Colorado Legislative Council Staff
STATE
REVISED FISCAL IMPACT
(Replaces fiscal impact dated March 19, 1999)
Drafting Number: Prime Sponsor(s): |
LLS 99-0472 Rep. Kester Sen. Dennis |
Date: Bill Status: Fiscal Analyst: |
April 16, 1999 Senate Judiciary Kirk Mlinek (303-866-4784) |
TITLE: CONCERNING OFFENDERS SENTENCED DIRECTLY TO A COMMUNITY CORRECTIONS PROGRAM WHO FAIL TO COMPLETE THEIR SENTENCE.
Fiscal Impact Summary |
FY 1999/2000 |
FY 2000/2001 |
State Revenues General Fund |
|
|
State Expenditures General Fund |
$9,957 |
$3,455 |
FTE Position Change |
0.0 FTE |
0.0 FTE |
Other State Impact: None. |
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Effective Date: July 1, 1999, with applicability to escapes and abscondments occurring thereafter. |
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Appropriation Summary for FY 1999-2000: $9,957 General Fund appropriation for the Department of Corrections. |
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Local Government Impact: None. |
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The reengrossed version of the bill:
1) provides for a July 1, 2001, repeal of the provisions that require a person who escapes from a residential community corrections program or who absconds from a nonresidential community corrections program to forfeit any time credit deductions that they have earned; and
2) provides for a “no appropriation” clause, which states that the General Assembly has determined that the act can be implemented within existing appropriations.
Summary of Legislation
The bill directs that any offender who escapes from a residential community corrections program or absconds from a nonresidential community corrections program shall forfeit any time credit deductions they have earned. The program administrator shall submit, within thirty days, a statement to the sentencing court on the amount of time credits that would have been earned by the offender had they not escaped or absconded.
The bill affects those direct community corrections placements who are re-sentenced to prison and would increase the length of stay for such offenders. The bill does not affect credit for time actually served. The Appropriations Committee amendment would provide for a July 1, 2001, sunset date for the provisions concerning the forfeiture of earned time.
State Expenditures
The bill will have a fiscal impact on state expenditures in the Department of Corrections. The provisions of the bill prohibit an offender from retaining their earned time credits if they escape or abscond from a residential or nonresidential community corrections program. Persons who escape from residential or nonresidential community corrections programs will be returned to the Department of Corrections.
Based on information provided by the Office of Community Corrections, Department of Public Safety, the DOC’s average daily attendance is expected to increase 0.14 persons (beds) for the two-year period identified above. This represents the effect a class 6 felon being charged in FY 1999-00, and re-sentenced to prison in FY 2000-01 to serve out his/her full sentence. The average length of stay for a class 6 felon is 10.7 months.
Fiscal Impact on Correctional Facilities
The bill is subject to Section 2-2-703, C.R.S., which requires that bills which would result in a net increase in periods of imprisonment not be passed without five years of appropriations for prison bed construction and operating costs. Construction costs are estimated to be $69,467 per bed and operating costs $24,105 per bed. It should be noted that the construction costs reflect the funding needed to construct the beds in the fiscal year prior to when the additional offenders would enter the system. The table below summarizes the fiscal impact of the bill as amended by the House Appropriations Committee. The sunset provision in the amendment limits the fiscal impact of the bill to two years.
The FY 1999-00 cost to construct the bed to accommodate the 0.14 offender is $9,957. The offender is sentenced and incarcerated in year 2 (FY 2000-01). The loss of earned time that will be added to the 10.7 months average length of stay is 0.57 months, which brings the total average length of stay to 11.27 months. The sentence, even with the loss of earned time, will be discharged within the fiscal year. The year two operating cost for housing the inmate is $3,455. No other impacts are realized in the first two years.
FIVE-YEAR FISCAL IMPACT ON CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES (as Amended by House Appropriations) |
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Fiscal Year |
ADA Impact |
Construction Cost |
Operating Cost |
Total Cost |
FY 1999-2000 |
0.00 |
$9,957 |
$0 |
$9,957 |
FY 2000-2001 |
0.14 |
0 |
3,455 |
3,455 |
FY 2001-2002 |
NA |
0 |
0 |
0 |
FY 2002-2003 |
NA |
0 |
0 |
0 |
FY 2003-2004 |
NA |
0 |
0 |
0 |
TOTAL |
|
$9,957 |
$3,455 |
$13,412 |
Should the General Assembly choose to not sunset the provisions of the bill on July 1, 2001, the estimated five-year cost of the bill is $414,290.
State Appropriations
The fiscal note implies that the Department of Corrections will require a FY 1999-00 General Fund appropriation of $9,957 to implement the provisions of the bill. Pursuant to Section 2-2-703, C.R.S., the Department of Corrections would also require the outstanding five-year impact as noted in the box above.
Departments Contacted
Alternate Defense Counsel Corrections Judicial Public Safety
State Public Defender