Last Friday, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) released their proposed Regular Regulations for the implementation of last November’s Prop 57 and the comment period to respond to those regulations began.
The general public has the ability to weigh in during the 45-day written public comment period, which ends September 1, 2017, at 5:00pm. There will also be a public hearing on September 1, 2017, from 9:00am-12:00pm in Sacramento. Click here to sign up if you’d like to attend.
The proposed Regular Regulations are unchanged from the Emergency Regulations released back in March. The heart of Proposition 57 is incentivizing people in prison to rehabilitate. This is an appropriate description because it touches on every articulated purpose: rewarding rehabilitation with the possibility of earlier release, protecting and enhancing public safety; preventing the likelihood of indiscriminate release of prisoners by a federal court; reducing wasteful spending on prisons, and by emphasizing rehabilitation, the revolving door of crime will be stopped.
The California Catholic Conference (CCC) will be advocating for access to rehabilitation programming and space to create that programming, encouraging credits for involvement including crime survivors, and awarding credits for inmates who participate in religious programs. These elements are critical in ensuring the greatest success of the program.
We invite you to share your comments asking the CDCR to consider the CCC’s recommended regulations pertaining to credits. You can write to the CDCR at the address below, or by email: CDCR-Prop57-Comments@cdcr.ca.gov.
Contact: Timothy M. Lockwood
Associate Director, Regulation and Policy Management Branch
California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
By Mail:
PO Box 942883
Sacramento, CA 94283-0001
By Fax: (916) 324-6075