Budget Amendment ID: FY2021-S4-325-R2

2nd Redraft EPS 325

Harm Reduction for Congregate Facilities

Ms. Chang-Diaz, Ms. Rausch, Messrs. Barrett and Eldridge, Ms. Jehlen and Ms. Comerford moved that the proposed new text be amended in section 2, in item 8900-0001, by inserting the following:- "; provided further, that the department shall conduct routine surveillance testing for the 2019 novel coronavirus, consistent with public health best practices, of consenting inmates in facilities under its purview throughout the state of emergency relative to the 2019 novel coronavirus declared by the governor on March 10, 2020; provided further, that given the continued prevalence and threat of the 2019 novel coronavirus within the commonwealth’s department of correction facilities, the commissioner of correction shall take all measures possible to release, transition to home confinement or furlough individuals in the care and custody of the department who can be safely released, transitioned to home confinement or furloughed with prioritization given to populations most vulnerable to serious medical outcomes associated with the 2019 novel coronavirus according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s guidelines; provided further, that the department shall consider, but shall not be limited to, the following mechanisms: (i) the use of home confinement without exclusion pursuant to chapter 211F of the General Laws; (ii) the expedition of medical parole petition review by superintendents and the commissioner; (iii) the use of furlough; (iv) the maximization of good time by eliminating mandates for participation in programming for those close to their release dates; and (v) awarding credits to provide further remission from time of sentence for time served during periods of declared public health emergencies impacting the operation of prisons; provided further, that the department shall seek recommendations from public health experts to ensure that policies are appropriate in relation to the 2019 novel coronavirus; provided further, that the department shall provide court-mandated access to the special master appointed pursuant to supreme judicial court order number 12926; provided further, that funds shall be made available from this item for the creation of an independent ombudsman’s office for the duration of the state of emergency relative to the 2019 novel coronavirus declared by the governor on March 10, 2020; provided further, that the attorney general, in consultation with the department of public health, shall appoint an ombudsman to act as director of the ombudsman’s office; provided further, that the office shall monitor compliance with the requirements of this item relative to the 2019 novel coronavirus public health emergency, including, but not limited to, actions taken or not taken by the department to ensure the health and safety of individuals under the department’s purview including, but not limited to, employees and inmates, as well as the families of such individuals, and shall have access to information related to the department’s use of the mechanisms for release, home confinement or furlough stated in this item; provided further, that the office shall establish public health standards, using recommended standards and guidance from public health experts, to evaluate the department’s compliance or non-compliance with best practices; provided further, that not less than biweekly, the office shall provide the joint committee on the judiciary and the joint committee on public health with a report on: (a) the department’s efforts to mitigate the rate of infection in facilities under its purview; (b) the department’s efforts taken relative to safe depopulation during the state of emergency relative to the 2019 novel coronavirus declared by the governor on March 10, 2020; (c) the department’s policies in development to further mitigate the rate of infection in correctional settings; (d) the amount of population reduction achieved to-date by the use of the mechanisms for release, home confinement or furlough stated in this item; and (e) the department’s compliance or non-compliance with the office’s established public health standards; and provided further, that, if the office determines that the department is not taking actions necessary to mitigate the rate of infection in facilities under its purview or is in non-compliance with its established public health standards, the office may recommend that the joint committee on the judiciary and the joint committee on public health require the commissioner to testify in a publicly-available forum to discuss the department’s non-compliance and a remediation plan to meet the office’s public health standards".