An Act To Improve the Coordination of State and County Correctional Services
Maine Legislature, Session 125, LD 1419
Committee: Criminal Justice and Public Safety
Sponsors: PLUMMER, SHERMAN, BURNS, DION, MARTIN, PICCHIOTTI, RIOUX, WILLETTE, THIBODEAU
Amends: 14 MRSA §5545, 30-A MRSA §101, 30-A MRSA §406, 30-A MRSA §709, 30-A MRSA §710, 30-A MRSA §1557-B, 34-A MRSA §1208, 34-A MRSA §1404, 34-A MRSA §1404-A, 34-A MRSA §1405, 34-A MRSA §1801, 34-A MRSA §1802, 34-A MRSA §1803, 34-A MRSA §1803-A, 34-A MRSA §1803-B, 34-A MRSA §1804

Legislative Document 
No. 1419 
H.P. 1045 
House of Representatives, April 6, 2011 
An Act To Improve the Coordination of State and County 
Correctional Services 
Reference to the Committee on Criminal Justice and Public Safety suggested and ordered 
printed. 
HEATHER J.R. PRIEST 
Clerk 
Presented by Representative PLUMMER of Windham. 
Cosponsored by Senator SHERMAN of Aroostook and 
Representatives: BURNS of Whiting, DION of Portland, MARTIN of Eagle Lake, 
PICCHIOTTI of Fairfield, RIOUX of Winterport, WILLETTE of Presque Isle, Senator: 
THIBODEAU of Waldo. 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  14 MRSA §5545, 2nd ¶, as amended by PL 2007, c. 653, Pt. A, §4, is 
further amended to read: 
Whenever, under this section or under any other section in this chapter, a court issues 
a writ of habeas corpus ordering before it a prisoner confined in any penal or correctional 
institution under the control of the Department of Health and Human Services or the 
Department of Corrections, or confined in any county jail, its order as to the 
transportation of the prisoner to and from the court must be directed to the sheriff of the 
county in which the court is located.  It is the responsibility of the sheriff or any one or 
more of the sheriff's authorized deputies pursuant to any such order to safely transport a 
prisoner to and from the court and to provide safe and secure custody of the prisoner 
during the proceedings, as directed by the court.  At the time of removal of a prisoner 
from an institution, the transporting officer shall leave with the head of the institution an 
attested copy of the order of the court, and upon return of the prisoner shall note that 
return on the copy.  This paragraph as it relates to the responsibility for transportation is 
applicable to transfers from the county jail to any other county jail or to a state 
correctional facility under Title 34-A, section 1405 1803-B, subsection 6. 
Sec. 2.  30-A MRSA §101, sub-§6-B, as enacted by PL 2007, c. 653, Pt. A, §5, is 
amended to read: 
6-B.  Support the State Board of Corrections.  Working with the Commissioner 
Executive Director of the State Board of Corrections and sheriffs, support the State Board 
of Corrections, referred to in this subsection as "the board," in its efforts to accomplish its 
purpose and duties as defined in Title 34-A, sections 1801 and 1803 by: 
A.  Recommending a downsizing plan, a plan for capital construction and 
reinvestment strategies to the board; 
B.  Recommending uniform policies and procedures for pretrial, probation revocation 
and reentry services to the board; 
C.  Recommending a plan for the placement, housing and program development for 
inmates with mental illness in accordance with standards adopted by the board; and 
D.  Within available resources, providing support staff for and expertise to the board.; 
and 
Sec. 3.  30-A MRSA §406, first ¶, as enacted by PL 2007, c. 653, Pt. A, §6, is 
amended to read: 
In addition to other duties set out in this Title, the sheriffs, working with the 
Commissioner Executive Director of the State Board of Corrections and the county 
commissioners, have the following duties to support the State Board of Corrections, 
referred to in this section as "the board," in its efforts to accomplish its purpose as defined 
in Title 34-A, section 1801. 
