Colorado lawmakers are proposing several changes to a state law that sponsors say would help ease overcrowding and reduce strain on state facilities.

The proposal would mandate data reporting, as well require certain actions, including transitioning inmates from community corrections, considering “alternate sanctions” for technical parole violations, and giving inmates more earned time.

In 2018, lawmakers passed a law that mandates the state to implement what’s called the “Prison Population Management Measures (PPMM)” when the vacancy rate stays below 3% for 30 consecutive days.

Once the measures have been activated, the Department of Corrections may coordinate with the state’s parole board to review its list of inmates who are eligible for parole. The department can also seek information from the Office of Community Corrections regarding any unused beds in their facilities.

The measures were activated for the first time in August by Gov. Jared Polis. As of last week, four months after the implementation of the measures, department facilities’ vacancy rate stood at 2.56%, according to the agency’s executive director.

The PPMM “has not made an impact on prison overcrowding in Colorado,” according to the legislative declaration of Senate Bill 036, sponsored by Sens. Julie Gonzales, D-Denver, Mike Weissman, D-Aurora, Assistant Majority Leader Jennifer Bacon, D-Denver, and Rep. Yara Zokaie, D-Fort Collins.

The bill seeks to improve transparency and communication between the agencies that make up Colorado’s criminal legal system and “better use of limited, expensive correctional capacity with the goal of public safety,” Weissman said.

“Experience has shown the existing mechanism could do better toward those ultimate goals, and this year’s bill seeks to make modest improvements in both respects,” he said.

The bill’s sponsors said there is limited information to reference when assessing why the PPMM isn’t working because there is no data reporting requirement in the current statute.

“It’s often said that ‘what is measured is managed,’ Weissman said. “We cannot best manage limited, expensive, DOC capacity without shared awareness of basic data.”

Senate Bill 036 would implement such a requirement, mandating the DOC director to report the last month’s bed capacity, average daily population, and actions taken to comply with the PPMM, if it is in effect.

The department would also be required to transition certain inmates from a community corrections program to “nonresidential status.”

The bill also establishes requirements for the Division of Adult Parole, including mandating the office to notify community parole officers of bed shortages and consider “alternate sanctions” for technical parole violations.

The parole board would also be required to grant certain inmates who are within 120 days of their mandatory release date an additional 60 days of earned time and identify any inmates who are past their parole eligibility date and review each application for expedited parole.

Weissman said he and his cosponsors have been in active talks with corrections department and the governor’s office for weeks.

“I think they appreciate that we are trying to contribute to the challenge of balancing public safety, rehabilitation, DOC capacity constraints, budget constraints, and DOC employee safety,” he said.

Weissman said changes to the PPMM are only a small piece of the puzzle.

A “significant number” of inmates are eligible for placement in community corrections facilities and about 4,600 inmates are currently being detained in a DOC facility despite being past their parole eligibility date, according to the bill’s legislative declaration.