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Arapahoe County staff urges amendments to prison population bill, commissioners take no formal position
Summary
County staff warned SB 26036’s 14‑day review deadline would overload community corrections boards and disrupt victim notification; staff asked for a 45‑day review window and removal or amendment of an earned‑time acceleration provision. Commissioners chose to take no formal position while monitoring association feedback and pursuing amendments.
Nico Johnson, a staffer in the commissioners’ office, told the board SB 26036 would require new notifications and faster review steps when the Department of Corrections vacancy rate falls below 3% for 30 straight days, and would impose faster timelines and placement duties on community corrections providers. “The legislative team recommends an amend position,” Johnson said, outlining deadlines requiring community corrections boards to act within 14 days and new placement/alternative‑placement duties.
Patty Smith, community resources, described the local workload and practical obstacles. Smith said current processing already requires extensive time: “It takes 8 to 10 hours to review all of those 25 cases in a month,” she said, and noted county programs currently operate with about 3.5% administrative funding instead of the statute’s 5% allocation. Smith and other staff warned that a 14‑day statutory deadline would be unrealistic without additional staff and would hamper victim notification and attendance at hearings.
Commissioners questioned how often the 3% vacancy trigger occurs; staff said DOC was near that trigger for a large portion of last year. Commissioners raised safety concerns about a provision that would allow some people regressed from community corrections to be placed in less restrictive settings, such as sober‑living, if their regression was not due to a new felony. Several commissioners described the bill’s earned‑time acceleration language as a separate concern and a potential “deal breaker.”
After extended discussion, staff recommended asking sponsors to amend the 14‑day review requirement to 45 days (30 days being the lowest acceptable), and to remove or limit the accelerated earned‑time provision. The board gave staff direction to work with the Community Corrections Association and to seek amendments from the bill sponsors, but the commissioners voted to record “no position” publicly at this time so staff could continue negotiations.
Next steps: county staff will coordinate with the community corrections association, reach out to bill sponsors to press for amendments (particularly extending the review deadline and addressing earned‑time language), and return to the board with any proposed amendment language or a revised recommended position.
