2021 Legislative Session, Our Priorities
The Montana Coalition for Public Safety was formed to work with lawmakers to build a just, fair, and accurate justice system that makes Montana safer for everyone. As the 2021 legislative session begins, our ideologically diverse group has identified the following priorities for lawmakers to focus on this year.
Create Certificates of Rehabilitation
In order to ensure better outcomes for the folks re-entering society, lawmakers should create a certificate that signals to the job market that individuals have paid their debt to society and should now be given job opportunities and real second chance.
Studies show that formerly incarcerated individuals who secure a job are less likely to reoffend (CITE). This certificate would also protect businesses from “negligent hiring” lawsuits.
An ideal certificate of rehabilitation program would also prevent occupational licensing boards and publicly funded schools from rejecting applicants based on prior convictions.
Pre-trial Surveillance Reform
Montana law currently requires individuals who are suspected of a crime to pay for the use of technology to remotely monitor their location. This cost can be prohibitive to many individuals and forces those who cannot pay for these services to go to jail while they await trial, likely losing their job, connection to their communities and families while under suspicion of a crime.
This results in a criminalization of poverty. It means that Montana taxpayers are paying to house and feed individuals who, if they could pay for the use of tracking technology, could be home with their families while under surveillance. It means Montana taxpayers are paying for people to lose their job just for being suspected of committing a crime.
It costs $10 a day to remotely monitor someone and between $69 — $100 to keep someone in jail. Lawmakers should reform this system to require localities and the state to pay for monitoring services to create a pre-trial system that is smarter public safety and softer on taxpayers.
Data Transparency Study Bill
Currently, there is limited information about how Montana’s justice system is operating. The details are unknown to both lawmakers and the public without a formal (FOIA) request. Lawmakers should pass a study bill to determine how to best establish a central data tracking system that tiers together all the important data on what is happening within our criminal justice system. We would like the interim committee to look at how to anonymize and publish the data with high industry standards. Ultimately, this will help drive an evidence-based approach to future reforms and provide accountability to all local and state actors in the justice system.
