1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to crime prevention; defining probation; 
  1.3             clarifying jurisdiction of probation service 
  1.4             providers; requiring reports and reviews; requiring 
  1.5             policies to be adopted; requiring probation service 
  1.6             providers to collect and maintain certain information; 
  1.7             creating a work group; amending Minnesota Statutes 
  1.8             1996, sections 260.311, subdivision 1; and 609.02, by 
  1.9             adding a subdivision; proposing coding for new law in 
  1.10            Minnesota Statutes, chapter 244. 
  1.11  BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.12     Section 1.  [244.20] [PROBATION SUPERVISION OF FELONS.] 
  1.13     Notwithstanding sections 260.311, subdivision 1, and 
  1.14  609.135, subdivision 1, the department of corrections shall have 
  1.15  exclusive responsibility for providing probation services for 
  1.16  adult felons in counties that do not take part in the Community 
  1.17  Corrections Act. 
  1.18     Sec. 2.  [244.21] [COLLECTION OF INFORMATION ON OFFENDERS; 
  1.19  REPORTS REQUIRED.] 
  1.20     Subdivision 1.  [COLLECTION OF INFORMATION BY PROBATION 
  1.21  SERVICE PROVIDERS; REPORT REQUIRED.] By January 1, 1998, 
  1.22  probation service providers shall begin collecting and 
  1.23  maintaining information on offenders under supervision.  The 
  1.24  commissioner of corrections shall specify the nature and extent 
  1.25  of the information to be collected.  By April 1 of every year, 
  1.26  each probation service provider shall report a summary of the 
  1.27  information collected to the commissioner. 
  1.28     Subd. 2.  [COMMISSIONER OF CORRECTIONS REPORT.] By January 
  2.1   15, 1998, the commissioner of corrections shall report to the 
  2.2   chairs of the senate crime prevention and house of 
  2.3   representatives judiciary committees on recommended methods of 
  2.4   coordinating the exchange of information collected on offenders 
  2.5   under subdivision 1:  (1) between probation service providers; 
  2.6   and (2) between probation service providers and the department 
  2.7   of corrections, without requiring service providers to acquire 
  2.8   uniform computer software. 
  2.9      Sec. 3.  [244.22] [REVIEW OF PLANNED EXPENDITURES OF 
  2.10  PROBATION SERVICE PROVIDERS; DISTRIBUTION OF MONEY TO MULTIPLE 
  2.11  PROBATION SERVICE PROVIDERS WITHIN A SINGLE COUNTY.] 
  2.12     (a) The commissioner of corrections shall review the 
  2.13  planned expenditures of probation service providers before 
  2.14  allocating probation caseload reduction grants appropriated by 
  2.15  the legislature.  The review must determine whether the planned 
  2.16  expenditures comply with applicable law. 
  2.17     (b) In counties where probation services are provided by 
  2.18  both county and department of corrections employees, a 
  2.19  collaborative plan addressing the local needs shall be 
  2.20  developed.  The commissioner of corrections shall specify the 
  2.21  manner in which probation caseload reduction grant money shall 
  2.22  be distributed between the providers according to the approved 
  2.23  plan. 
  2.24     Sec. 4.  [244.23] [REPORTS TO COMMISSIONER OF CORRECTIONS.] 
  2.25     By April 1 of every year, probation service providers shall 
  2.26  report information about the reoffense rates of adult offenders 
  2.27  on probation to the commissioner of corrections.  The 
  2.28  information reported must be consistent with the recommendations 
  2.29  of the probation outcome measurement task force established in 
  2.30  section 8. 
  2.31     Sec. 5.  [244.24] [CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM FOR ADULT 
  2.32  OFFENDERS.] 
  2.33     By February 1, 1998, all probation agencies shall adopt 
  2.34  written policies for classifying adult offenders.  The 
  2.35  commissioner of corrections shall assist probation agencies in 
  2.36  locating organizations that may provide training and technical 
  3.1   assistance to the agencies concerning methods to develop and 
  3.2   implement effective, valid classification systems. 
  3.3      Sec. 6.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 260.311, 
  3.4   subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  3.5      Subdivision 1.  [APPOINTMENT; JOINT SERVICES; STATE 
  3.6   SERVICES.] (a) If a county or group of counties has established 
  3.7   a human services board pursuant to chapter 402, the district 
  3.8   court may appoint one or more county probation officers as 
  3.9   necessary to perform court services, and the human services 
  3.10  board shall appoint persons as necessary to provide correctional 
  3.11  services within the authority granted in chapter 402.  In all 
  3.12  counties of more than 200,000 population, which have not 
  3.13  organized pursuant to chapter 402, the district court shall 
  3.14  appoint one or more persons of good character to serve as county 
  3.15  probation officers during the pleasure of the court.  All other 
  3.16  counties shall provide adult misdemeanant and juvenile probation 
  3.17  services to district courts in one of the following ways: 
  3.18     (1) the court, with the approval of the county boards, may 
  3.19  appoint one or more salaried county probation officers to serve 
  3.20  during the pleasure of the court; 
  3.21     (2) when two or more counties offer probation services the 
  3.22  district court through the county boards may appoint common 
  3.23  salaried county probation officers to serve in the several 
  3.24  counties; 
  3.25     (3) a county or a district court may request the 
  3.26  commissioner of corrections to furnish probation services in 
  3.27  accordance with the provisions of this section, and the 
  3.28  commissioner of corrections shall furnish such services to any 
  3.29  county or court that fails to provide its own probation officer 
  3.30  by one of the two procedures listed above; 
  3.31     (4) if a county or district court providing probation 
  3.32  services under clause (1) or (2) asks the commissioner of 
  3.33  corrections or the legislative body for the state of Minnesota 
  3.34  mandates the commissioner of corrections to furnish probation 
  3.35  services to the district court, the probation officers and other 
  3.36  employees displaced by the changeover shall be employed by the 
  4.1   commissioner of corrections.  Years of service in the county 
  4.2   probation department are to be given full credit for future sick 
  4.3   leave and vacation accrual purposes; 
  4.4      (5) all probation officers serving the juvenile courts on 
  4.5   July 1, 1972, shall continue to serve in the county or counties 
  4.6   they are now serving. 
