Texas
JRI Year: 2007 (Policies Adopted in 2008–2009 Budget)
2007
Background
In 2007, Texas was projected to need 17,000 additional prison beds by 2012, at an expected cost of $2 billion. Between 1997 and 2006, the number of people revoked to prison from probation increased 18 percent. More than 2,000 people were awaiting placement for substance use and mental health treatment in 2006, and parole grant rates were much lower than the parole board’s own guidelines. In 2006 and 2007, the CSG Justice Center worked with Texas state leaders to analyze criminal justice system data, interview stakeholders, and develop data-driven policy options designed to reduce corrections spending and increase public safety.
Policies
Justice Reinvestment policies were adopted in the 2008–2009 biennial budget. The framework included several policies designed to address these challenges, such as increasing treatment capacity in the prison system by 5,200 program slots for substance use disorder treatment and mental health treatment. Diversion options were also expanded in the probation and parole system by 4,500 beds for technical violations of supervision, transitional treatment, and substance use disorder treatment.1
Outcomes
As a result of these reforms, Texas averted more than $1.6 billion in additional prison construction and operating costs.2 Texas has since closed 16 prisons, and its prison population has fallen by more than 30,000 people since 2007.3 The state has also reduced recidivism, and crime rates are near historic lows.4
For more information, see Justice Reinvestment in Texas.
JRI-Driven Policies and Practices
- Authorize/develop/modify graduated responses or matrices for violations
- Reduce probation terms or active supervision period
- Improve behavioral health interventions
1 The Council of State Governments Justice Center, 2023, Justice Reinvestment in Texas, New York, NY: The Council of State Governments Justice Center, retrieved May 19, 2023 from https://csgjusticecenter.org/projects/justice-reinvestment/past-states/texas/.
2 Ibid.
3 Ibid.
4 Texas Legislative Budget Board, January 2013 and 2021, Statewide Criminal and Juvenile Justice Recidivism and Revocation Rates, Austin, TX: Texas Legislative Budget Board, retrieved from https://bja.ojp.gov/sites/g/files/xyckuh186/files/Publications/CSG_StatesRecidivismReduction.pdf.