Testimonies
TCJC’s Solutions for Sentencing and Incarceration project provided numerous testimonies during the 80th legislative session on bills that affect the criminal justice system.  Read the testimonies below to find out TCJC’s stance on these bills.  Also, check out our section on the 80th legislative session for more information on these bills (bill summaries, fact sheets, talking points, and bill analyses).
 
TCJC testified on the following topics:
 

 

TDCJ Sunset Recommendations Bill

Every dozen years, the Texas Legislature comprehensively analyzes all government agencies through a process called a “Sunset” review, and 2007 was the year that Texas’ prison and community supervision systems came under special scrutiny.  Provisions in the “Sunset” bill for TDCJ will hold the Board of Pardons and Paroles more accountable and force them to explain decisions not to follow their own guidelines when refusing to release parole-eligible prisoners.
 
April 2, 2007 – The Senate Committee on Government Organization held a hearing regarding SB 909 (relating to the continuation and functions of the Texas Board of Criminal Justice, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, the Correctional Managed Health Care Committee, and the Board of Pardons and Paroles). Check out TCJC’s testimony on this bill regarding the Sunset Review.
 
 

Addressing Prison Overcrowding Through Probation Reform

 

Probation revocations contribute to as many as a third of prison admissions annually.  The cause for these high levels of revocation lies in the often misdirected purpose of probation programs across Texas: they are generally tailored to monitor compliance with court mandates rather than to promote rehabilitation and reduce recidivism.  
 
April 23, 2007 – The House of Representatives Committee on Corrections held a hearing regarding SB 166 (relating to a prison diversion progressive sanctions program). This bill authorizes grant funding for probation departments that would help them implement a progressive sanctions model to reduce the number of probations who commit technical violations.
 
 

May 15, 2007 – The Senate Committee on Criminal Justice held a hearing regarding HB 1678 (relating to the operation of a system of community supervision). 

 

 
 
 
May 8, 2007 – The Senate Committee on Criminal Justice held a hearing regarding HB 312 (relating to the burden of proof in a community supervision revocation hearing regarding a defendant’s ability to make certain court-ordered payments).
 
 
 
March 20, 2007 – The House of Representatives Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence held a hearing regarding HB 337 (relating to the consequences of a defendant’s violation of a condition of community supervision).
 
 
 
May 1, 2007 – The Senate Committee on Criminal Justice held a hearing regarding HB 1610 (relating to the requirement that a judge release on community supervision certain defendants convicted of certain state jail felonies). 
 
 
 

Addressing Prison Overcrowding Through Parole Reform 

Most experts agree that one of the causes of Texas prison overcrowding is the failure of the Board of Pardons and Paroles (BPP) to follow its own guidelines for releasing non-violent offenders.  Unfortunately, the BPP is more likely to follow its guidelines when releasing violent recidivist felons than people with low-level drug or DWI convictions.  In 2007, several important bills were aimed at changing these longstanding dynamics.
 
May 11, 2007 – The House Committee on Corrections held a hearing regarding SB 838 (relating to the revocation or modification of a person’s parole).  This bill prohibits technical revocations for non-violent, non-sexually related parolees, ensuring that individuals released from incarceration are not unnecessarily sent back to prison for violations that do not constitute a threat to the public.
 
 
April 2, 2007 – The House of Representatives Committee on Corrections held a hearing regarding HB 3702 (relating to mandatory supervision for certain drug possession offenses).  
 
 
 
 
March 20, 2007 – The House of Representatives Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence held a hearing regarding HB 403 (relating to the early termination of parole or mandatory supervision for certain parolees who successfully complete a residential substance abuse treatment program).
 
 
 
April 11, 2007 – The House of Representatives Committee on Corrections held a hearing regarding HB 3736 (relating to establishing parole officer maximum caseloads).  This bill creates a maximum caseload for parole officers based on the types of offenders under supervision. 
 
 
 
May 8, 2007 - The Senate Committee on Criminal Justice held a hearing regarding HB 2611 (relating to the eligibility of certain inmates for medically recommended intensive supervision). This bill allows the supervised release of elderly, mentally ill/retarded, terminally ill, or constant care for 3g offenders over the age of 55.  It also allows the release of registered sex offenders in a vegetative state.  
 

