Session: State Capitol, Room 423 Juneau, AK 99801-1182 Phone: (907) 465-4940 Fax: (907) 465-3766 Interim: 716 W 4th Avenue, Suite 450 Anchorage, AK 99501-2133 Phone: (907) 269-0106 Fax: (907) 269-0109 145 Main Steet Loop Kenai, AK 99611 Phone: (907) 283-7996 Fax: (907) 283-3075

Sponsor Statement for SB 97
Probation and Parole Fees

An Act relating to fees for probation and parole.

Adult probation and parole supervision costs the state over $9.3 million and juvenile probation costs an additional $6.7 million. SB 97 would require the Department of Corrections to charge to all persons under their supervision that are on probation or parole.

Each person on probation or parole will be required to pay three dollars and thirty cents ($3.30) per day to defer the cost of their supervision. Most persons as a requirement of release are required to work. SB 97 would allow for the garnishment of permanent fund dividend checks as another method of collecting fees. With over 4700 adults on probation or parole this legislation could generate over $5.7 million dollars per year. The same program, with 1027 juveniles on probation, would generate an additional $1.2 million dollars per year, for a total of almost $6.9 million dollars annually. For those who are able to pay and choose not to, this legislation calls for revocation of parole.

While the numbers of states charging fees is on the increase, the idea is not new. In 1846 Michigan enacted the first correctional fee law in the country. By 1988 as many as 48 states collected some type of correctional fees. Unlike financial obligations imposed to inflict punishment (e.g., fines, restoration of victim's losses or other civil obligations), correctional fees are imposed to generate revenues for correctional programs. Texas for example funds over half of its probation and parole program through fees. With correctional costs skyrocketing in recent years, the notion that offenders should contribute to their own supervision has gained widespread political and public support.

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