Texas
Step 4: Measure the impact and enhance accountability.
Lawmakers enacted these policies in the 2007 session as overcrowding in Texas correctional facilities continued to intensify. Consequently, state officials are under significant pressure to make available the new treatment and diversion programs almost immediately. They must also ensure that these programs and services target the appropriate categories of people that are awaiting release or under community supervision.
At the same time, the Parole Board must review and update its parole guidelines to ensure that members consistently use and apply an objective risk assessment instrument to determine the likelihood of the person committing another crime. Parole Board members must also coordinate with the TDCJ to ensure that people eligible for parole are completing appropriate in-prison treatment, educational, and vocational programs.
To ensure that state agency officials and Parole Board members are meeting these challenges, the legislature established the Criminal Justice Legislative Oversight Committee (CJLOC) to monitor the implementation of the new policies and programs and to evaluate their impact on state prison populations. The CJLOC comprises the chairs of two legislative committees, two designees of the Senate and Lieutenant Governor, and two designees of the House of Representatives. This new committee will provide the state legislature with the nonpartisan research, analysis, and recommendations necessary to shape ongoing criminal justice policy.