Smart on Crime has its 2022 agenda ready for General Assembly

Announced its 2022 agenda for the Kentucky General Assembly

FRANKFORT, Ky. (KT) – Kentucky Smart on Crime, a coalition of 14 organizations dedicated to justice reform, has announced its 2022 agenda for the Kentucky General Assembly, which includes reentry, expungement, penal code changes, and strong investments in substance use disorder treatment.

“After a brief reduction due to temporary COVID-19 reductions, the Commonwealth is once again seeing prison and jail population growth,” said Carmen Mitchell, policy analyst for KyPolicy, a non-profit research organization and partner in the Smart on Crime Coalition.  “However, lawmakers have the perfect opportunity in 2022 to make a real course correction that both enhances public safety and reduces the number of incarcerated.”

According to a recent report co-authored by Mitchell and several colleagues at KyPolicy, in the past 10 years, the General Assembly has passed six times the number of bills to increase felony criminal punishment, as it has measures to reduce prison populations.

The Smart on Crime Coalition’s 2022 policy recommendations to change this dynamic include:

--A KEES Bill to broaden educational opportunities to those seeking 2^nd chances by removing barriers to educational attainment via KEES scholarships.

--Support for a $250,000 annual investment to provide those exiting the system with IDs to improve access to employment, housing, etc.− an expansion of a highly successful pilot in 8 state prisons and one county jail to the Kentucky's entire correctional system.

--Shortening the eligibility window for expungement from 5 years to 3 years.

--Reclassifying simple possession from a Class D felony to a Class A Misdemeanor with an emphasis on diversion/probation and treatment for substance use disorder.

--Strong investment in resources for recovery to improve public safety.

“Through a few modest reforms, we have seen some progress in reducing the state’s sky-high recidivism rate in the last five years, moving from an abysmal 44.5% to an improving, but still problematic 35.4%,” said Laela Kashan, staff attorney for Kentucky Association of Sexual Assault Programs. “Those reforms were mainly focused on reentry, which is positive, but to make further progress in reducing harm and victimization, we have to pursue evidenced-informed strategies that impact people before they are involved in the criminal system and set people up for success in life, such as access to healthcare and community support.”

Kentucky Smart on Crime partners include American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky, Kentucky Chamber of Commerce, Bluegrass Institute for Public Policy Solutions, Kentucky Center for Economic Policy, Kentucky Council of Churches, Catholic Conference of Kentucky, Kentucky Association of Sexual Assault Programs, Inc., Kentucky Coalition Against Domestic Violence, Kentucky Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Kentucky Youth Advocates, Volunteers of America Mid-States, Inc., NAACP Kentucky, Kentucky Criminal Justice Forum, and United Way of Kentucky.

The 2022 General Assembly begins Jan. 4.