Eliminate Prisoner Boot Camp Sunset

House Bill 4538

Sponsor:  Rep. Rick Jones

Committee:  Appropriations

Complete to 6/10/09

A SUMMARY OF HOUSE BILL 4538 AS INTRODUCED 3/10/09

The bill would amend the Corrections Code (MCL 791.234a) to eliminate a sunset of September 30, 2009 on prisoner participation in the special alternative incarceration (SAI, or "boot camp") program.  The sunset was placed on the prisoner program by 2007 PA 158, which extended prisoner SAI eligibility -- then limited to first-time prisoners -- to prisoners who had once previously been in prison.

FISCAL IMPACT:

As of June 1, 2009, there were a reported 264 prisoners (25 women, 239 men) in the SAI program; there also were 154 probationers (9 women, 145 men), for a total program population of 418.   The Department of Corrections projects that if prisoner placements in the 90-day SAI program were to cease on July 1 in anticipation of the September 30 sunset, it would need an additional 390 prison beds by the end of the fiscal year.  Based on an assumption that prisoner placement in SAI would continue to expand to a maximum capacity of 580 beds and would stay fully occupied, the Department projects that the annualized bed space impact would be 1,842 by the end of Fiscal Year 2009-10, peak at 1,927 in December 2010, and decline thereafter, stabilizing at around 1,620. 

Enactment of the bill would allow avoidance of the cost of prison beds that otherwise would have to be returned to service.  The cost of an additional 1,600 to 1,800 prison beds would be roughly $35 to $45 million annually; actual costs would depend on the security levels of the affected prisoners, staffing levels, and which prisons or units were reopened.  The Department of Corrections reports that the SAI program costs $73.73 per offender per day; cost of the 90-day program for 1,600 to 1,800 prisoners thus would be about $10.6 to $11.9 million.  Net cost avoidance under the bill therefore would be approximately $25 to $35 million. 

                                                                                                  Fiscal Analyst:   Marilyn Peterson

■ This analysis was prepared by nonpartisan House staff for use by House members in their deliberations, and does not constitute an official statement of legislative intent.