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Priority Area 1: Reconvene the Justice Reinvestment II Working Group to monitor implementation and develop additional policy recommendations for improving post-prison treatment, services, and supervision.
Background: Act 148 (S.338) call for the Justice Reinvestment II Working Group to reconvene with the addition of a representative from the parole board. In addition to overseeing the implementation of Act 148, the working group is also tasked with identifying gaps in behavioral health services for individuals in the criminal justice system; determining how to share risk assessment and programming information to inform plea agreements, sentencing, and revocation decisions; studying presumptive probation; evaluating earned good time for individuals on probation; exploring the use of probation midpoint reviews in reducing supervision terms; and evaluating parole eligibility for older adults prior to meeting their minimum sentence.

Act 148 requires the working group to make policy recommendations to the House and Senate Judiciary and House Corrections by January 15, 2021, and again by January 15, 2022.

Update: In April, CSG Justice Center staff were invited to address the House Corrections and Institutions Committee to provide background on a Justice Reinvestment II Working Group recommendation to adopt modifications to Vermont’s midpoint review process (S.45). The purpose of this recommendation was to make midpoint review more presumptive and encourage its use. The bill was introduced by Senator Sears in January, and the House Corrections and Institutions sought to amend and expand S.45 to strengthen probation, help ensure appropriate victim notification about the midpoint review process, and direct the commissioner to review and recommend discharge. S.45 passed the House and the Senate and is awaiting the governor’s signature.

In addition, CSG Justice Center staff have started to prepare for the upcoming June 15 working group meeting. During the 2020 JRII process, working group members sought to prioritize examining mental health and substance use disorder and probation earned credit/midpoint review. For the upcoming relaunch, members will examine the outstanding statutory duties, like probation as a presumptive sentence and parole eligibility for older incarcerated adults. To further understand those duties, CSG Justice Center staff have connected with Defender General, ACLU, Attorney General’s Office, DOC, Parole Board and State Representative to help inform the upcoming meetings.
Priority Area 2: Implement presumptive parole, earned good time, and furlough status consolidation.
Background: Act 148 included three primary policy reforms to improve outcomes for people on post-prison supervision and prioritize bed space for people who have been convicted of the most serious offenses. First, the act established a new presumptive parole process for individuals with qualifying convictions who have served their minimum sentence and meet programming and behavior requirements. Qualifying convictions during initial implementation include most nonviolent offenses prior to an eligibility expansion in 2023. Second, the act expanded the amount of earned time a person could accrue from 5 to 7 days. And third, it streamlined Vermont’s 17 different furlough legal statuses, all with unique administrative requirements and created a primary furlough status called “Community Supervision Furlough” to improve clarity in release expectations for people in custody, victims, and Department of Corrections (DOC) staff. The act also creates a review process with expanded due process for furlough returns or revocations over 90 days.

Update: In April, CSG Justice Center staff assisted Vermont in submitting their application for Category 2 subaward funding to support implementation efforts. CSG Justice Center staff also continued to meet regularly with DOC and parole board staff and leadership to monitor the ongoing implementation of presumptive parole and community supervision status and policy changes.

Priority Area 3: Evaluate the current use of sanctions and incentives and recommend improvements to increase adherence to evidence-based practices.
Background: During Phase I, Vermont’s Justice Reinvestment II Working Group found inconsistencies in how community supervision officers respond to non-compliance, as well as data collection challenges that limited the DOC’s ability to fully monitor the implementation of sanctions and incentives. Act 148 requires the DOC to conduct further analysis and report back to the legislature on ways to strengthen the use of sanctions and incentives to ensure they reflect best practices in reducing recidivism and encouraging behavior change. This includes exploring regular data collection and analysis processes to inform policy and practice changes, as well as monitor implementation.

Update: In April, CSG Justice Center staff assisted Vermont in submitting a subaward application that includes funding for a new data system module to track the use of incentives and train community supervision officers in evidence-based practices.

Priority Area 4: Analyze current policy and practice to identify ways to improve assessment processes, care coordination, information sharing, and case management for people in the criminal justice system who have complex behavioral health issues.
Background: During Phase I, the Justice Reinvestment II Working Group identified gaps in data and information sharing that created challenges in identifying and serving people in the criminal justice system who have complex behavioral health needs, including opioid addiction. Act 148 requires the Agency of Human Services (AHS) to report on current processes for identifying people with behavioral health needs who are incarcerated or under supervision to the working group by December 1, 2020. The working group is then tasked with using this information to develop policy and practice changes to improve assessment processes, care coordination, information sharing, and case management across criminal justice and behavioral health system providers. The working group is required to report their findings and recommendations to the legislature by January 1, 2021.

