HB545 By Representative Farley RFD Judiciary Rd 1 20-APR-17

SYNOPSIS: Under existing law, the Alabama Corrections Institution Finance Authority is authorized to issue bonds for prison construction purposes. The authority is required to construct facilities using plans and specifications of architects or engineers, or both.

This bill would also allow the authority to issue bonds up to $100,000,000 to purchase, renovate, and equip the existing Perry County facility, the Julia Tutwiler Prison for Women and existing regional or other prison facilities and would require the competitive bidding of all contracts for renovations.

This bill would require increased reporting to the Joint Legislative Prison Committee.

This bill would provide for the creation of capital improvement cooperative districts by counties and municipalities for the renovation, expansion, maintenance, and operation of county and municipal jail facilities to house state inmates.

This bill would require the Department of Corrections to contract with the capital improvement cooperative districts for the housing of minimum security state inmates for the rate of $30 per day per inmate.

This bill would also provide for disposal of property not required for use by the Department of Corrections and further provide for actions to be taken upon payment of all bonds issued by the authority.

This bill would provide for the pledge of a portion of the proceeds of the one mill tax levied by Section 40-8-3, Code of Alabama 1975, and to pledge a portion of the proceeds of the tax on all spirituous or vinous liquors levied by current law to secure the authority's bonds.

This bill would provide for the medical parole of certain inmates suffering from life-threatening illnesses when death is imminent and who meet certain criteria.

This bill would require the Department of Corrections to annually identify all inmates who have spent 30 or more days in an infirmary or under a physician's care and provide that information to the Board of Pardons and Paroles for consideration of medical paroles by the board under certain conditions.

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT

Relating to prison reform; to amend Sections 14-2-1, 14-2-6, 14-2-12, 14-2-13.1, 14-2-16, 14-2-19, 14-2-21, and 14-2-28, Code of Alabama 1975, relating to the Alabama Corrections Institution Finance Authority, to allow the authority to issue up to $100 million in bonds or other forms of funding deemed optimal for the purpose of financing the purchase, renovation, and equipping of the Perry County facility, the Julia Tutwiler Prison for Women, and regional and other prison facilities of the Department of Corrections or the authority, and demolishing obsolete prison facilities; to provide for contracts between the department and county and municipal capital improvement cooperative districts for the housing of state inmates; to provide for a direct appropriation from the Legislature to the cooperative district for costs associated with housing the inmates; to revise the membership of the authority; to authorize the authority to dispose of property not required for Department of Corrections purposes; to require reporting to the Joint Legislative Prison Committee; to further provide for actions to be taken upon payment of all bonds issued by the authority; to amend Section 29-2-20, Code of Alabama 1975, to revise the membership of the Joint Legislative Prison Committee; to amend Sections 28-3-201, 28-3-202, 28-3-204, and 40-8-3, Code of Alabama 1975, relating to allocation of a portion of the proceeds of the one mill tax and the tax on all spirituous or vinous liquors provided therein as a second and third priority security for the authority's bonds; to amend Section 38-4-12, Code of Alabama 1975, relating to the priority of the use of the one mill tax; to define certain terms; to require the Department of Corrections to annually identify all inmates who have spent 30 or more days in an infirmary or under a physician's care and provide that information to the Board of Pardons and Paroles for consideration of medical paroles by the board under certain conditions; to provide for the medical parole of identified inmates under certain conditions; and to require the board to report certain information relating to medical parole to certain legislative committees.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:

Section 1. (a) This act shall be known and cited as the Bridge Connecting Law Enforcement, Corrections, and Communities Act of 2017.

(b) This act shall be construed to facilitate communication and collaboration between the Department of Corrections and Alabama communities and to bridge any gaps between law enforcement, the department, and communities.

Section 2. The Alabama Corrections Institution Finance Authority shall report to the Joint Legislative Prison Committee on any plans for the demolition or disposal of any existing prison facilities pursuant to this act. In addition, the Department of Corrections shall report to the Joint Legislative Prison Committee and the Chairs of the House Ways and Means General Fund Committee and the Senate Finance and Taxation General Fund Committee on the total population of the prison system, the exact number of inmates per facility, the operational cost per facility, the medical and mental health state of the inmates in each facility, and a detailed accounting of all funds expended by the Department of Corrections. This report shall be made annually beginning on the first day of the regular session of the Legislature.Section 3. Sections 14-2-1, 14-2-6, 14-2-12, 14-2-13.1, 14-2-16, 14-2-19, 14-2-21, and 14-2-28, Code of Alabama 1975, are amended to read as follows:

§14-2-1.

"For the purposes of this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings respectively ascribed to them by this section:

"(1) AUTHORITY. The public corporation organized pursuant to the provisions of this chapter.

"(2) COMMISSION. The Building Commission created by Section 41-9-140 and its successors as the state agency for awarding construction contracts and supervising construction.

"(3) DEPARTMENT. The Alabama Department of Corrections created by Section 14-1-1.1 and its successors as the state agency responsible for supervising and controlling the operation of the correctional institutions of the state.

"(4) STATE. The State of Alabama.

"(5) BONDS. The bonds issued under the provisions of this chapter.

