Revision: June 10, 2016, midnight
\t \t\tSB 466-FN - VERSION ADOPTED BY BOTH BODIES
20Apr2016... 1345h
11May2016... 1824h
06/01/2016 2088CofC
06/01/2016 2152EBA
2016 SESSION
\t16-2777
\t05/10
SENATE BILL\t466-FN
AN ACT\trelative to the detention of youthful offenders at the youth development center.
SPONSORS:\tSen. D'Allesandro, Dist 20; Sen. Feltes, Dist 15; Sen. Lasky, Dist 13; Sen. Soucy, Dist 18; Sen. Watters, Dist 4
COMMITTEE:\tJudiciary
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AMENDED ANALYSIS
\tThis bill:
\tI. Provides that a minor whose case is to be transfered to the superior court may be detained at a county correctional facility or the youth development center.
\tII. Permits a youthful offender who has been sentenced as an adult to serve his or her sentence at the youth development center until the offender reaches the age of 18, at which time he or she shall be transferred to the state prison or county correctional facility.
\tIII. Revises the reduction in appropriation required for the Sununu youth services center and the department of health and human services as a whole.
\tIV. Requires the department of health and human services to consider a detention risk assessment instrument to determine whether a child should be held at the youth services center pending adjudication.
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Explanation:\tMatter added to current law appears in bold italics.
\t\tMatter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
\t\tMatter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
20Apr2016... 1345h
11May2016... 1824h
06/01/2016 2088CofC\t16-2777
06/01/2016 2152EBA\t05/10
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Sixteen
AN ACT\trelative to the detention of youthful offenders at the youth development center.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
\t1 Delinquent Children; Transfer to Superior Court; Detention at the Youth Development Center Permitted. Amend RSA 169-B:24, II to read as follows:
\t\tII. The minor shall be entitled to the assistance of counsel. Both the prosecutor and counsel for the minor shall have access to the court records, probation reports, or other agency reports. If the court orders transfer to superior court, it shall provide a written statement of findings and reasons for such transfer to the minor. When persons so certified are accepted by the superior court, the superior court may dispose of all criminal charges arising out of the incident which led to the transfer petition according to the relevant laws of this state without any limitations as to sentence or orders required by this chapter. All original papers in transferred cases shall remain in the court from which transferred and certified copies of the papers shall be filed with and shall constitute the records of the court to which transfer is made. Pending disposition by the superior court, a juvenile who is transferred and accepted by the superior court may be placed under the supervision of the department of corrections or required to recognize with sufficient sureties, or in default of such sureties, be detained at a county correctional facility or the youth development center to await disposition of the case in the superior court[; provided, however, once a minor is certified for trial as an adult and the person is transferred to the superior court, detention at the youth development center is prohibited].
\t2 New Section; Sentences; Transfer of Youthful Offender. Amend RSA 651 by inserting after RSA 651:17 the following new section:
\t651:17-a Transfer of Youthful Offender. Any person under the age of 18 who has been certified as an adult pursuant to RSA 169-B:24 and sentenced to the state prison pursuant to RSA 651:15 or to a county correctional facility pursuant to RSA 651:17, may be transferred to the youth development center established under RSA 621 for service of his or her sentence until he or she reaches the age of 18. Thereafter, any remaining portion of the sentence shall be served at the state prison or county correctional facility. The department of corrections, county correctional facilities, and the department of health and human services shall develop a memorandum of agreement which sets forth the roles and responsibilities of the parties when such a transfer occurs.
\t3 New Section; Youth Services Center; Service of Adult Sentence of Incarceration. Amend RSA 621 by inserting after RSA 621:35 the following new section:
\t621:36 Service of Adult Sentence of Incarceration at the Youth Development Center. Notwithstanding any provision of law or rule to the contrary, the department may accept any youthful offender who is transferred to the youth development center pursuant to RSA 651:17-a for service of his or her adult sentence of incarceration until the youth reaches the age of 18.
\t4 Department of Health and Human Services, Sununu Youth Services Center; Reduction in Appropriation. Amend 2015, 276:205 to read as follows:
\t276:205 Department of Health and Human Services, Sununu Youth Services Center; Reduction in Appropriation. The department of health and human services is hereby directed to reduce state general fund appropriations to the Sununu Youth Services Center by [$1,721,861] $700,000 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2016, and by [$3,496,746] $1,700,000 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2017. The department shall operate the Sununu Youth Services Center within the allotted budget, or may enter into contracts for operation of the Sununu Youth Services Center, including establishing necessary class lines, as long as total operating costs do not exceed [$10,100,000] $11,800,000 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2017. The department shall lapse an additional $1,850,000 in state general fund appropriations for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2017, which shall be in addition to any previously required or estimated lapse for said fiscal year.
