Corrections spending reform: the Chamber adopted a policy in favor of reductions in the corrections budget.

While it has been over a year, the business community still hasn't forgotten the budget battles of 2007 in Lansing. That is in part because, as a result of the compromise to rid the state of the service tax, businesses were slapped with a 22 percent surcharge on their Michigan Business Tax bills to help mitigate the expenses. The Legislature promised that once they got through the initial battle, they would get serious about budget reform. Over a year later and those reforms still haven't come.

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That is why the Chamber decided to help them find the reforms that are needed to make the surcharge go the way of the dodo bird. Understanding that reforms can't be limited to one area, the first project undertaken was a close examination of the Department of Corrections.

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Corrections spending has grown 538 percent in the last 34 years, making Michigan one of only four states that spends more on corrections than it does on higher education. There has also been a dramatic increase in the number of inmates being housed in Michigan correctional facilities. In 2008, corrections spending in Michigan was $2.08 billion, $1.9 billion of which was spending from the general fund. This represents 5.2 percent of all state expenditures and 20 percent of all general fund appropriations in the state, an increase from 5 percent in 1983. Current projections anticipate spending to increase to over $2.6 billion by 2012.

The state's incarceration rate of 511 prisoners per 100,000 residents is 56 per 100,000, higher than the 50 state average, and 120 per 100,000, higher than the Midwest average. In the 30 years after 1975, Michigan's population increased 11.3 percent. The prison population at the same time increased 356 percent to well over 50,000 inmates.

With that in mind, the Chamber Board of Directors recently adopted a policy in favor of reductions in the Corrections budget that addresses the two primary drivers of high costs. The Chamber favors "right-sizing" the prison population and maximizing our current investment in prisons.

Several steps need to be taken to right-sizing the prison population. Some might think that this means we need to send fewer people to jail. In reality, we could take a huge step towards reducing prison costs by reducing our average sentence to comply with the averages we see in other Great Lakes states. This means that we have to reform the parole board. In the early 90s the parole board was changed from a board of professional civil servants to a board of political appointees. Since that time, we've seen a significant increase in the number of inmates serving past their earliest parole date. In 1996, 81 percent of low-risk offenders were paroled annually, in 2006 that number dropped to 53 percent.

This state is also an outlier when compared to the rest of the country in giving credit to inmates who follow guidelines and have educational and professional achievements which will allow them to succeed on the outside. The late 70s saw Michigan move away from the concept of disciplinary credits and towards the concept of truth in sentencing. Now, most states in the country have some sort of disciplinary credits that recognize the costs associated with continued imprisonment of lower risk offenders who can succeed in society. Michigan requires that even the highest achieving inmate serve his full term, taking away the incentive for inmates to participate in GED classes, professional development or substance abuse treatment that will allow them to succeed. This also means that a Michigan inmate serves at least 15 percent longer than federal guidelines require. Reinstating disciplinary credits focused on academic and professional achievement can not only reduce recidivism rates, but also save the state $120 million annually.

Parole isn't the only reason that Michigan's average prison stay is 14 months higher than the average Great Lakes states. That is why the Chamber supports the appointment of a Michigan Sentencing Commission that would be charged with examining the state of Michigan's sentencing guidelines and taking steps to encourage community based sentencing, Treatment and effective use of technology (such as GPS tethers) where the public can be kept safe. Bringing Michigan's average sentence length inline with the rest of our neighboring states can save taxpayers up to $400 million annually.

Finally, the state needs to continue its focus on prisoner reentry. It is important for everyone to remember that all but the most violent criminals are going to get out of prison someday. We know that the leading indicator of their success upon release is having a stable source of income. Further, we understand that they need to return to stable homes and receive the substance abuse and mental health treatment they require. The MDOC has begun the Michigan Prisoner Re-entry Initiative (MPRI) to start addressing these very issues. Full implementation of MPRI will mean that the moment an inmate enters prison, he will begin planning to leave prison. If the MPRI can reduce recidivism by just 10 percent, the savings could be up to $40 million annually.

There are ways to reduce prison costs without even releasing a single prisoner--that's why the Chamber is looking to maximize our current investment in Corrections as well. For example, the State of Florida and Kansas as well as the Oakland County Jail have privatized their food service for inmates. Based on the figures from those entities, if Michigan were to open its food service to competitive bidding, the savings could be almost $40 million. There are several other services that are provided within a prison system that don't require the use of a corrections officer. These include healthcare, pharmaceuticals, janitor services and laundry, to name a few. The MDOC should be aggressive in seeking out competition to make sure these services are provided at the lowest possible cost.

This could include partnering with other entities in state government to see where their interests intersect.

Finally, the Chamber has asked the MDOC to find a 10 percent savings in all of their administrative costs. Times have been tough all across the state and businesses and families have had to make some difficult choices in their budget. The Chamber believes that MDOC can do that as well, without jeopardizing the safety of its officers, employees, inmates, or most importantly, the public.

None of these issues are easy, but neither are the issues that Chamber members and job providers across the state have been facing. With enough hard work on the behalf of the Legislature, the Administration and other interested parties, this work can be done to the betterment of the state.

Brad Williams is director of government relations for the Detroit Regional Chamber.