Sec. 4.  30-A MRSA §406, sub-§1, as enacted by PL 2007, c. 653, Pt. A, §6, is 
amended to read: 
1.  Managing jail and prison capacity and offender placement.  Consistent with 
the board's determination of facility use and purpose under Title 34-A, section 1803, 
subsection 2, paragraph A, the sheriffs shall assist the Commissioner Executive Director 
of the State Board of Corrections with respect to the daily management of offender bed 
space throughout the unified coordinated correctional system pursuant to Title 34-A, 
section 1801, subsection 1.  The sheriffs shall daily provide the following information to 
the Commissioner Executive Director of the State Board of Corrections: 
A.  Facility population by gender; classification; legal status, including pretrial or 
sentenced; special needs; and any other parameters determined by the Commissioner 
State Board of Corrections; and 
B.  Facility capacity and available bed space or bed space needs by the reportable 
parameters under paragraph A. 
Sec. 5.  30-A MRSA §406, sub-§2, as enacted by PL 2007, c. 653, Pt. A, §6, is 
amended to read: 
2.  Coordinated correctional system plan.  The sheriffs may recommend a 
downsizing plan, a plan for capital construction and a reinvestment strategies strategy to 
the board. 
Sec. 6.  30-A MRSA §709, as enacted by PL 2007, c. 653, Pt. A, §11, is amended 
to read: 
§709.  County correctional services budgets presented to State Board of Corrections 
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, beginning July 1, 2008 and for all 
subsequent fiscal years,  4  8 months prior to the beginning of the state fiscal year the 
county clerk from each county shall submit that county's its annual correctional services 
budget for the state fiscal year to the State Board of Corrections established in Title 5, 
section 12004-G, subsection 6-C.  Beginning July 1, 2012, 8 months prior to the 
beginning of the state biennial budget period each county shall submit its biennial 
correctional services budget for the state fiscal biennium to the State Board of 
Corrections.  The budget submitted must be signed by the chair of the county 
commissioners and attested to by the county commissioners' clerk chief administrative 
officer.  The budget must include specific amounts for each correctional services related 
expenditure. 
Sec. 7.  30-A MRSA §710, sub-§1, as enacted by PL 2007, c. 653, Pt. A, §12, is 
amended to read: 
1.  Budget growth limitation and proposed budget.  At least 6 12 months before 
the beginning of each state fiscal year, the State Board of Corrections, established in Title 
5, section 12004-G, subsection 6-C and referred to in this section as "the board," shall set 
a growth limitation for the correctional services expenditures in the new each fiscal year 
for each county biennial budget.  The county commissioners shall submit itemized 
correctional services budgets to the board in a format and by a date to be determined 
annually by the board, but no later than 8 months before the beginning of each state fiscal 
biennium. 
Sec. 8.  30-A MRSA §1557-B is enacted to read: 
§1557-B.  Emergency transfer of inmates 
The State Board of Corrections has control over and must authorize the transfer of 
inmates between a county or regional jail and a state correctional facility, except that a 
sheriff or regional jail administrator, in consultation with another sheriff or regional jail 
administrator, may transfer any inmate, pretrial or sentenced, between a county or 
regional jail and another county or regional jail when such transfer is necessary to protect 
that inmate, other inmates or correctional staff from an immediate threat directly related 
to the presence of the transferred inmate at the facility from which the inmate is 
transferred. 
Sec. 9.  34-A MRSA §1208, as amended by PL 2007, c. 102, §6, is further 
amended to read: 
§1208.  Standards for county and municipal detention facilities 
The commissioner State Board of Corrections, referred to in this section as "the 
board," shall establish standards, pursuant to the Maine Administrative Procedure Act, 
Title 5, chapter 375, for county and municipal jails, holding facilities and short-term 
detention areas, referred to in this section as county and municipal detention facilities, as 
follows and shall enforce them. 
1.  Establishment.  The commissioner board shall establish both mandatory and 
desirable standards for all county and municipal detention facilities, setting forth 
requirements for maintaining safe, healthful and secure facilities. 
2.  Inspections.  Inspections of county and municipal detention facilities must be 
conducted by the executive director of the board or that person's designee in accordance 
with standards adopted by the board pursuant to this section and are governed as follows. 
A.  The commissioner board shall conduct ensure that a comprehensive inspection of 
each county and municipal detention facility is conducted every 2 years, in order to 
provide the department board with information, verified by on-site inspection, 
regarding compliance with all department board standards. 