\t5 Department of Health and Human Services; Reduction in Appropriation to the Sununu Youth Services Center; Reporting Requirement. On or before August 5, 2016, the department of health and human services shall submit for approval by the fiscal committee of the general court, a plan to reduce general fund appropriations to the Sununu youth services center as required by section 4 of this act. The department shall provide the committee with a status report relative to implementation of the budget reduction every 3 months thereafter. The plan shall include a proposal to achieve 1/2 of the budget reduction for fiscal year 2017 no later than January 1, 2017. If the department does not achieve 1/2 of the budget reduction for fiscal year 2017 by January 1, 2017, the department of health and human service's authority to transfer funds within and among accounting units of the department provided in 2015, 276:143 shall be suspended for the remainder of the biennium.
\t6 Youth Development Services; Admission; Discharge from Youth Services Center Detention Risk Assessment Instrument. Amend RSA 621-A:6 to read as follows:
\t621-A:6 Admission.
\t\tI. Children, subject to proceedings in juvenile court, may be admitted to the youth services center for temporary detention while awaiting disposition of the court pursuant to RSA 169-B:14, for educational services pursuant to RSA 186-C, RSA 169-B, RSA 169-C, or RSA 169-D, only upon prior approval of the commissioner.
\t\tII. Prior to a child's detention at the youth services center, the department or an arresting law enforcement agency shall complete a detention risk assessment instrument to determine whether there is:
\t\t\t(a) Probable cause to believe that the child will pose a risk to public safety if released to the community prior to the court hearing or disposition; or
\t\t\t(b) A need to hold the child in order to assure the child's appearance before the court, as demonstrated by the child's previous failure to respond to the court.
\t\tIII. The department shall review and submit a monthly report to the general court on those cases, also known as "overrides," in which children are confined at the Sununu Youth Services Center contrary to the results of the detention risk assessment instrument. Beginning with the fourth such report, the department shall include recommendations for the appropriate rate of overrides.
\t\tI. Sections 1-3 of this act shall take effect July 1, 2016.
\t\tII. The remainder of this act shall take effect June 30, 2016.
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t16-2777
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAmended 4/26/16
SB 466-FN - FISCAL NOTE
AN ACT\trelative to the detention of youthful offenders at the youth development center.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Corrections, and New Hampshire Association of Counties state this bill, as amended by the House (Amendment #2016-1345h), will have an indeterminable impact on state and county expenditures in FY 2017 and each year thereafter. There will be no impact on state, county and local revenue or local expenditures.
METHODOLOGY:
The Department of Health and Human Services states this bill authorizes the continued detention of youth at the Sununu Youth Services Center (SYSC) following their certification to stand trial as an adult and pending disposition of their case in the superior court. The Department estimates the average number of youth at the SYSC pending certification to stand trial as an adult is five or fewer per year. The estimated average cost of commitment / detention at SYSC is $588 per day. The Department indicates the additional length of stay is not known and is dependent on the length of the proceedings in the superior court which vary with each case. The Department assumes there will be an indeterminable increase in State general fund expenditures and notes federal funds are not available for the costs of committed or detained youth.
The Department of Corrections states this bill provides that any person under the age of 18 who has been certified as an adult and sentenced to state prison or to a county facility may be transferred to the SYSC for service of their sentence until they reach the age of 18. Thereafter any remaining portion of the sentence shall be served at the state prison or county correctional facility. The Department notes it does not have the facilities to safely house offenders under the age of 18 while maintaining compliance with the terms of the federal Prison Rape Elimination Act. The Department states should this bill pass, it will work with the Department of Health and Human Services to develop a memorandum of agreement which will set forth the roles and responsibilities of the various parties should a transfer from the SYSC to a prison facility occur. The Department states given the uncertainty regarding the number of offenders to be housed, the bill's fiscal impact is indeterminable.
The New Hampshire Association of Counties states the fiscal impact on the county incarceration costs is indeterminable. The Association indicates county correctional facilities currently only house adults and do not house juveniles.