Jones, Bentley in D.C. today
Published 12:05 am Tuesday, July 14, 2015
Rep. Mike Jones, R-Andalusia, is traveling to the nation’s capital with Gov. Robert Bentley today.
Bentley is set to testify before the U.S. House Oversight and Government Reform Committee to highlight Alabama’s prison reform efforts. His testimony is set for 9:30 a.m. CST.
In 2014, Alabama launched the Justice Reinvestment Initiative (JRI), a comprehensive study of the state’s criminal justice system to identify ways to implement more cost effective criminal justice policies. The goal of JRI is to generate state savings that can be reinvested in evidence-based strategies that will increase public safety while holding offenders accountable for crimes.
With JRI recommendations and passage of legislation in the 2015 Regular Session, Gov. Bentley signed historic criminal justice reform legislation into law. The legislation is expected to reduce the state’s prison population by more than 4,200 people, avert more than $380 million in future costs and provide supervision for 3,000 more people upon release from prison.
Jones who chairs the Judicial Committee in the Alabama House of Representatives, led the efforts to pass the prison reform package in the House.