"(6) FACILITIES. Such term includes any one or more of the following:

"a. Prisons;

"b. Buildings and enclosures for housing, containing or supervising prisoners; and

"c. Any facilities necessary or useful in connection with prisons, buildings or enclosures, including, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, hospitals, offices, correctional officers' quarters and residences, warehouses, garages, storage facilities, abattoirs, cold storage plants, canning plants, laundries and manufacturing plants for the employment of prison labor.

"(7) KILBY PROPERTY. Such term includes all of the real property commonly referred to as Kilby prison property, embracing not only the real property owned by the state on which Kilby prison is located, but also all real property owned by the state used in connection with Kilby prison and adjacent thereto, all located in sections 2, 3, 10, 11, 21, 22, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 33, 34, and 35 in township 17, range 18 in Montgomery County, Alabama, together with all personal property owned by the state and used in connection with Kilby prison and the real property adjacent thereto.

"(8) PERRY COUNTY FACILITY. The Perry County Correctional Center, including all real property, buildings and improvements located at the facility in Perry County.

"(9) NET PROCEEDS OF THE ONE MILL TAX. The portion of the proceeds of the tax levied under Section 40-8-3 at the rate of $.10 on each $100 of the assessed value of taxable property, remaining after payment of one percent of the proceeds thereof to the Alabama Historical Commission for the purposes set forth therein.

§14-2-6.

"The applicants named in the application and their respective successors in office shall constitute the members of the authority. The Governor shall be the president of the authority, the Commissioner of Corrections shall be the vice-president of the authority and the Director of Finance shall be the secretary of the authority. In addition, two members of the House of Representatives appointed by the Speaker of the House and two members of the Senate appointed by the President Pro Tempore of the Senate shall be members of the authority. The State Treasurer shall be the treasurer and custodian of the funds of the authority, but shall not be a member of the authority. The members of the authority shall constitute all the members of the board of directors of the authority, which shall be the governing body of the authority. A majority of the members of the said board of directors shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business. Should any person holding any state office named in this section cease to hold such office by reason of death, resignation, expiration of his term of office or for any other reason, then his successor in office shall take his place as a member, officer or director, as the case may be, of the authority. No member, officer or director of the authority shall draw any salary in addition to that now authorized by law for any service he may render or for any duty he may perform in connection with the authority. No member, officer, director or employee of the authority shall be personally liable for any debt, obligation or liability of the authority.

§14-2-12.

"(a) For the purpose of providing funds for the acquisition of sites, for the construction, reconstruction, alteration and improvement of facilities, for the procurement and installation of equipment therefor and for payment of obligations incurred and the principal of and interest on any temporary loans made for any of the said purposes, the authority is hereby authorized, from time to time, to sell and issue, in addition to all bonds heretofore authorized to be issued by the authority, its bonds in such aggregate principal amounts as may be determined by the corporation to be necessary for the said purposes but not to exceed $25,000,000, plus an additional seven million five hundred thousand dollars ($7,500,000) pursuant to Act 97-950, in aggregate principal amount.

"(b) In addition to the authorization provided in subsection (a), the authority is hereby authorized, from time to time, to sell and issue its bonds in amounts determined by the authority to be necessary for the acquisition, construction, reconstruction, alteration, and improvement of facilities. Additional bonds may be issued to provide for additional bedspace by improving properties currently owned by the Department of Corrections or the authority. The total additional bonds authorized by this subsection shall not exceed $60 million.

"(c)(1) In addition to any other authorization provided in this chapter, the authority is hereby authorized, from time to time, to sell and issue its bonds in amounts determined by the authority to be necessary for the purchase, renovation, and improvement of the existing Perry County facility, the Julia Tutwiler Prison for Women, and any other prison facility owned and operated by the Department of Corrections or the Alabama Corrections Institution Finance Authority and deemed feasible by the department, and for the procurement of equipment thereof. The total additional bonds authorized by this subsection shall not exceed one hundred million dollars ($100,000,000). Bonds authorized by this subsection shall be sold as provided in Section 14-2-16.

"(2) The authority shall hire or contract with businesses or individuals which reflect the racial and ethnic diversity of the state, and the authority shall hire or contract with attorneys, fiscal advisors, trustees, paying agents, investment bankers, banks, and underwriters which reflect the racial and ethnic diversity of the state.

"(3) The bonding authority provided herein must file a report in concise, simple language to each legislator between the first and the twelfth legislative day of each legislative session which shall reflect the date of the issuance of the bonds, total amount of the bonds, maturity date, schedule of payments, including interest and principal, amount of attorney fees, architect fees and bond attorney fees, discount points and all other costs incurred in the issuance of and sale of the bonds herein authorized, and to what person, firm, corporation, company, or other entity to which any such fees or money is to be or has been paid.

"(c) (d) Any monetary transactions completed pursuant to Act 2010-729 shall be fully disclosed to the public.

"(d) (e) Any bonds issued pursuant to this section shall be sold by competitive bid if practical and economically feasible as determined by the authority.

"(e) (f) The authority is strongly encouraged to utilize businesses and companies in all aspects of the bond and construction portions of this chapter that reflect the racial and ethnic diversity of the state.

§14-2-13.1.

