to public safety; and

 

     WHEREAS, permitting earned-time credits does not require the release of any particular prisoner, make institutional management more difficult, or interfere with the discretion of the parole board; and

 

     WHEREAS, earned-time credits would provide the Department of Public Safety with a useful tool for managing institutional behavior and promoting participation in rehabilitative programs; and

 

     WHEREAS, earned-time credits could significantly reduce the prison population, reduce the population of Hawaii inmates serving sentences on the United States mainland, and save taxpayers money; and

 

     WHEREAS, the rehabilitation of inmates is an important step in the process of enabling inmates to successfully reenter the community; and

 

     WHEREAS, the Department of Public Safety has testified that more than thirty per cent of the men incarcerated on the United States mainland are classified as community custody; and

 

     WHEREAS, a report released by the National Conference of State Legislatures in July 2009 stated that earned time helps states reduce the corrections budget burden and allows funds saved to be invested in programs that reduce recidivism and help build safe communities; and

 

     WHEREAS, instituting an earned-time credit program can accomplish the goals of bringing those incarcerated on the United States mainland back home, saving money by reinvesting correctional dollars from incarceration to community programs, and keeping local money circulating in the local economy; now, therefore,

 

     BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-sixth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2011, the House of Representatives concurring, that the Department of Public Safety is requested to determine the feasibility of establishing an early parole eligibility program for Hawaii inmates incarcerated in Hawaii and on the mainland based upon a study of earned-time credit programs established under the laws of other jurisdictions; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Public Safety is requested to incorporate analysis and assessment of the appropriate criteria to be used for an earned-time program for Hawaii inmates incarcerated in Hawaii and on the mainland; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Public Safety is requested to report its findings and recommendations, including any proposed legislation, regarding earned-time programs to the Legislature not later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2012; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to Governor, the Director of Public Safety, the Chair of Hawaii Paroling Authority, the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Chair of the Senate Committee on Public Safety, Government Operations, and Military Affairs and the Chair of the House of Representatives Committee on Public Safety and Military Affairs.

 

 

 

	OFFERED BY:	_____________________________

Report Title: 

Earned-Time Program