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| Budget woes: Will parolees get a free pass? |
| By seattletimes.nwsource.com - Jennifer Sullivan |
| Published: 10/11/2011 |
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Prison inmates convicted of murder and other violent crimes could be released without supervision if state lawmakers agree to a drastic set of cuts outlined by the state Department of Corrections. Under one proposal, roughly 12,000 of the 17,000 felons now supervised in the state's version of parole would be unsupervised upon release from prison, a move one Department of Corrections (DOC) official called "devastating." Other "reduction alternatives" proposed by DOC include increasing inmates' health-care co-pays to $4 from $3 and releasing inmates judged to be low and moderate risks to re-offend 120 days early, as long as they had not been convicted of a sex offense. Hoping to head off some proposed cuts, Corrections officials are making budget trims in advance of the state Legislature's special session set for the end of November. Among expenditures that could be on the chopping block is a 1,000-bed prison that DOC plans to open in Western Washington by 2016. The state, which is looking to cut nearly $2 billion from the budget this biennium, has asked nearly all major state agencies to submit budget plans reflecting both 5 percent and 10 percent across-the-board cuts. DOC's budget for the current biennium, which ends in June 2013, is $1.6 billion. The department already has cut $250 million from its budget over the past three years by closing three prisons and slashing 1,200 jobs. The deepest cut discussed by DOC would be to the agency's community corrections, or parole, division. Under the worst-case scenario of a 10 percent cut, 12,000 convicts could be released from community supervision, a move that would save the state about $92 million over 18 months. It also would require laying off 510 DOC community corrections officers and support staff, Corrections spokesman Chad Lewis said. Under the 5 percent scenario, DOC has proposed reducing the average length of community supervision from 16 months to six months. Corrections officials estimate the move would save almost $45 million over 18 months. Read More. |
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