"It is hereby further provided that no refunding bonds as provided for by Section 14-2-13 shall be issued unless the present value of all debt service on the refunding bonds (computed with a discount rate equal to the true interest rate of the refunding bonds and taking into account all underwriting discount and other issuance expenses) shall not be greater than 95 98% percent of the present value of all debt service on the bonds to be refunded (computed using the same discount rate and taking into account the underwriting discount and other issuance expenses originally applicable to such bonds) determined as if such bonds to be refunded were paid and retired in accordance with the schedule of maturities (considering mandatory redemption as a scheduled maturity) provided at the time of their issuance. Provided further that the average maturity of the refunding bonds, as measured from the date of issuance of such refunding bonds, shall not exceed by more than three years the average maturity of the bonds to be refunded, as also measured from such date of issuance, with the average maturity of any principal amount of bonds to be determined by multiplying the principal of each maturity by the number of years (including any fractional part of a year) intervening between such date of issuance and each such maturity, taking the sum of all such products, and then dividing such sum by the aggregate principal amount of bonds for which the average maturity is to be determined.

§14-2-16.

"Bonds of the authority may be sold at such price or prices and at such time or times as the board of directors of the authority may consider advantageous, either at public sale or private sale. Bonds of the authority sold by competitive bid must be sold, whether on sealed bids or at public auction, to the bidder whose bid reflects the lowest effective borrowing cost to the authority for the bonds being sold; provided, that if no bid acceptable to the authority is received, it may reject all bids. Notice of each such sale by competitive bids shall be given by publication in either a financial journal or a financial newspaper published in the City of New York, New York, and also by publication in a newspaper published in the State of Alabama, each of which notices must be published at least one time not less than 10 days before the date for the sale. The board of directors may fix the terms and conditions under which such sale may be held; provided, that such terms and conditions shall not conflict with any of the requirements of this chapter. The authority may pay out of the proceeds of the sale of its bonds all expenses, including capitalized interest during a period not to exceed one year three years from the date of issuance of such bonds, publication and printing charges, attorneys' fees and other expenses which said board of directors may deem necessary and advantageous in connection with the authorization, advertisement, sale, execution and issuance of such bonds. Neither a public hearing nor consent of the State Department of Finance or any other department or agency of the state shall be a prerequisite to the issuance or sale of bonds by the authority.

§14-2-19.

"(a) All proceeds derived from the sale of any bonds, except refunding bonds, sold by the authority, remaining after payment of the expenses of issuance thereof, shall be turned over to the State Treasurer, shall be carried in a special account to the credit of the authority, and shall be subject to be drawn on by the authority solely for the purposes of:

"(1) Acquiring land for and constructing, reconstructing and equipping thereon one or more facilities;

"(2) Constructing additional improvements on property currently owned by the Department of Corrections or the authority in order to provide for additional bedspace;

"(3) Paying all reasonable and necessary expenses incidental thereto, including filing, recording, surveying, legal and engineering fees and expenses;

"(4) Paying the interest which will accrue on the said bonds during the period required for the construction and equipment of the said facilities and for a period not exceeding six months after the completion thereof; and

"(5) Paying the principal of and interest on all then outstanding notes theretofore issued by the authority pursuant to the provisions of Section 14-2-10.

"(6) Purchasing, renovating, and equipping the existing Perry County facility, the Julia Tutwiler Prison for Women, and one or more existing prison facilities.

"The balance of the said proceeds thereafter remaining, unless required for the construction of other facilities by the authority as shall be determined by resolution of its board of directors within six months after completion of the facilities for which the bonds were issued, shall be set aside as additional security for the bonds or shall be used to pay, purchase or redeem bonds as may be provided in the proceedings authorizing their issuance. The reasonable and necessary expenses incident to the construction of any facility shall, if deemed advisable by the authority, include all or any part of the expense of providing temporary facilities, during the construction of a new facility, for any penal or correctional institution facility which is demolished or rendered unserviceable as such.

"(b) All proceeds from the sale of refunding bonds issued by the authority that remain after paying the expenses of their issuance may be used only for the purpose of refunding the principal of and any unpaid and accrued interest on the outstanding bonds of the authority for the refunding of which the refunding bonds are authorized to be issued, together with any premium that may be necessary to be paid in order to redeem or retire such outstanding bonds.

§14-2-21.

"(a) The principal of, premium, if any, and interest on the bonds of the authority shall be secured, first, by any or all of the following, as the authority may determine:

"(1) The rent and revenue for the use of one or more facilities of the authority;

"(2) The net rent or sale proceeds from the Kilby property;

"(3) Any bond proceeds remaining unexpended upon completion of all facilities to be constructed with such bond proceeds and the payment of the cost thereof;

"(4) Any insurance proceeds which the authority may receive by reason of its ownership of any of the facilities; and

"(5) Any mortgage upon or security interest in one or more facilities of the authority, granted in connection with the issuance of such bonds. ; and

"(6) Operational savings realized from the consolidation of prison facilities as a result of this amendatory act.

"(b) To such extent and to such extent only as the revenues described in subsection (a) may not be sufficient to pay at their respective maturities the principal of and interest on the bonds of the authority, there is irrevocably pledged and appropriated, as a second priority security, so much of the portion of the net proceeds of the one mill tax allocated to the Department of Human Resources under Section 38-4-12 as may be necessary, when added to the amounts described in subsection (a), for the purpose of providing funds to enable the authority to pay at their respective maturities and due dates the principal of and interest on the bonds that may be issued by it under this article at any time. The revenues pledged by this subsection shall be limited to the payment of debt service on the bonds authorized by this amendatory act, including debt service on any refunding bonds issued to refund the bonds authorized by this amendatory act.

