j_lc_2017a_2017-11-15t12:10:20z1 Hearing Summary

Date: 11/15/2017

Location: RM 271

12:16 PM -- County Courthouse and County Jail Funding and Overcrowding Solutions Interi



Senator Coram, chair of the County Courthouse and County Jail Funding and Overcrowding Solutions Interim Study Committee, presented Bills A, B, C, and Resolution A recommended by the committee. The summary report prepared for the Legislative Council Committee, copies of the bills, and the committee's charge can be found in Attachment A. The bills are as follows:



Attachment A - County Courthouses and Jails merged files.pdf



Bill A — Financial Assistance for County Jails and Courts. Bill A expands the responsibilities of the Underfunded Courthouse Facility Cash Fund Commission to include considering grants for jail construction or renovation in addition to grants for improvements to court facilities. The bill also changes the name of the commission to the Underfunded Court and Jail Facility Cash Fund Commission. The bill makes changes to allowable grant funding under the program, including allowing grants to be issued for up to 50 percent of a county’s annual voter approved debt service and creating a low-interest loan program to finance court and jail facility capital construction. Finally, the bill sets a five-year annual transfer of $30 million a year from the General Fund to the commission cash fund.



Bill B — Increase DOC Reimbursement to County Jails. The Department of Corrections (DOC) reimburses a portion of the expenses and costs incurred by counties and city and counties for housing DOC inmates. Bill B discontinues the General Assembly’s current annual rate-setting process and permanently sets this reimbursement rate in statute at $108.78 per person per day.



Bill C — Court System for Remote Participation in Hearings. Bill C requires the Division of Criminal Justice in the Colorado Department of Public Safety to consult with the Office of the State Court Administrator in the Judicial Branch to operate a telejustice program that is internet based to allow county and district courts to conduct judicial hearings with remote participation. The bill also sets forth a timeline to solicit requests for proposals, requires the promulgation of rules regarding program administration, and requires the Public Utilities Commission to identify areas of the state lacking in internet capability and make associated recommendations.



Joint Resolution A — Medicaid Eligibility Detained Individuals. Joint Resolution A urges the United States Congress to amend the law concerning Medicaid eligibility of incarcerated individuals so that persons who are detained in the state and local facilities but who have not been convicted of a crime retain their Medicaid eligibility until conviction.



Senator Coram answered questions from the committee on the various bills. Committee discussion ensued.



Mr. Mike Mauer, Director, Legislative Council Staff, came to the table in response to committee questions concerning bills that are not approved by the committee.