B.  The commissioner board shall conduct ensure that no fewer than 3 additional 
inspections of each county and municipal detention facility are conducted during the 
period between each comprehensive inspection, in order to determine continued 
compliance with standards. 
C.  The commissioner executive director of the board may inspect a county or 
municipal detention facility at any time, without prior notice, to determine 
compliance with standards. 
C-1.  As part of any inspection, the commissioner executive director of the board may 
access any records, including, but not limited to, the records of persons detained or 
committed in the facility, as considered necessary by the commissioner executive 
director of the board in order to determine compliance with standards. 
D.  The commissioner executive director of the board shall prepare a written report of 
each inspection and shall send a copy of the report to appropriate county or municipal 
officials within 15 days after the inspection. 
(1)  The report shall summarize inspection findings.  
(2)  The report shall list the standards with which the facility does not comply 
and set forth the reasons for noncompliance. 
E.  The commissioner board shall order the noncomplying county or municipality to 
respond to this report in accordance with subsection 3. 
3.  Standards compliance. Each county and municipal detention facility shall, unless 
granted a variance pursuant to subsection 5, comply with the mandatory standards 
established by the commissioner board.  
A.  Within 60 days from the receipt of an inspection report for each mandatory 
standard listed in subsection 2, paragraph D, subparagraph (2), the county or 
municipality shall either: 
(1)  Correct deficiencies listed in the report and submit to the department board a 
written response listing the corrections made; or  
(2)  Offer a plan to correct those deficiencies for consideration by the department 
board. 
B.  If a county or municipality fails to correct deficiencies and offers no plan of 
correction, or if the plan of correction offered to the department board is determined 
inadequate by the commissioner board, the commissioner board shall determine an 
appropriate action to restrict or modify the operations of the facility, consistent with 
the nature of the uncorrected deficiencies, which action may include ordering an 
entire facility closed until the deficiencies have been corrected.  
(1)  Before any such action is taken, the commissioner board shall notify the 
county or municipality in writing of the planned action and shall offer the 
opportunity to meet and discuss the planned action. 
(2)  If a meeting is not requested by the county or municipality within 15 days 
after the county or municipality receives notice of the planned action, or if a 
meeting is held and fails to produce a plan of correction acceptable to the 
commissioner board, the commissioner board shall take the planned action. 
4.  Emergency powers. The commissioner executive director of the board may take 
immediate action in response to noncompliance with a mandatory standard, if the 
noncompliance is determined to endanger the safety of the staff, inmates or visitors of 
any county or municipal detention facility.  
A.  The commissioner's executive director of the board's action under this subsection 
shall expire expires within 90 days or upon compliance with the mandatory standard. 
B.  After having taken action under this section, the commissioner executive director 
of the board shall send a written inspection report to the affected facility. 
C.  The commissioner board shall decide what long-term action to take with respect 
to the affected facility on the basis of county or municipality response to the 
inspection report and subsequent meetings. 
5.  Variances.  The commissioner board shall establish written procedures to govern 
the submission and consideration of requests for variances from established departmental 
standards, including provisions for department board consideration of appeals of 
decisions.  
A.  The commissioner board may grant a variance only when he the board determines 
that the variance will not result in diminishing the safety, health or security of staff, 
inmates or visitors of a county or municipal detention facility. 
B.  The commissioner board may grant variances to counties and municipalities for 
periods of up to 2 years. 
C.  County and municipal officials may request variances from mandatory 
department standards adopted pursuant to this section if:  
(1)  Efforts are underway to achieve compliance and continued failure to comply 
is only temporary; or  
(2)  The intent and spirit of the standards may be attained through other means. 
D.  The officials applying for a variance have the burden of showing clear 
justification for the variance. 
6.  Advisory review.  The commissioner board shall create and maintain a county 
and municipal detention facility advisory committee.  
A.  The committee shall consist consists of representatives of the Department of 
Corrections, Maine Sheriffs' Association, Maine County Commissioners' Association, 
Maine Chiefs of Police Association, Attorney General, Legislature and citizens. 
B.  The terms of members of this committee shall be are one year. 
C.  Members of the county and municipal detention facility advisory committee are 
eligible for reappointment at the expiration of their term. 
D.  The commissioner board shall consult the committee when promulgating 
standards and may consult the committee when variances are sought, when actions 
are contemplated by the commissioner board in response to a failure to comply with 
standards and when the commissioner board determines that the consultation is 
necessary for other reasons. 