"(c) To such extent and to such extent only as the revenues described in subsections (a) and (b) may not be sufficient to pay at their respective maturities the principal of and interest on the bonds of the authority, there is irrevocably pledged and appropriated, as a third priority security, so much of the net proceeds of the tax levied on spirituous or vinous liquors allocated to the Public Welfare Trust Fund under Sections 28-3-201, 28-3-202, and 28-3-204, as may be necessary, when added to the amounts described in subsections (a) and (b), for the purpose of providing funds to enable the authority to pay at their respective maturities and due dates the principal of and interest on the bonds that may be issued by it under this article at any time. The revenues pledged by this subsection shall be limited to the payment of debt service on the bonds authorized by this amendatory act, including debt service on any refunding bonds issued to refund the bonds authorized by this amendatory act.

"(d) In the event that revenues pledged by subsection (b) or (c) are used to pay debt service on bonds authorized by this amendatory act, including debt service on refunding bonds issued to refund the bonds authorized by this amendatory act, the Legislature shall provide for the reimbursement of the amount used for those debt service payments to the Department of Human Resources.

"(e) The authority shall have authority to transfer and assign any lease of any of the facilities and any lease or mortgage of the Kilby property as security for the payment of such principal, premium, if any, and interest. The bonds may be issued under, and secured by, a resolution which may, but need not, provide for an indenture of trust covering one or more facilities of the authority. Such resolution or such indenture of trust may contain any provision or agreement customarily contained in instruments securing evidences of indebtedness, including, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, provisions respecting the collection and application of any receipts pledged to the payment of bonds, the terms to be incorporated in lease agreements respecting the facilities, the maintenance and insurance thereof, the creation and maintenance of reserve and other special funds from such receipts and the rights and remedies available in the event of default to the holders of the bonds or to the trustee for the holders of the bonds or under any indenture of trust, all as the authority may deem advisable and as shall not be in conflict with the provisions of this chapter; provided, however, that in making such agreements or provisions the authority shall not have the power to obligate itself except with respect to its facilities, the Kilby property and the application of the receipts which it is authorized in this chapter to pledge.

§14-2-28.

"(a) All facilities constructed by the authority shall be constructed according to plans and specifications of architects or engineers, or both, selected by the department. Such plans and specifications shall be approved by the department and by the commission. All work in the construction of facilities, or any part thereof, which is determined by the commission to be suitable and proper for construction by prison labor under force account shall be performed by such prison labor under such supervision and directions as shall be ordered by the department. All construction of facilities or any part thereof which the commission shall determine not to be suitable and proper for construction by prison labor shall be done under the supervision and direction of the commission following award for each part of the work to the lowest responsible bidder after advertising for, receipt and public opening of sealed bids. Each such invitation for bids and the bidding documents applicable thereto shall be so arranged that any alternates shall constitute cumulative deductions from the base bid rather than additions thereto. In determining the lowest bidder if funds are insufficient to construct the facility on the lowest base bid, then the commission may proceed to consider the bids upon the basis of the base bids of all bidders minus the respective reductions stated for the first alternate. If the lowest bid so determined is not then within the funds available, the commission shall proceed to consider the base bid minus the first and second alternates together to determine the lowest bid and in like manner throughout all alternates, if need be, so that in no event shall there be any discretion as to which alternate or alternates will be used in determining the lowest responsible bidder. If no bid deemed acceptable by the commission and the authority is received, all bids may be rejected, in which event bids may again from time to time be invited and acted on as provided in this section. All such contracts shall be lump sum contracts. All contracts for the entire work on a facility shall be awarded at the same time, but notice to proceed may be withheld until prior work under another contract has progressed to a point where the joint or following work can best be coordinated for the earliest completion of the entire project in a sound and workmanlike manner. Each contract shall be executed by the authority upon the determination of the commission as to the lowest bidder. Payments made by the authority under the construction contracts shall be upon the contractor's written sworn request only if endorsed as approved by the commission or in any lesser amount the commission shall endorse as having been then earned on said contract. After the contracts for a facility have been awarded, such construction cost estimate shall be revised and all extras on the contracts shall be awarded within the funds available. The authority shall pay to the commission as a part of the cost of constructing the facility such sums for the services of its employees as may be mutually agreed between the department and the commission.

"(b) All projects awarded using bond proceeds authorized by this amendatory act shall comply with the provisions of Title 39."

Section 4. (a) Separate and apart from the power granted to the authority in regard to the Kilby property in Sections 14-2-26 and 14-2-27, Code of Alabama 1975, and in addition to those powers, the authority shall have the power to sell, convey, and lease all or any part of any real and personal property now or hereafter owned by it, together with the improvements thereon and ancillary thereto, that is not being used by the department as a facility, and the sale of which will not impair the outstanding obligations of the authority, and as an aid to the sale or lease, to cause to be prepared by competent real estate experts a land use map and plan. The authority may lease or sell lands and property owned by it without going through the Lands Division or in any other way complying with the provisions of Title 9, Chapter 15, Article 3, Code of Alabama 1975. The authority must have duly adopted written policies and procedures governing the sale or lease of the property which invoke open competition and produce the best price, to include obtaining an appraisal, advertising the sale or lease, and conducting the sale by public auction or publicly sought sealed bid. No such sale or lease shall be made except at public offering, on sealed bids or at auction, and upon such published notice as the authority shall determine to be necessary or desirable in order to attract the greatest interest from prospective bidders.

