Oklahoma § 57-521.1 - Transformational Justice Act - Reentry Policy Council Travel expenses

§ 57-521.1. Transformational Justice Act - Reentry Policy Council Travel expenses

A. The Reentry Policy Council shall be re-created, and shall

continue until July 1, 2023, pursuant to the provisions of the

Oklahoma Sunset Law, for the purpose of providing oversight of the

reentry policies and programs operated by the Department of

Corrections. The Council shall consist of eleven (11) members and

shall be appointed as follows:

1. Three members shall be appointed by the Governor as follows:

a.

one member shall be a law enforcement officer,

b.

one member shall be a corrections official, and

c.

one member shall be a crime victim;

2. Four members shall be appointed by the Speaker of the

Oklahoma House of Representatives as follows:

a.

one member shall be a member of the Oklahoma House of

Representatives,

b.

one member shall be a representative of a faith-based

organization involved with the reintegration of

inmates,

c.

one member shall be a person who has been previously

convicted of a criminal offense in Oklahoma, and

d.

one member shall be a mental health and substance

abuse official; and

3. Four members shall be appointed by the President Pro Tempore

of the Oklahoma State Senate as follows:

a.

one member shall be a member of the Oklahoma State

Senate,

b.

one member shall be a representative from a for-profit

halfway house who specializes in reintegration of

inmates,

c.

one member shall be a representative from a nonprofit

entity involved with the reintegration of inmates, and

d.

one member shall be a district attorney, or his or her

designee.

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 57. Prisons and Reformatories

B. The Council shall:

1. Review corrections policies, programs and procedures to

ensure that the primary purpose of each is public safety during

imprisonment and after release;

2. Identify gaps in reentry programs and services as well as

overlapping efforts, and recommend changes to address those issues;

3. Review policies to ensure that corrections facilities

recruit and welcome volunteers;

4. Review the licensing procedures within this state to

eliminate barriers to employment that are unrelated to the conduct

underlying the conviction; and

5. Report annually to the Legislature and the Governor on the

progress of the reentry initiative, including the impact on

recidivism, effectiveness of agency coordination and communications,

and the implementation of reentry plans and use of funding.

C. 1. Legislative members of the Council shall be reimbursed

for their necessary travel expenses incurred in the performance of

their duties in accordance with Section 456 of Title 74 of the

Oklahoma Statutes from the legislative body in which they serve.

2. State agency employees who are members of the Council shall

be reimbursed for their travel expenses incurred in the performance

of their duties by their respective agencies in accordance with the

State Travel Reimbursement Act.

3. All other Council members shall be reimbursed by the Office

of Management and Enterprise Services for travel expenses incurred

in the performance of their duties on the Council in accordance with

the State Travel Reimbursement Act.

Added by Laws 2007, c. 274, § 2, eff. Nov. 1, 2007. Amended by Laws

2008, c. 211, § 1, emerg. eff. May 20, 2008; Laws 2012, c. 304, §

248; Laws 2019, c. 429, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 2019; Laws 2020, c. 116, §

17, eff. July 1, 2020.