Reducing Jail Overcrowding by Increasing Law Enforcement and Judicial Discretion 

In 2007, Governor Rick Perry signed a law that would save money and jail space by allowing police to issue a citation and notice to appear in court instead of making an arrest for various low-level offenses.

 

May 15, 2007 – The Senate Committee on Criminal Justice held a hearing regarding HB 2391 (relating to the appearance of certain misdemeanor offenders before a magistrate).  This bill authorizes peace officers to issue citations for certain Class B misdemeanors instead of taking alleged offenders before a magistrate, thereby allowing these offenders to avoid pre-trial incarceration for minor offenses. 

 

Addressing Prison Overcrowding Through Treatment Alternatives 

 

The lack of treatment resources in Texas is a major source of prison overcrowding.  The Board of Pardons and Paroles frequently won’t release drug and DWI offenders who haven’t received treatment even when waiting lists are many months long.  And studies show drug-addicted probationers who receive treatment are more likely to succeed than those who don’t.  The Legislature and Governor approved major new treatment resources in 2007 as well as several key bills to make treatment a more attractive option for courts than incarceration where appropriate.

 

May 7, 2007 – The House of Representatives Committee on Corrections held a hearing regarding SB 1909 (relating to community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision for certain drug possession offenses and to a person’s eligibility for an order of nondisclosure following a term of community supervision for any of those offenses). 

 

May 8, 2007 – The Senate Committee on Criminal Justice held a hearing regarding HB 530 (relating to the operation and funding of drug court programs).  Drug courts are a proven effective tool for addressing offenders with substance abuse problems as they save money, help alleviate prison overcrowding, reduce crime, and encourage offender responsibility and success. 

 

April 2, 2007 – The House of Representatives Committee on Corrections held a hearing regarding HB 1875 (relating to the operation and funding of drug court programs).  This bill would permit a county to establish a drug court program exclusively for persons arrested for, charged with, or convicted of a DWI offense.

 

 

April 30, 2007 – The House of Representatives Committee on Corrections held a hearing regarding SB 1780 (relating to the use of proceeds from criminal asset forfeiture to fund the operation of drug court programs in certain counties). This bill requires district attorneys to deposit 10% of collected forfeiture funds to finance drug court programs.

 
 

Improving Prison Conditions 
 

Conditions inside Texas’ prison system are notoriously bad, so TCJC was excited to see several important pieces of new legislation aimed at making prisons more humane and rehabilitation-oriented pass into law. 

 

April 11, 2007 – The Senate Committee on Criminal Justice held a hearing regarding SB 1580 (relating to the provision of pay telephone service to inmates confined in facilities operated by TDCJ).  This bill requires TDCJ to solicit bids for a private contract to give prisoners phone access. Access would be limited through restricted approved call lists, monitoring of calls, extensive data gathering, and use of biometric identifiers.

 

April 24, 2007 – The House of Representatives Committee on Corrections held a hearing regarding SB 453 (relating to the testing of certain inmates for HIV of AIDS). 

  

 

 

 

March 6, 2007 – The House of Representatives Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence held a hearing regarding HB 681 (relating to post-conviction DNA testing). This bill implements the council’s recommendations by explicitly authorizing judges to order post-conviction forensic testing and specifying who will pay for forensic tests.  

 

 

Addressing the Needs of Incarcerated Mothers and Pregnancy

 

Texas legislators finally acted to do something about the growing number of young women in the Texas prison system that are pregnant or recently gave birth to a child.  Nobody knows what happens to a child taken away from its mother so young, so it’s very important that Texas acted to protect these children while encouraging mothers to be more responsible.

 

May 17, 2007 – The Senate Committee on Criminal Justice held a hearing regarding HB 199 (relating to a residential infant care program for mothers confined in TDCJ facilities).  

 

 

 

 

 

February 28, 2007 – The House of Representatives Committee on Corrections held a hearing regarding HB 424 (relating to a competitive grant program to fund nurse-family partnership programs in certain communities in Texas).