7.  Technical assistance.  The commissioner board may provide technical assistance 
to county and municipal detention facilities to facilitate compliance with standards within 
available resources. 
Sec. 10.  34-A MRSA §1404, as amended by PL 2009, c. 391, §9, is repealed. 
Sec. 11.  34-A MRSA §1404-A is enacted to read: 
§1404-A.  Duties and powers of the commissioner in support of the State Board of 
Corrections 
In addition to other duties and powers set out in this Title, the commissioner has the 
following duties and powers to support the State Board of Corrections, referred to in this 
section as "the board," in its efforts to accomplish its purpose as described in section 
1801. 
1.  Emergency transfer of inmates.  The board has control over and must authorize 
the transfer of inmates between a county or regional jail and a state correctional facility, 
except that the commissioner, in consultation with a sheriff or regional jail administrator, 
may transfer any inmate, pretrial or sentenced, between a county or regional jail and a 
state correctional facility when such transfer is necessary to protect that inmate, other 
inmates or correctional staff from an immediate threat directly related to the presence of 
the transferred inmate at the facility from which the inmate is transferred. 
2.  Coordinated correctional system plan.  The commissioner may recommend a 
downsizing plan and a reinvestment strategy to the board. 
3.  Uniform policies and procedures.  The commissioner may recommend uniform 
practices for pretrial, revocation and reentry services to the board. 
4.  Support of the board.  The commissioner shall provide administrative staffing 
for the board and expertise as requested by the board and shall serve as the fiscal agent 
for the board. 
Sec. 12.  34-A MRSA §1405, as amended by PL 2009, c. 391, §10, is repealed. 
Sec. 13.  34-A MRSA §1801, sub-§1, as enacted by PL 2007, c. 653, Pt. A, §30, 
is amended to read: 
1.  Purpose of the board.  The purpose of the board is to develop and implement a 
unified coordinated correctional system that demonstrates sound fiscal management, 
achieves efficiencies, reduces recidivism and ensures the safety and security of 
correctional staff, inmates, visitors, volunteers and surrounding communities. 
Sec. 14.  34-A MRSA §1801, sub-§2, as enacted by PL 2007, c. 653, Pt. A, §30, 
is amended to read 
2.  State goals.  The board shall develop goals to guide the development of and 
evaluate the effectiveness of a unified coordinated correctional system.  The board shall 
present its goals for review and approval by the joint standing committee of the 
Legislature having jurisdiction over criminal justice and public safety matters.  The goals 
must include benchmarks for performance in the following areas: 
A.  Recidivism reduction; 
B.  Pretrial diversion; and 
C.  Rate of incarceration. 
Sec. 15.  34-A MRSA §1802, sub-§1, as amended by PL 2009, c. 89, §1, is 
further amended to read: 
1.  Appointments.  The board consists of 9 members who are appointed by the 
Governor.  Each appointment is subject to review by the joint standing committee of the 
Legislature having jurisdiction over criminal justice and public safety matters and to 
confirmation by the Senate, except those members appointed pursuant to paragraph C.  
The following provisions govern member qualifications: 
A.  One member Two members must be a sitting sheriff sheriffs selected from a list 
of 3 nominations submitted to the Governor by a statewide organization representing 
sheriffs; 
B.  One member Two members must be a sitting county commissioner 
commissioners selected from a list of 3 nominations submitted to the Governor by a 
statewide organization representing county commissioners; 
C.  Two members One member must be representatives of the executive branch and 
at least one of the 2 must be from the department the commissioner or the 
commissioner's designee; 
D.  One member must be a municipal official selected from a list of 3 nominations 
submitted to the Governor by a statewide organization representing elected and 
appointed municipal officers and officials; and 
E.  Four members One member must be broadly representative of the public and the 
geographical regions of the State.  One of the 4 members appointed under this 
paragraph must be selected from a list of 3 nominations submitted to the Governor by 
a statewide organization representing county commissioners.  A The member 
appointed under this paragraph may not be an elected state or county official or 
municipal officer and may not derive income in substantial portion from work as an 
employee of a state, county or municipal government or in the field of corrections.; 
F.  One member must be a sitting county administrator selected from a list of 3 
nominations submitted to the Governor by a statewide organization representing 
county administrators; and 
G.  One member must be a sitting  county or regional jail administrator selected from 
a list of 3 nominations submitted to the Governor by a statewide organization 
representing county or regional jail administrators. 
