Bill > HB172

This bill amends Alaska state law to provide the Commissioner of Corrections with expanded authority to reduce the cost of housing prisoners through two primary methods: consolidating existing correctional facilities and designating prisoners for placement in out-of-state facilities. Specifically, for prisoners with remaining sentences longer than seven years who are placed in out-of-state facilities, the bill requires that they be housed separately from non-Alaska resident prisoners. Additionally, the bill mandates that the Department of Corrections conduct an annual estimate of cost savings resulting from these actions and include this estimate in their regular financial reporting. As an innovative feature, the bill suggests that the legislature may appropriate an equivalent amount of the estimated cost savings specifically for education purposes, creating a potential mechanism to redirect prison housing cost reductions into educational funding. This approach aims to provide more flexible and potentially more economical prisoner management while ensuring appropriate segregation of long-term inmates in out-of-state facilities.

Government Affairs

https://www.akleg.gov/basis/Bill/Detail/34?Root=HB172