Action to take for Good Time Bill

July 3, 2009
URGENT ATTENTION NEEDED --
HELP CONNECTICUT BALANCE THE BUDGET - 40 MILLION DOLLARS CAN BE SAVED IN THE FIRST YEAR!

RE: GOOD TIME BILL -SENTENCE REDUCTION FOR GOOD BEHAVIOR-
The bill was not passed in the budgetary regular session. A SPECIAL SESSION WILL BE MEETING WITHIN THE NEXT 2 WEEKS.

ACTION NEEDED: Call, email or write:
State Capitol Office
Governor M. Jodi Rell
Executive Office of the GovernorState Capitol
210 Capitol Avenue
Hartford , Connecticut 06106

Telephone
Greater Hartford Area: 860-566-4840
Toll Free: 800-406-1527
TDD: 860-524-7397

E-Mail
Governor.Rell@ct.gov

Click on this link to find out who your state representative is:
Find your town and click on the underscored number for each of the 3 categories:
House Districts / Senate Districts / Congressional Districts

Ask our state representatives, senators and Governor Rell why this bill wasn't considered.

Talking Points:

• If they passed Option 2- Scenario A of the report, the savings to the state would be 40 MILLION DOLLARS IN the 1st YEAR!
• Chairpersons Mike Lawlor and Andrew McDonald of the Judiciary Committee are in favor of the recommendations in the report
• The parole boards are in favor of the recommendations in the report
• The Dept of Corrections is in favor of the recommendations in the report
• The Governor's office wishes to close 2 prisons in the state, for this to be possible, the earned credit/risk reduction program would have to be implemented.
• Connecticut and New Hampshire are the only New England states that do not utilize an earned credit system as part of a risk reduction program. The other New England states, as well as 38 other states, in addition to the Federal Bureau of Prisons, utilize earned credits using their agency’s values concerning inmate accountability, community reintegration, emphasis on treatment and programs for offenders, and, in some states, recognition of the difference between violent and nonviolent offenses.

Click on this link to view the report submitted by the DOC for the Good Time Bill:

To check on the status of the budget, to see if this bill has passed or is being considered, please contact the Judiciary Committee at 860-240-0530. I've been talking with Sarah, she is VERY helpful!

Thank you for your time and attention!

You can copy and paste the attached letter to send to Gov. Rell and your representatives or print it and mail a copy.
Copy and Paste letter below

Dear Governor Rell,

I would like to inform you of my strong dissatisfaction that E-Cert Bill 6602 “Earned credit and risk reduction that grant sentence reduction credits based on good behavior and participation in work, educational, vocational, therapeutic or other programs while a person is incarcerated or being supervised in the community” was not even considered during the regular session for the budget. I am urging you to consider this bill as part of the budgetary special session.

Below is information gathered from the report submitted to Senator McDonald and Representative Lawlor by the Dept of Correction Commissioner Theresa C. Lantz..

According to the report, if Option 2, Scenario A was voted in, a savings of over 40 MILLION DOLLARS would be saved in ONE YEAR! Why are tax increases being considered and programs for the needy being taken away when this amount of money could be saved and has not even been considered?

Connecticut and New Hampshire are the only New England states that do not utilize an earned credit system as part of a risk reduction program. The other New England states, as well as 38 other states, in addition to the Federal Bureau of Prisons, utilize earned credits using their agency’s values concerning inmate accountability, community reintegration, emphasis on treatment and programs for offenders, and, in some states, recognition of the difference between violent and nonviolent offenses.

Implementation of an earned time incentive program in Connecticut would require statutory change to CGS18-100d, in which credit reductions on offender sentences are based on behavior. “Notwithstanding any other provisions of the general statutes, any person convicted of a crime committed on or after October 1, 1994, may be subject to supervision by personnel of the Department of Correction until the expiration of the maximum term or terms for which such person was sentenced.” This statute effectively eliminated “statutory good time.”

Option 2
Establish an incentive plan for all sentenced individuals who meet DOC criteria outlined in Section 10 (b) (2) and 10 (b) (3) of this report. Such individuals may be eligible for a reduction to their sentence at a rate of 10 days per month provided they are in compliance with the program, treatment and behavioral expectations outlined in their Offender Accountability Plan.

Option 2: Scenario A: Implementation of Option 2 would be effective July 1, 2009,
with the time credits applied retroactively to April 1, 2006 (when the DOC first
introduced the Offender Accountability Plan), for all offenders within the Department of
Correction whose offense date is on or after October 1, 1994.

After speaking with a representative at the DOC, I was told the dollar amount spent for each inmate’s “bed day” is $89.00 per day. This equates to $32,485 per year per inmate. If Option 2 Scenario A were voted in, the savings for one year in the state of CT would be $40,183,945 dollars!! This is based on retroactive credits that would release an estimate of 1237 offenders if adopted July 1, 2009, as these credits would be retroactive as of April 1, 2006.

Below is an estimate of the savings if Connecticut implemented reentry furloughs – the 90 day furlough would save the state close to 8 MILLION Dollars for 1 year.

REENTRY FURLOUGHS – Currently, there are no re-entry furloughs in the state of Connecticut . Below is a breakdown of the savings if this was introduced:
Based on 3,335 inmates:
30 days equates to 100,050 inmate days, or 274 inmates for 1 year. Savings: $2,649,324
45 days equates to 150,075 inmate days, or 411 inmates for 1 year. Savings: $3,973,986
60 days equates to 200,100 inmate days, or 548 inmates for 1 year. Savings: $5,298,648
90 days equates to 300,150 inmate days, or 822 inmates for 1 year. Savings: $7,947,972

Sincerely,
Your Name
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