(b) The award of any property offered for sale or lease shall be made to the highest responsible bidder unless all bids shall be rejected as inadequate and other public offering shall be made upon notice republished as prescribed above. Any sale shall be for all cash. Each deed or lease to effectuate any sale or lease shall be signed in the name of the authority by its president, to which the seal of the authority shall be affixed and attested by its secretary.

(c) The proceeds of each sale or lease of any such property shall be used first to pay the reasonable and necessary expenses of the sale or lease, and the balance remaining shall be paid to the State Treasurer and held by him or her in a special account and disbursed on order of the authority for either of the following purposes:

(1) To pay for such services, goods, repairs, renovations, construction, demolition, or other activities in or about facilities as may be deemed necessary by the board of the authority in the exercise of its sole discretion, to further the purposes of the authority or the department, including developing of a master plan for the use of the real or personal property that is owned by or which may be acquired by the authority for its statutory purposes, the preparation for sale or lease, or the preservation of, facilities or excess unimproved property owned for the authority; or

(2) To pay the principal of, and interest on, its bonds at maturity or upon refunding or redemption.

(d) The department shall maintain all facilities not being used for the purposes designated in Section 14-2-1(6), Code of Alabama 1975, and designated for sale, lease, demolition, or other disposition, so long as title thereto is held by the authority, to enable the authority to achieve the best possible price or other result upon the sale, lease, or other disposition thereof.

(e) Upon request of the authority, the department shall convey to the authority any real and personal property to which the department holds title and acquired with proceeds of the authority's bonds or income thereon.

Section 5. (a)(1) A county or municipality, individually, or in concert with another county or municipality may form a capital improvement cooperative district as provided under Chapter 99B of Title 11, Code of Alabama 1975, to oversee the construction or renovation of county or municipal jail facilities to house state inmates and to operate and maintain the jail facility for the housing of state inmates.

(2) Inmates eligible for housing under subdivision (1) shall include only those inmates identified by the Department of Corrections as being in good health with no significant medical or mental health problems. The district may decline to house any inmate identified by the department.

(b) Within 90 days of the effective date of this act, counties and municipalities desiring to house state inmates shall notify the Department of Corrections of the intent to form a capital improvement cooperative district for that purpose.

(c)(1) The Department of Corrections shall annually contract with a cooperative district for the housing of state inmates at the rate of thirty dollars ($30) per day per inmate, to be adjusted annually by the cumulative percentage change in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) available from the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United States Department of Labor. The cooperative district may not receive additional compensation for the housing of a state inmate other than the amount provided in this subdivision, except that the cooperative district may charge an inmate for personal items sold by the district.

(2) In addition to the rate provided in subdivision (1), the department shall contract to pay an additional one dollar and seventy-five cents ($1.75) per day per inmate for costs associated with the feeding of inmates required by state law, to be adjusted annually by the cumulative percentage change in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) available from the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United States Department of Labor.

(3) The contract shall include the number of inmates to be housed in the jail facility of the capital improvement cooperative district. A contract under this subsection shall be for a minimum of three years, with two additional one-year options.

(d)(1) The department shall be responsible for all health care costs, including routine and emergency care, associated with the state inmates housed in the jail facility of the cooperative district.

(2) Notwithstanding subdivision (1), if an inmate develops a condition requiring ongoing medical or mental health treatment or rehabilitation programs, the district may transfer the inmate to the custody of the department.

(e) A capital improvement cooperative district housing state inmates in a county or municipal jail facility shall have all powers prescribed in Chapter 99B of Title 11, Code of Alabama 1975, including the power to sell and issue bonds.

(f) All personnel of a capital improvement cooperative district operating and maintaining a jail facility are immune from civil liability in the execution of the duties of his or her office, to the extent provided in the Constitution of Alabama of 1901 and Section 36-1-12, Code of Alabama 1975.

(g) The Department of Corrections shall pay thirty dollars ($30), to be adjusted annually by the cumulative percentage change in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) available from the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United States Department of Labor, per day for each inmate placed into a county jail or a jail facility of a cooperative district due to a parole violation until the inmate is transferred to a state facility.

Section 6. Prior to the determination of which existing regional or other prison facilities should be renovated and prior to the closing of a prison or correctional facility, the Department of Corrections shall consider the following:

(1) The number of inmates that may be housed in a county or municipal jail operated by a capital improvement cooperative district as provided in Section 5.

(2) Whether the facility has any bonded indebtedness that a governmental entity has undertaken or incurred to serve the existing facility.

Section 7. A person or entity submitting a proposal for a project under this act shall disclose both of the following:

(1) The names of all lobbyists, attorneys, or other professionals or professional firms hired or retained by the person or entity on or after January 1, 2014.