Of the 9 members, one must be a person with expertise in issues relating to mental illness. 
Sec. 16.  34-A MRSA §1803, first ¶, as enacted by PL 2007, c. 653, Pt. A, §30, is 
amended to read: 
The In addition to other duties and powers set out in this Title, the board is charged 
with the following responsibilities and duties. 
Sec. 17.  34-A MRSA §1803, sub-§1, as amended by PL 2009, c. 391, §§11 to 
13, is further amended to read: 
1.  Manage the cost of corrections.  The board shall develop a plan to achieve 
systemic cost savings and cost avoidance throughout the unified coordinated correctional 
system with the goal of operating efficient correctional services.  Additionally, the board 
shall: 
A.  Set and enforce a yearly growth limitation for the correctional services 
expenditures in each county budget under Title 30-A, section 710; 
B.  Develop reinvestment strategies within the unified coordinated correctional 
system to improve services and reduce recidivism;  
C.  Establish boarding rates for the unified coordinated correctional system, except 
boarding rates for federal inmates; and 
D.  Review department biennial and supplemental budget proposals affecting adult 
correctional and adult probation services and submit recommendations regarding 
these budget proposals to the joint standing committee of the Legislature having 
jurisdiction over criminal justice and public safety matters and the joint standing 
committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over appropriations and financial 
affairs.; and 
E.  Develop parameters for facility population, including but not limited to gender; 
classification; legal status, including pretrial or sentenced; and special needs. 
Sec. 18.  34-A MRSA §1803, sub-§3, ¶C, as enacted by PL 2007, c. 653, Pt. A, 
§30, is amended to read: 
C.  Coordinate transportation of inmates in the unified coordinated correctional 
system. 
Sec. 19.  34-A MRSA §1803, sub-§10, as enacted by PL 2007, c. 653, Pt. A, §30, 
is amended to read: 
10.  Reporting.  The board shall make initial reports to the joint standing committee 
of the Legislature having jurisdiction over criminal justice and public safety matters by 
January 15, 2009 and by April 1, 2009.  Thereafter, the board shall report at least 
annually, beginning January 15, 2010, and as requested.  Reports must include any 
recommendations for amending laws relating to the unified coordinated correctional 
system or the board. 
Sec. 20.  34-A MRSA §1803-A is enacted to read: 
§1803-A.  Office of executive director 
1.  Appointment.  The State Board of Corrections shall appoint the Executive 
Director of the State Board of Corrections, referred to in this section as "the executive 
director," to serve at its pleasure. 
2.  Qualifications.  To qualify for appointment as executive director, a person must 
have training and experience in correctional administration or satisfactory experience in 
the direction of work of a comparable nature. 
Sec. 21.  34-A MRSA §1803-B is enacted to read: 
§1803-B.  Duties and powers of executive director 
In addition to other duties and powers set out in this Title, the Executive Director of 
the State Board of Corrections, referred to in this section as "the executive director," has 
the following duties and powers to support the State Board of Corrections, referred to in 
this section as "the board," in its efforts to accomplish its purpose as described in section 
1801.  The executive director shall perform the following duties and exercise the 
following powers consistent with policies established by the board. 
1.  Managing facility capacity and inmate placement.  Consistent with the board's 
determination of facility use and purpose under section 1803, subsection 2, paragraph A, 
the executive director is responsible for the daily management of inmate bed space 
throughout the coordinated correctional system and shall direct the transfer of inmates 
between facilities in order to fulfill this responsibility. The executive director shall 
develop a process for information sharing between the correctional facilities and the 
county jails, which must include at a minimum: 
A.  Daily reporting to the board by county jails of: 
(1)  Facility population by gender; classification; legal status, including pretrial or 
sentenced; special needs; and any other parameters determined by the board; and 
(2)  Facility capacity and available bed space or bed space needs by the 
reportable parameters under subparagraph (1); and 
B.  Regular consultation with sheriffs. 
2.  Coordinated correctional system plan.  The executive director may recommend 
a downsizing plan and a reinvestment strategy to the board. 