Update: In April, CSG Justice Center staff finalized a contract with Policy Research Associates (PRA) to support the convening of an AHS internal, cross-departmental team as recommended by the Justice Reinvestment II Working Group. CSG Justice Center staff also participated in a series of meetings to introduce PRA staff to AHS leadership and continued to inform iterative drafts of AHS’s implementation plan.

Priority Area 5: Increase criminal justice data collection and analysis capacity and establish outcome measures and regular data monitoring to track the implementation progress of Act 148.
Background: Vermont has continued to encounter data collection lapses and analysis gaps that often limit the state’s ability to comprehend and address the state’s public safety and behavioral health challenges. Justice Reinvestment II provides an opportunity for Vermont to use technical assistance to improve the use and accessibility of data while supporting implementation and creating plans for capacity building.
Update: In April, the executive director of the Vermont Parole Board began providing parole-related state monitoring measures. CSG Justice Center staff also met with DOC to finalize a draft of the remaining state monitoring measures in anticipation of DOC beginning to provide a limited amount data in May. As subaward funding will be used to make significant changes to DOC’s data system to improve collection and reporting capacity, it is likely that some state monitoring measures will not be available until after these modifications are made. CSG Justice Center staff are continuing to work with DOC to understand and manage data collection and reporting challenges.

CSG Justice Center staff also continued conversations with the Vermont Judiciary about potentially using subaward funding to support improvement in court data collection and analysis capacity. Judiciary staff remain very busy with the legislative session, and it is unclear if they will have the bandwidth to submit an application. CSG Justice Center staff continued to provide support and answer questions as needed to assist the judiciary in determining how they would like to proceed.
Priority Area 6: Assist in creating standards to examine the data collection, monitoring, and evaluation process, especially as it concerns disparate outcomes for different demographic groups.
Background: Section 19 of Act 148 focuses on examining the racial disparities within the criminal justice system. The act directs the Racial Disparities in the Criminal and Juvenile Justice System Advisory Panel (RDAP), the executive director of racial equity, the chief superior judge, the attorney general, the defender general, the DOC, and the executive director of the Department of State’s Attorneys and Sheriffs to work with the Crime Research Group (Vermont-based nonprofit research agency) and the state’s Statistical Analysis Center (SAC) to identify available data and perform an initial analysis of demographic factors and sentencing outcomes.

Upon examination of the data, RDAP is then tasked with reporting to the Joint Legislative Justice Oversight Committee and Vermont Sentencing Commission by December 1, 2020. The Sentencing Commission is then charged with reviewing the report findings and making recommendations regarding changes to sentencing structures and nonbinding sentencing guidance. The commission must report by February 26, 2021, to House/Senate Judiciary and House Corrections and Institutions.

Update: During RDAP’s April meeting, Vermont’s SAC and the Crime Research Group (CRG) revisited and expanded on the data that was included in the December 2020 report to the General Assembly as requested in Act 148. CRG’s report sought to express the geographic differences within the state, the types of charges by race, and the differences in how sentences are distributed among White and Black defendants. The presentation prompted additional questions that the working group and CRG hope to answer at upcoming meetings. CSG Justice Center staff reviewed CRG’s presentation prior to the meeting and provided input.

The state legislature is also moving forward with H.317, an act relating to establishing the Bureau of Racial Justice Statistics and the Bureau of Racial Justice Statistics Advisory Panel, which is the result of RDAP’s reporting requirements in Act 148. To further the efforts in the state, CSG Justice Center staff spoke to Representative (Ranking Member) at their request. Representative sought to share their ideas on housing the Bureau within the RDAP committee. When Representative presented their idea with RDAP members, it was met with some skepticism. CSG Justice Center staff will continue to track the efforts of RDAP members and H.317 and provide assistance as needed and requested.

CSG Justice Center staff have also continued the process of examining racial disparities in the state as requested during the January meeting. To further that progress, a research plan has been developed and it will be presented at the upcoming June meeting; the plan outlines the data points, identifies how the data will be analyzed, and defines the scope of the analysis. CSG Justice Center staff connected with Director (Vermont Criminal Information Center) to discuss the data use agreements and Chief of Planning and Court Services (Vermont Judiciary) to determine if 2020 court data is easily accessible for analysis. In addition, CSG Justice Center staff drafted and submitted an application to the Institutional Review Board regarding the examination of racial disparities, and the proposal was approved.