(2) The names of all current or past elected officials or family members as defined in Section 36-25-1(15), Code of Alabama 1975, associated in any manner with the person or entity submitting the proposal or associated in any manner with a subcontractor of the person or entity on or after January 1, 2014.Section 8. Section 29-2-20, Code of Alabama 1975, is amended to read as follows:

§29-2-20.

"(a) A permanent legislative committee, known as the Joint Legislative Prison Committee, which shall be composed of eight 12 members, two of whom shall be ex officio members and six 10 of whom shall be appointed members, three five each to be appointed by the President of the Senate and Speaker of the House, who shall both serve as the ex officio members, shall be formed to assist in realizing the recommendations of the Legislative Prison Task Force and examine all aspects of the operations of the Department of Corrections. The four additional members appointed on or after the effective date of the act adding this amendatory language shall include two members from the majority party and two members from the minority party. The chairman of the committee shall be selected by and from among the membership. The committee shall make diligent inquiry and a full examination of Alabama's present and long term prison needs and they shall file reports of their findings and recommendations to the Alabama Legislature not later than the fifteenth legislative day of each regular session that the committee continues to exist.

"(b) The committee shall study and address mental health issues for prisoners reentering the community after a term of imprisonment in order to streamline the sharing of critical mental health information and in order to address barriers to accessing mental health treatment for such prisoners. The committee shall report such findings to the Legislature no later than April 20, 2016, and shall work in conjunction with the following in studying and addressing such issues:

"(1) Department of Corrections;

"(2) Board of Pardons and Paroles;

"(3) Department of Mental Health;

"(4) Administrative Office of Courts;

"(5) Office of Prosecution Services;

"(6) Office of the Attorney General;

"(7) Alabama Law Enforcement Agency;

"(8) Association of County Commissions of Alabama;

"(9) Alabama Probate Judges Association;

"(10) Alabama Sheriffs' Association;

"(11) Alabama Criminal Defense Lawyers Association;

"(12) Alabama Circuit Judges' Association;

"(13) Department of Public Health;

"(14) Office of the Governor;

"(15) Alabama District Attorneys Association;

"(16) Alabama Drug Abuse Task Force; and

"(17) Alabama Crime Victims Compensation Commission; and

"(17) (18) Any other advocacy groups as determined by the committee.

"(c) The committee shall study and address issues related to felony restitution collection in order to improve rates of collection for restitution obligations in felony cases and establish best practices relating to a defendant's ability to pay obligations owed. The committee shall report such findings to the Legislature no later than April 20, 2016, and shall work in conjunction with the following in studying and addressing such issues:

"(1) Department of Corrections;

"(2) Board of Pardons and Paroles;

"(3) Administrative Office of Courts;

"(4) Office of Prosecution Services;

"(5) Office of the Attorney General;

"(6) Alabama Law Enforcement Agency;

"(7) Alabama Criminal Defense Lawyers Association;

"(8) Alabama Circuit Judges' Association;

"(9) Association of County Commissions of Alabama;

"(10) Alabama Sheriffs' Association;

"(11) Alabama Crime Victims Compensation Commission;

"(12) The Alabama Circuit Clerk's Association;

"(13) Two crime victims' rights advocates designated by the Attorney General;

"(14) Two members from the Alabama District Attorneys Association, of which one shall be from a largely populated metropolitan judicial circuit and the other shall be from a small, rurally populated judicial circuit; and

"(15) Any other advocacy groups as determined by the committee.

"(d) The committee shall study and address capacity issues within the Department of Corrections to include, but not limited to, the issue of design capacity and operational or functional capacity, as well as the construction of new prison facilities and the renovation of current correctional facilities as they relate to prison overcrowding and public safety. The committee shall report such findings to the Legislature no later than April 20, 2016, and shall work in conjunction with the following in studying and addressing such issues:

"(1) Department of Corrections;

"(2) Board of Pardons and Paroles;

"(3) Department of Mental Health;

"(4) Department of Public Health;

"(5) Administrative Office of Courts;

"(6) Office of Prosecution Services;

"(7) Office of the Attorney General;

"(8) Alabama Law Enforcement Agency;

"(9) Alabama Drug Abuse Task Force;

"(10) Alabama Criminal Defense Lawyers Association;

"(11) Alabama Circuit Judges' Association;

"(12) Association of County Commissions of Alabama;

"(13) Two members from the Alabama Sheriffs' Association, of which one shall be from a largely populated metropolitan judicial circuit and the other shall be from a small, rurally populated judicial circuit; and

"(14) Two members from the Alabama District Attorneys Association, of which one shall be from a largely populated metropolitan judicial circuit and the other shall be from a small, rurally populated judicial circuit.

"(e) The studies and collaborating partners provided for in this section shall reflect the racial, gender, geographic, urban/rural, and economic diversity of the state."Section 9. Section 40-8-3, Code of Alabama 1975, is amended to read as follows:

§40-8-3.

"There is hereby levied for the purpose and upon the property hereinafter named and not specifically exempted from taxation annual taxes, as follows:

"(1) For the maintenance of the public schools of this state, $.30 on each $100 of the assessed value of taxable property.

"(2) For the relief of needy Confederate soldiers and sailors, resident citizens of Alabama and their widows, and to secure the obligations of the Alabama Corrections Institution Finance Authority as provided in Title 14, Chapter 2, $.10 on each $100 of the assessed value of taxable property of which one percent of the gross amount collected will be expended by the Alabama Historical Commission to provide for capital improvements and maintenance at the Confederate Memorial Park at Mountain Creek, Chilton County, Alabama.

