SB-0947, As Passed Senate, June 9, 2016
May 3, 2016, Introduced by Senators ROBERTSON, JONES, HORN, GREGORY, SHIRKEY, COLBECK, PROOS, EMMONS, WARREN, ROCCA, BRANDENBURG, GREEN, BOOHER, NOFS, KNOLLENBERG, MACGREGOR and SCHMIDT and referred to the Committee on Michigan Competitiveness.
A bill to amend 1953 PA 232, entitled
"Corrections code of 1953,"
by amending sections 33 and 34d (MCL 791.233 and 791.234d), section
33 as amended by 1998 PA 320 and section 34d as added by 2014 PA
359.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
Sec. 33. (1) The grant of a parole is subject to all of the
following:
(a) A prisoner shall not be given liberty on parole until the
board has reasonable assurance, after consideration of all of the
facts and circumstances, including the prisoner's mental and social
attitude, that the prisoner will not become a menace to society or
to the public safety.
(b) Except as provided in section 34a, a parole shall not be
granted to a prisoner other than a prisoner subject to disciplinary
time until the prisoner has served the minimum term imposed by the
court less allowances for good time or special good time to which
the prisoner may be entitled by statute, except that a prisoner
other than a prisoner subject to disciplinary time is eligible for
parole before the expiration of his or her minimum term of
imprisonment whenever the sentencing judge, or the judge's
successor in office, gives written approval of the parole of the
prisoner before the expiration of the minimum term of imprisonment.
(c) Except as provided in section 34a, and notwithstanding the
provisions of subdivision (b), a parole shall not be granted to a
prisoner other than a prisoner subject to disciplinary time
sentenced for the commission of a crime described in section 33b(a)
to (cc) until the prisoner has served the minimum term imposed by
the court less an allowance for disciplinary credits as provided in
section 33(5) of 1893 PA 118, MCL 800.33. A prisoner described in
this subdivision is not eligible for special parole.
(d) Except as provided in section 34a, a parole shall not be
granted to a prisoner subject to disciplinary time until the
prisoner has served the minimum term imposed by the court.
(e) A prisoner shall not be released on parole until the
parole board has satisfactory evidence that arrangements have been
made for such honorable and useful employment as the prisoner is
capable of performing, for the prisoner's education, or for the
prisoner's care if the prisoner is mentally or physically ill or
incapacitated.
(f) A prisoner whose minimum term of imprisonment is 2 years
or more shall not be released on parole unless he or she has either
earned
a high school diploma or earned its equivalent in the form
of
a general education development (GED) a high school equivalency
certificate. The director of the department may waive the
restriction imposed by this subdivision as to any prisoner who is
over the age of 65 or who was gainfully employed immediately before
committing the crime for which he or she was incarcerated. The
department of corrections may also waive the restriction imposed by
this subdivision as to any prisoner who has a learning disability,
who does not have the necessary proficiency in English, or who for
some other reason that is not the fault of the prisoner is unable
to successfully complete the requirements for a high school diploma
or
a general education development high
school equivalency
certificate. If the prisoner does not have the necessary
proficiency
in English, the department of corrections shall provide
English language training for that prisoner necessary for the
prisoner to begin working toward the completion of the requirements
for
a general education development high
school equivalency
certificate. This subdivision applies to prisoners sentenced for
crimes committed after December 15, 1998. In providing an
educational
program leading to a high school degree diploma or
general
education development a high
school equivalency
certificate, the department shall give priority to prisoners
sentenced for crimes committed on or before December 15, 1998.
(2) Paroles-in-custody to answer warrants filed by local or
out-of-state agencies, or immigration officials, are permissible if
an accredited agent of the agency filing the warrant calls for the
prisoner to be paroled in custody.
(3) Pursuant to the administrative procedures act of 1969,
1969 PA 306, MCL 24.201 to 24.328, the parole board may promulgate
rules not inconsistent with this act with respect to conditions to
be imposed upon prisoners paroled under this act.
Sec. 34d. (1) When a prisoner is released, the department
shall issue to that prisoner documents regarding all of the
following:
(a) The prisoner's criminal convictions.
(b) The prisoner's institutional history including all of the
following:
(i) Any record of institutional misconduct.
(ii) Whether the prisoner successfully completed programming
provided by the department or a person or entity under contract
with the department.
(iii) Whether the prisoner obtained a general
education
development
certificate (GED) high school
equivalency certificate
or other educational degree.
(iv) The prisoner's institutional work record.
(c) Other information considered relevant by the department.
(2) In addition to the documents provided under subsection
(1), the department shall issue a certificate of employability
described in subsection (8) to a prisoner if all of the following
apply:
(a) The prisoner successfully completed a career and technical
education course.
(b) The prisoner received no major misconducts during the 2
years immediately preceding his or her release.
(c) The prisoner received no more than 3 minor misconducts
during the 2 years immediately preceding his or her release.
(d) The prisoner received a silver level or better on his or
her national work readiness certificate, or a similar score, as
determined by the department, on an alternative job skills
assessment test administered by the department.
(3) A certificate of employability shall only be issued within
30 days before the prisoner is released from a correctional
facility under section 35 and is valid for 4 years after the date
it is issued unless otherwise revoked by the department. The
department shall revoke the certificate of employability if the
prisoner commits any criminal offense during the 30-day period
before release and may revoke the certificate of employability if
the prisoner has any institutional misconduct during that period.
The department shall revoke the certificate of employability of any
individual who commits a felony after receiving a certificate of
employability under this section and who is then placed under the
jurisdiction of the department for committing that felony.
(4) The department shall provide an individual with an
opportunity to file a grievance related to the revocation of a
certificate of employability under subsection (3) through the
department's prisoner grievance system. The revocation of a
certificate of employability is effective when the individual is
notified of the revocation.
(5) An individual shall not intentionally state or otherwise
represent that he or she has a valid certificate of employability
issued by the department knowing that the statement or
representation is false. An individual who violates this subsection
is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for not more
than 93 days or a fine of not more than $500.00, or both.
(6) The revocation of a certificate of employability is for
purposes of subsection (5) only and does not affect the right of an
employer to rely on the validity of the certificate of
employability unless the employer knew before the individual was
employed that the certificate of employability was fraudulent.
(7) Upon request, the department shall confirm whether a
certificate of employability has been issued to a named individual
and whether the certificate is valid at the time of the inquiry and
at the time of the department's response to that inquiry.
(8) A certificate of employability under this section shall be
on a form provided by the department.
(9) The department is not civilly liable for damages based
upon its decision to issue or to deny issuance of a certificate of
employability to any prisoner or for revoking or failing to revoke
a certificate of employability issued to any prisoner.
Enacting section 1. This amendatory act takes effect 90 days
after the date it is enacted into law.