  4.7      (b) The commissioner of employee relations shall place 
  4.8   employees transferred to state service under paragraph (a), 
  4.9   clause (4), in the proper classifications in the classified 
  4.10  service.  Each employee is appointed without examination at no 
  4.11  loss in salary or accrued vacation or sick leave benefits, but 
  4.12  no additional accrual of vacation or sick leave benefits may 
  4.13  occur until the employee's total accrued vacation or sick leave 
  4.14  benefits fall below the maximum permitted by the state for the 
  4.15  employee's position.  An employee appointed under paragraph (a), 
  4.16  clause (4), shall serve a probationary period of six months.  
  4.17  After exhausting labor contract remedies, a noncertified 
  4.18  employee may appeal for a hearing within ten days to the 
  4.19  commissioner of employee relations, who may uphold the decision, 
  4.20  extend the probation period, or certify the employee.  The 
  4.21  decision of the commissioner of employee relations is final.  
  4.22  The state shall negotiate with the exclusive representative for 
  4.23  the bargaining unit to which the employees are transferred 
  4.24  regarding their seniority.  For purposes of computing seniority 
  4.25  among those employees transferring from one county unit only, a 
  4.26  transferred employee retains the same seniority position as the 
  4.27  employee had within that county's probation office. 
  4.28     Sec. 7.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 609.02, is 
  4.29  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  4.30     Subd. 15.  [PROBATION.] "Probation" means a court-ordered 
  4.31  sanction imposed upon an offender for a period of supervision no 
  4.32  greater than that set by statute.  It is imposed as an 
  4.33  alternative to confinement or in conjunction with confinement or 
  4.34  intermediate sanctions.  The purpose of probation is to deter 
  4.35  further criminal behavior, punish the offender, help provide 
  4.36  reparation to crime victims and their communities, and provide 
  5.1   offenders with opportunities for rehabilitation. 
  5.2      Sec. 8.  [PROBATION OUTCOME MEASUREMENT WORK GROUP.] 
  5.3      Subdivision 1.  [WORK GROUP ESTABLISHED; PURPOSE.] The 
  5.4   commissioner of corrections shall establish a work group to 
  5.5   develop uniform statewide probation outcome measures.  The 
  5.6   outcome measures must focus primarily on adult offenders but, to 
  5.7   the extent possible, may also address juvenile offenders.  The 
  5.8   work group shall develop definitions that may be used by all 
  5.9   state and local probation service providers to report outcome 
  5.10  information for probation services.  The work group shall 
  5.11  recommend a method by which probation service providers may 
  5.12  measure and report recidivism in a uniform manner. 
  5.13     Subd. 2.  [MEMBERSHIP.] The commissioner of corrections 
  5.14  shall appoint individuals who have demonstrated experience in 
  5.15  the probation field to serve as members of the work group.  The 
  5.16  commissioner shall ensure that community corrections act 
  5.17  counties and noncommunity corrections act counties are equally 
  5.18  represented on the work group.  The commissioner, or the 
  5.19  commissioner's designee, shall serve on the work group and act 
  5.20  as its chair. 
  5.21     Subd. 3.  [REVIEW OF OUTCOME MEASURES.] By November 1, 
  5.22  1997, the work group shall submit its recommendations on outcome 
  5.23  measures to the criminal and juvenile justice information policy 
  5.24  group for review. 
  5.25     Subd. 4.  [REPORT REQUIRED.] The work group shall report 
  5.26  its findings and recommendations to the chairs of the senate and 
  5.27  house of representatives committees having jurisdiction over 
  5.28  criminal justice policies by January 15, 1998.  The report must 
  5.29  indicate what comments or modifications, if any, were made or 
  5.30  suggested by the criminal and juvenile justice information 
  5.31  policy group and whether the work group altered its 
  5.32  recommendations because of this. 
  5.33     Sec. 9.  [DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS BIENNIAL PERFORMANCE 
  5.34  REPORT.] 
  5.35     The department of corrections must include in its agency 
  5.36  performance report for the year 2001 a summary of statewide 
  6.1   information on the reoffense rates of persons on probation. 
  6.2      Sec. 10.  [INSTRUCTION TO REVISOR.] 
  6.3      The revisor of statutes shall renumber Minnesota Statutes, 
  6.4   section 260.311, as 244.19.  The revisor shall also make 
  6.5   necessary cross-reference changes consistent with the 
  6.6   renumbering. 
  6.7      Sec. 11.  [EFFECTIVE DATES.] 
  6.8      Sections 1 and 6 are effective August 1, 1997.  Section 2 
  6.9   is effective January 1, 1998.  Section 4 is effective January 1, 
  6.10  1999.  Sections 3, 5, and 7 to 9 are effective the day following 
  6.11  final enactment.