(a)
(1) The Division of Community Correction shall receive additional funding for committing to a reduction in the number of probation revocations that result from a technical violation or a new crime.
(2) The baseline for comparing probation revocation data shall be based on the number of probation revocations and expected length of stay.
(3) In order to qualify for the additional monetary incentives under this subchapter, the felony conviction rate for probationers must remain stable or decrease from the previous year.
(4) Each year the Division of Community Correction shall receive additional funds for reducing the net impact of revocations on the Division of Correction.
(5) The Division of Community Correction shall promulgate rules for the distribution and use of incentive funds that it receives, requiring that:
(A) No less than one-third (1/3) of the funds received each year are distributed to the individual probation or parole areas responsible for the revocation reductions while maintaining or improving public safety; and
(B) All of the funds received by the Division of Community Correction are invested in programs and practices designed to reduce recidivism.
(b)
(1) A competitive grant process will distribute grants to five (5) individual counties, multicounty partnerships, or judicial districts that meet criteria established to improve public safety and reduce their net impact on the Division of Correction.
(2) The Board of Corrections shall have the authority to:
(A) Manage the competitive grant process;
(B) Determine appropriate criteria;
(C) Award grants; and
(D) Collect and evaluate the data from all grantee sites.
(3) Applications can come from:
(A) Individual counties;
(B) Multicounty partnerships; or
(C) Judicial districts.
(4) Four (4) of the five (5) grants shall be awarded to the counties, multicounty partnerships, or judicial districts with the largest number of annual Division of Correction commitments that meet the program criteria and submit acceptable applications.
(5) One (1) grant shall be awarded to a county, multicounty partnership, or judicial district representing a rural region of the state, notwithstanding the number of Division of Correction commitments from the applicant so long as the program criteria are met and the application is acceptable.
(6) Each year, the grant recipient shall receive additional funds equal to one-half (½) of the averted costs for reducing the net impact of its sentences on the Division of Correction.
(7) The baseline for comparing the net impact of sentences shall be based on the number of admissions and expected length of stay.
(8) In order to qualify for the additional monetary incentives under this subchapter, the net impact of the county's, and multicounty's, judicial district's above-guidelines sentences, based on admissions and expected length of stay, must remain stable or decrease from the previous year.
(9) The board shall promulgate rules for the distribution and use of incentive funds to successful applicants.
Structure Arkansas Code