HOUSE BILL REPORT

HB 1102

BYRepresentatives Wineberry, Appelwick, Brough, Winsley and P. King; by request of  Sentencing Guidelines Commission

Standardizing application of good-time credit statutes.

House Committe on Judiciary

Majority Report:  Do pass with amendments.  (10)

      Signed by Representatives Appelwick, Chair; Crane, Vice Chair; Belcher, Dellwo, Inslee, P. King, Locke, R. Meyers, H. Myers and Wineberry.

Minority Report:  Do not pass.  (7)

      Signed by Representatives Padden, Ranking Republican Member; Brough, Moyer, Patrick, Schmidt, Tate and Van Luven

House Staff:Steve Masciocchi (786-7377)

AS REPORTED BY COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY FEBRUARY 1, 1989

BACKGROUND:

Under the Sentencing Reform Act, convicted felons who are sentenced to terms of confinement of more than one year are sent to state Department of Corrections (DOC) facilities.  Other offenders are sent to county jails.

The Act provides for, but does not require, development of "good time" programs whereby a DOC prisoner can earn early release for good behavior.  A different statute authorizes, but does not require, award of good time to county jail inmates.  The responsibility for awarding good time lies with DOC or, for those in county jails, with the judge. DOC has established procedures for the award of good time.  Some counties have not.

There is currently no uniform application of good time credit for time spent in confinement pending a plea, trial or sentence.  As a result, some inmates do not receive good time credit for presentence incarceration.

SUMMARY:

BILL AS AMENDED: This bill requires all correctional facilities, including county jail and work release facilities, to develop and promulgate programs whereby inmates can earn good time credit for good behavior while in detention.  The only restriction which the bill places on good time programs is that the aggregate earned good time cannot exceed one-third of a prisoner's total sentence. The bill also provides for presentence good time credit for all prisoners sentenced to a county jail or the DOC.

The bill establishes that the responsibility for awarding good time lies with the correctional institution rather than with the judge in the case of county prisoners.  The bill applies only to sentences imposed for crimes committed on or after July 1, 1989.

AMENDED BILL COMPARED TO ORIGINAL:  The amended bill clarifies that county work release facilities must establish good time programs. The amendments provide that the bill will be applied prospectively to sentences imposed for crimes committed on or after July 1, 1989. The amendments also strike a current RCW section that is replaced by section 1 of the bill, and correct grammatical errors.

Fiscal Note:      Requested January 25, 1989.

House Committee ‑ Testified For:    Roxanne Park, Sentencing Guidelines Commission.

House Committee - Testified Against:      None Presented.

House Committee - Testimony For:    Sentencing Guidelines Commission supports the bill.

House Committee - Testimony Against:      None Presented.