"(3) For the use of the state and to raise revenue therefor, $.25 on each $100 of the assessed value of taxable property."Section 10. Sections 28-3-201, 28-3-202, and 28-3-204, Code of Alabama 1975, are amended to read as follows:

§28-3-201.

"In addition to all other taxes of every kind now imposed by law and in addition to any marked-up price authorized or required by law, there is hereby levied and shall be collected a tax at the rate of 10 percent upon the selling price of all spirituous or vinous liquors sold by the Alabama Alcoholic Beverage Control Board. The tax hereby imposed shall be collected by the board from the purchaser at the time the purchase price is paid. In computing the proceeds of this tax, the board shall divide the total sales of spirituous and vinous liquors made by it by a factor of 110 and multiply the quotient by 100 and by 10. An amount equal to the quotient multiplied by 100 shall be deposited in the State Treasury to the credit of the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board Store Fund and an amount equal to the quotient multiplied by 10 shall be deposited in the State Treasury to the credit of the Public Welfare Trust Fund and shall be used for general welfare purposes and is hereby appropriated therefor. be distributed as follows:

"(1) A sum equal to the amount necessary to pay the principal of and interest on bonds issued by the Alabama Corrections Institution Finance Authority as and to the extent provided in Section 14-2-21 shall be distributed to the authority.

"(2) The remainder shall be distributed to the Public Welfare Trust Fund.

§28-3-202.

"(a) Repealed by Acts 1986, No. 86-212, p. 264, §3.

"(b) Levy; collection; disposition of proceeds. In addition to all other taxes of every kind now imposed by law and in addition to any marked-up price authorized or required by law, there is hereby levied and shall be collected a tax at the rate of 10 percent upon the selling price of all spirituous or vinous liquors sold by the board. The tax imposed by this subsection shall be collected by the board from the purchaser at the time the purchase price is paid. One half of the proceeds derived from the tax shall be deposited in the State Treasury to be distributed as follows: (1) a sum equal to the amount necessary to pay the principal of and interest on bonds issued by the Alabama Corrections Institution Finance Authority as and to the extent provided in Section 14-2-21 shall be distributed to the authority; and (2) the remainder shall be distributed to the credit of the Public Welfare Trust Fund and shall be used for general welfare purposes and is hereby appropriated therefor. The remainder of such proceeds from the tax levied by this subsection shall be deposited in the State Treasury to the credit of a special fund which shall be designated the Alabama Special Mental Health Fund and shall be used only for mental health purposes, including the prevention of mental illness, the care and treatment of the mentally ill and the mentally deficient and the acquisition, equipment, operation and maintenance of facilities for mental health purposes.

"The markup as currently established by the board on spirituous or vinuous liquors shall not be reduced by the board for the purpose of absorbing the tax levied by this subsection, it being the intention of this provision that the said tax shall be passed on to the purchaser.

§28-3-204.

"(a) Repealed by Acts 1986, No. 86-212, p. 264, §3.

"(b) Levy and collection. In addition to all other taxes of every kind now imposed by law and in addition to any marked-up price authorized or required by law, there is hereby levied and shall be collected a tax at the rate of three percent upon the selling price of all spirituous or vinous liquors sold by the board.

"The board shall have the authority to examine the books and records of any wine wholesaler to determine the accuracy of any return required to be filed with the board.

"The markup as currently established by the board on spirituous or vinous liquors shall not be reduced by the board for the purpose of absorbing the tax levied in this subsection, it being the intention of this provision that the said tax shall be passed on to the purchaser.

"(c) Distribution of proceeds. One half of the proceeds derived from the tax shall be deposited in the State Treasury to be distributed as follows: (1) a sum equal to the to the amount necessary to pay the principal of and interest on bonds issued by the Alabama Corrections Institution Finance Authority as and to the extent provided in Section 14-2-21 shall be distributed to the authority; and (2) the remainder shall be distributed to the credit of the Public Welfare Trust Fund and shall be used for general welfare purposes and is hereby appropriated therefor. The remainder of such proceeds from the tax levied by this section shall be deposited in the State Treasury to the credit of a special fund which shall be designated the Special Mental Health Fund and shall be used only for mental health purposes, including the prevention of mental illness, the care and treatment of the mentally ill and the mentally deficient and the acquisition, equipment, operation and maintenance of facilities for mental health purposes."Section 11. Section 38-4-12, Code of Alabama 1975, is amended to read as follows:

§38-4-12.

"(a) Except as provided in subsection (b), there is appropriated, beginning with the fiscal year ending September 30, 1998, to the state department, for old age pension purposes, out of the proceeds from the levy of the one mill tax for the relief of needy Confederate soldiers and sailors and their widows, a sum not to exceed $20,773,500 annually of the surplus or residue from the tax after the payment in full of the pensions to the widows of Confederate soldiers and sailors to pay the principal of and interest on bonds issued by the Alabama Corrections Institution Finance Authority as and to the extent provided in Section 14-2-21, and then to the State Department, for old-age pension purposes, other charges against the fund set out in the laws authorizing the payment of the pensions to the widows, and annually to the Department of Revenue, as a first charge against the proceeds of the one mill tax, funds for the annual costs of the Department of Revenue for administering the tax. In making this appropriation, it is declared to be the legislative policy that the Department of Human Resources shall expend its portion of the surplus or residue hereby appropriated and all moneys received by it from the federal government as matching funds for all funds expended for Confederate pensions or as matching funds for the surplus or residue hereby appropriated under this section, for old age pension purposes exclusively insofar as is possible under existing laws and the rules and regulations of the federal government and of the Department of Human Resources in regard thereto, before any part thereof may be expended for any other purposes of the Department of Human Resources.

