Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

Fiscal Note
                                        Fiscal Services Division
HF 349 – Probation, Early Discharge (LSB1338HV.1)
Staff Contact: Molly Kilker (515.725.1286) molly.kilker@legis.iowa.gov
Fiscal Note Version – Revised for new data
Description
House File 349 provides that an individual on probation may earn discharge credits, educational
credits, and workforce credits that reduce the individual’s term of probation. The maximum
reduction of the individual’s probation term earned through these credits may not exceed 40.0%
of the probation period imposed. The individual may not be discharged from probation until
probation fees and court debt have been paid or are subject to a payment plan.
The Bill establishes the following probation credits:
• A discharge credit of 14 days for each full calendar month in which the individual is in
   compliance with the terms of the individual’s probation.
• An educational credit of 90 days when the individual earns a high school diploma, high
   school equivalency certificate, or academic degree or completes a certified vocational,
   technical, or career education or training program.
• A workforce credit of 30 days for each 6-month period in which the individual maintains
   verifiable employment for at least an average of 30 hours per week.
The Bill also provides that at least twice per year, an individual’s probation officer must provide
the individual with an accounting of the individual’s accrued discharge credits, educational
credits, and workforce credits.
The Bill establishes annual reporting requirements for the Department of Corrections (DOC)
related to discharge credits, educational credits, and workforce credits.
Background
According to Iowa Code section 907.1, probation is the procedure under which a defendant,
against whom a judgment of conviction of a public offense has been or may be entered, is
released by the court subject to supervision by a resident of the State or by a
Community-Based Corrections (CBC) judicial district.
Under Iowa Code section 907.9, at any time that the court or the probation officer determines
that the purposes of probation have been fulfilled and probation fees and court debt have been
paid, the court or the probation officer may order the discharge of a person from probation. The
probation officer must have the approval of the CBC district director and notify the sentencing
court and the county attorney who prosecuted the case. The sentencing judge may order a
hearing on its own motion, or must order a hearing upon the request of the county attorney, for
the review of the discharge. Following the hearing, the court must approve or rescind the
discharge. If a hearing is not ordered within 30 days, the person on probation must be
discharged.
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According to Iowa Code section 907.7, the purposes of probation are to provide maximum
opportunity for the rehabilitation of the defendant and to protect the community from further
offenses by the defendant and others.
Assumptions
• The following will not change over the projection period: charge, conviction, and sentencing
   patterns and trends; prisoner length of stay (LOS); revocation rates; plea bargaining; and
   other criminal justice system policies and practices.
• A lag effect of six months is assumed from the effective date of this Bill to the date of first
   entry of affected offenders into the correctional system.
• Marginal costs for county jails cannot be estimated due to a lack of data. For purposes of
   this analysis, the marginal cost for county jails is assumed to be $50 per day.
• The marginal cost per day of probation is $7.67.
• The DOC will incur costs for programming the Iowa Corrections Offender Network (ICON)
   system to calculate and program the credit requirements and to create a report to
   summarize credits. The DOC estimates that it will incur approximately $368,000 in one-time
   programming costs in FY 2025 and $4,000 in annual ongoing costs for the generation of
   public reports detailing the number of defendants on probation who earned discharge
   credits, educational credits, and workforce credits that year.
• There are approximately 32,960 individuals who are supervised on probation by the DOC
   each year.
• The discharge credit, educational credit, and workforce credit will require probation officer
   time to verify compliance with the terms of probation, verify education status, and verify
   employment status.
• The DOC reports that each credit will require 1.0 additional hour of probation officer time per
   individual per year to perform the necessary verification, for a total of 3.0 hours per
   individual.
• The DOC reports that it will take approximately 1.0 hour of probation officer time per
   individual per year to provide each individual with an accounting of credits accrued.
• The hourly rate for a probation officer, including benefits, is $50.90.
• The impact of HF 349 on the LOS on probation cannot be estimated.
Correctional Impact
According to the DOC, the Bill may increase the LOS on probation compared to the time
individuals currently serve on probation because the DOC currently discharges individuals from
probation when they have met the terms and conditions of supervision. Figure 1 shows the
FY 2023 average LOS on probation served by individuals for all offense classes. Refer to the
Legislative Services Agency (LSA) memo addressed to the General Assembly, Cost Estimates
Used for Correctional Impact Statements, dated January 16, 2024, for information related to
the correctional system.
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                       Figure 1 — FY 2023 Average LOS on Probation
                    Offense Class                        LOS (Months)
                    Class B Felony (Persons)                 53.3
                    Class B Felony (Non-Persons)             34.0
                    Class B Felony (Sex)                     38.3
                    Class C Felony (Persons)                 41.3
                    Class C Felony (Non-Persons)             42.2
                    Class C Felony (Sex)                     41.5
                    Class D Felony (Persons)                 35.5
                    Class D Felony (Non-Persons)             39.5
                    Class D Felony (Sex)                     40.1
                    Aggravated Misdemeanor (Persons)         25.1
                    Aggravated Misdemeanor (Non-Persons)     25.1
                    Aggravated Misdemeanor (Sex)             25.6
                    Serious Misdemeanor                      19.2
Minority Impact
The minority impact of HF 349 cannot be estimated because the effect on the LOS of individuals
on probation cannot be determined. Of the individuals on probation in FY 2023, 70.7% were
White, 17.4% were Black, and 11.9% were other races. Iowa’s population is 89.8% White, 4.4%
Black, and 5.7% other races. Refer to the LSA memo addressed to the General Assembly,
Minority Impact Statement, dated January 16, 2024, for information related to minorities in the
criminal justice system.
Fiscal Impact
According to the DOC, HF 349 is estimated to increase the workload for probation officers to
verify eligibility for discharge credits, education credits, and employment credits for supervised
clients. The estimated cost is approximately $7.1 million in FY 2025 and $6.7 million beginning
in FY 2026 and each year thereafter.
                     Figure 2 — Annual Costs to the DOC Under HF 349
                            Annual Offenders    Increased Hourly               FY 2025    FY 2026
                                Served         Workload Required Hourly Pay     Total       Total
Discharge Credits                32,962                1.0       $      50.9 $ 1,677,766 $ 1,677,766
Educational Credits              32,962                1.0       $      50.9   1,677,766   1,677,766
Workforce Credits                32,962                1.0       $      50.9   1,677,766   1,677,766
Discharge Credit Review          32,962                1.0       $      50.9   1,677,766   1,677,766
Report Generation                   --                80.0       $      50.0       4,000       4,000
FY 2025 Programming Costs           --                  --           --          367,500      --
Total                                                                        $ 7,082,563 $ 6,715,063
The fiscal impact of the change in individuals’ LOS on probation under HF 349 cannot be
estimated. The DOC reports that the Bill may result in increased LOS, but the extent cannot be
estimated. If the Bill does increase the LOS for individuals on probation, costs to the DOC
would increase. If the Bill decreases the LOS for individuals on probation, costs to the DOC
would decrease. The marginal cost per day for an individual on probation is $7.67.
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Sources
Department of Corrections
Criminal and Juvenile Justice Planning, Department of Management
Legislative Services Agency
                                                                               /s/ Jennifer Acton
                                                                               February 28, 2024
Doc ID 1445338
The fiscal note for this Bill was prepared pursuant to Joint Rule 17 and the Iowa Code. Data used in developing this
fiscal note is available from the Fiscal Services Division of the Legislative Services Agency upon request.
                                                 www.legis.iowa.gov
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Statutes affected: 
Introduced: 907.1, 907.9
Reprinted: 907.1, 907.9