The mandate of the Criminal Justice Legislative Oversight is: “…..to provide objective research, analysis, and recommendations to help guide criminal justice policies.”
That guidance will come………..” not later than January 1 of each odd-numbered year, the committee shall submit a report that contains the recommendations described by Section 328.004 (a)(2)”
That is a huge and very broad mandate. That’s because the “system” has so many moving parts from legislation to law enforcement, courts, jails, prisons, parole, and reentry. Each one of those parts, as well as their sub-components, merit maintenance and updating…….. just like any well-used tool
We at Fair Changes agree with the mandate of the CJLOC. At this time, we are focusing on just one very expensive part of criminal justice………prisons. In line with that we will be offering recommendations that spring from the lived experience of correctional officers, current and formerly incarcerated, the victims, the families of each, human service professionals, and others.
Seeing a need for more rapid action to address the identifiable needs of all of the above…………we propose to present our report on upgrading prison conditions to the CJLOC, TBCJ, TDCJ, and other justice-oriented committees and groups, and the public, by July 4, 2022. That aligns not only with the need to promote informed legislation farther in advance of January 1, 2023 but also with the need to address urgent problems impacting far too many inside and outside the walls.
https://www.kxan.com/investigations/state-committee-tasked-with-improving-texas-criminal-justice-system-sits-unfunded-unused-for-over-a-decade/ https://www.kxan.com/investigations/texas-house-speaker-appoints-members-to-defunct-criminal-justice-committee-but-will-it-be-reactivated/