3.  Uniform policies and procedures.  The executive director may recommend 
uniform practices for pretrial, revocation and reentry services to the board. 
4.  Inspections and investigation.  The executive director shall inspect county 
facilities consistent with sections 1208 and 1208-A. 
5.  Inmates with mental illness.  The executive director shall determine the 
placement, housing and program development for inmates with mental illness within 
correctional facilities and county jails in accordance with standards adopted by the board. 
6.  Transfer of inmates.  Except in the case of an emergency transfer of an inmate by 
the commissioner pursuant to section 1404-A, subsection 1, or by a sheriff or regional jail 
administrator pursuant to Title 30-A, section 1557-B, the executive director has the 
authority to transfer any inmate, pretrial or sentenced, from one county or regional jail to 
another or between a county or regional jail and a state correctional facility. 
7.  Transferee subject to rules.  A sentenced person transferred under this section is 
subject to the general rules of the facility to which the person is transferred, except that: 
A.  The term of the original sentence remains the same unless altered by the court; 
B.  The person becomes eligible for good time or deductions as provided in Title 
17-A, section 1253 for a person sentenced to imprisonment in a county or regional 
jail or in a state correctional facility, whichever is applicable; 
C.  The person becomes eligible for release and discharge as provided in Title 17-A, 
section 1254 for a person sentenced to imprisonment in a county or regional jail or in 
a state correctional facility, whichever is applicable; 
D.  The person is entitled to have the time served in the facility under this section 
deducted from the sentence; and 
E.  The person becomes eligible for furloughs, work or other release programs, 
participation in public works and charitable projects and community confinement 
monitoring as authorized by Title 30-A, sections 1556, 1605, 1606 and 1659-A for a 
person sentenced to imprisonment in a county or regional jail or work or other release 
programs, furloughs and supervised community confinement for a person sentenced 
to a state correctional facility as authorized by sections 3033, 3035 and 3036-A, 
whichever is applicable, and may apply pursuant to the rules governing the sending 
facility. 
8.  Return of inmate.  The executive director may return an inmate transferred 
pursuant to this section to the sending facility. 
Sec. 22.  34-A MRSA §1804, last ¶, as enacted by PL 2007, c. 653, Pt. A, §30, is 
amended to read: 
The corrections working group shall meet as needed and as requested by either one or 
both cochairs to engage in information sharing and to discuss and resolve any issues or 
problems experienced in daily operation of the unified coordinated correctional system, 
including the placement of inmates.  The group shall advise and assist the board in the 
ongoing improvement of the unified coordinated correctional system.  In carrying out this 
function, the working group may consult with experts and stakeholders, including but not 
limited to prosecutors, defense attorneys, judges, victim advocates, providers and 
advocates for persons with mental illness and other interested parties.  If an issue arises 
that cannot be responded to by the working group, the board shall meet to review the 
issue.  The working group shall report to the board. 
SUMMARY 
This bill makes the following changes to the laws governing the State Board of 
Corrections. 
1.  It revises the membership of the State Board of Corrections to include the 
following: 
A.  Two sheriffs; 
B.  Two county commissioners; 
C.  One county administrator; 
D.  One administrator of a county or regional jail; 
E.  The Commissioner of Corrections or the commissioner's designee; 
F.  One municipal official; and 
G.  One public member. 
2.  It revises the provisions of law governing the submission of jail budgets to the 
State Board of Corrections by making those submissions on a biennial basis and by 
providing sufficient time before the beginning of the biennium for preparation and 
submission. 
3.  It creates a full-time position of Executive Director of the State Board of 
Corrections to replace a limited-period position established by financial order and 
enumerates the powers and duties of that position, including developing parameters for 
jail populations and standards for jails, transferring inmates between correctional 
facilities and inspecting the jails. 
4.  It allows the Commissioner of Corrections and the sheriffs and regional jail 
administrators the authority to make emergency transfers of inmates to protect against an 
immediate threat to the safety of inmates or correctional staff without prior authorization 
from the State Board of Corrections. 
5.  It changes references to "unified correctional system" to "coordinated correctional 
system" to more accurately reflect the role of the board.