"(b) Beginning with the fiscal year ending September 30, 1997, all of the remaining surplus or residue from the tax provided in (a) above, after deducting the amounts appropriated to the Department of Human Resources and the Department of Revenue under the annual appropriations act for the fiscal year ending September 30, 1997, and under subsection (a) of this section for each year thereafter, is hereby appropriated to the State Veterans' Assistance Fund to be expended for veterans' programs approved by the State Board of Veterans' Affairs, including expenditures for emergencies and needs in the state's veterans' nursing homes."

Section 12. (a) Beginning January 2, 2018, and every six months thereafter until the annual reports begin on the date on which the first bond issue payment is due, the Commissioner of the Department of Corrections shall prepare a report on the progress of prison renovation activities in the state during the previous six-month period. The report shall include, but not be limited to, expenditures, savings, cost-analyses, and the number of agreements entered into, including construction, architectural, and legal agreements.

(b) The Commissioner of the Department of Corrections shall report his or her findings to the Joint Legislative Prison Committee, the House Ways and Means General Fund Committee, the Senate Committee on Finance and Taxation General Fund, and any other appropriate House and Senate Standing Committee.

Section 13. (a) For the purposes of this section, the following terms shall have the following meanings:

(1) BOARD. The Board of Pardons and Paroles.

(2) GERIATRIC INMATE. A person 55 years of age or older convicted in this state of a non-capital felony offense, excluding a violent offense as defined in Section 12-25-32, Code of Alabama 1975, or a sex offense as provided in Section 15-20A-5, Code of Alabama 1975, and sentenced to the penitentiary, who suffers from a chronic life-threatening infirmity, life-threatening illness, or chronic debilitating disease related to aging, who poses a low risk to the community, and who does not constitute a danger to himself or herself or society.

(3) NECESSARY DAILY LIFE FUNCTION. Eating, breathing, toileting, walking, or bathing.

(4) PERMANENTLY INCAPACITATED INMATE. A state inmate who satisfies both of the following:

a. Requires assistance in order to perform two or more necessary daily life functions or who is completely immobile.

b. Has such limited physical or mental ability, strength, or capacity that he or she poses an extremely low risk of physical threat to others or to the community.

(5) TERMINALLY ILL INMATE. A state inmate who has an incurable condition caused by illness or disease which would, with reasonable medical judgment, produce death within 12 months, and who does not constitute a danger to himself or herself or society.

(b)(1) The Board of Pardons and Paroles shall establish a special medical parole docket and adopt the rules for implementation pursuant to Section 15-22-24(e), Code of Alabama 1975. For each person considered for medical parole, the board shall determine whether the person is a geriatric inmate, permanently incapacitated inmate, or terminally ill inmate for purposes of placing the person on a special medical parole docket to be considered for parole by the board.

(2) The Department of Corrections shall immediately provide, upon request from the board, a list of geriatric, permanently incapacitated, and terminally ill inmates who are otherwise eligible for parole. By January 1 of each calendar year, the Department of Corrections shall additionally identify all inmates who have spent more than 30 or more days in an infirmary or under a physician's care in the prior calendar year, as well as all inmates suffering from a life-threatening illness and whose death is imminent within the year, who are otherwise parole eligible, and shall immediately provide this information to the board to determine if identified inmates are eligible for a medical parole.

(3) Upon a determination that the inmate is eligible for a medical parole, the board shall place the inmate on a special medical parole docket within 30 days pursuant to rules adopted by the board for the board to consider the individual for medical parole and in accordance with all provisions of law regarding parole established by Article 2, Chapter 22, Title 15, Code of Alabama 1975.

(b) Medical parole consideration shall be in addition to any other release for which an inmate may be eligible.

(c) In considering an inmate for medical parole, the board may request that additional medical evidence be produced, or that additional medical examinations be conducted by the Department of Corrections.

(d) The board shall report annually to the Joint Legislative Interim Prison Committee, House Judiciary Sentencing Commission Subcommittee, and the Alabama Sentencing Commission on the number of medical paroles granted, the nature of the illnesses, diseases, and conditions of those paroled, the number of inmates granted and denied medical parole, and the number of cases granted medical parole, but that could not be released. The report shall be made in a manner that does not disclose any individual identifying information for any particular inmate and shall be compliant in all respects with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.

Section 14. The provisions of this act are severable. If any part of this act is declared invalid or unconstitutional, that declaration shall not affect the part which remains.

Section 15. This act shall become effective immediately following its passage and approval by the Governor, or its otherwise becoming law.

Prisons and Prisoners

Joint Legislative Prison Committee

Bonds

Taxation

Alabama Corrections Institution Finance Authority

Popular Names

Code Amended