MADISON – Department of Corrections Secretary Rick Raemisch issued the
following statement in response to a report made public today by the Pew
Center on the States. The report, titled One in 31: The Long Reach of
American Corrections, recommends that states find ways other than
prison expansion to hold offenders accountable and enhance community
safety:
“There always will be a need for prisons to house violent criminals who
pose a threat to public safety, but the Pew Center’s report reaffirms that
we need to invest in strategies beyond prison expansion to curtail
corrections spending and reduce recidivism,” Secretary Raemisch said.
“Governor Doyle’s 2009-11 budget takes us along this path, allowing us to
protect public safety by keeping violent prisoners in prison, and at the
same time providing opportunities for certain nonviolent offenders to
complete treatment so they succeed as productive citizens upon their
return to the community.”
Among the Pew Center report’s findings is that, nationally, 90 percent
of state corrections dollars are spent on prisons, and correctional
spending costs taxpayers $68 billion a year. In Wisconsin, the study found
that corrections accounted for 8 percent of the state’s general fund in
FY08, outpacing the national average of 6.9 percent. Many of the study’s
policy recommendations for community corrections are in line with the
reforms that Governor Doyle includes in his 2009-11 budget, including
measures to prioritize resources based on offender risk, incorporate
evidence-based practices to reduce recidivism, and utilize effective
technologies to hold offenders accountable.
“The national economic crisis has forced states across the country to
take another look at the way they do business in corrections and seek more
efficient and effective ways to hold offenders accountable and protect the
community,” Secretary Raemisch said. “The reforms we are looking to make
in Wisconsin under Governor Doyle’s plan are good for criminal justice,
good for the taxpayer and good for preventing crime and keeping Wisconsin
safe.”
The report was produced by the Pew Center on the States’ Public Safety
Performance Project (PSPP), an initiative funded by the non-profit Pew
Charitable Trusts that helps states implement policies that protect public
safety, hold offenders accountable and control costs. The Pew Center’s
report can be found online at:
One of the PSPP’s partnering organizations is the Council of State
Governments Justice Center, which currently is assisting Wisconsin to
develop new ways to make Wisconsin’s criminal justice system function more
effectively. The findings in One in 31: The Long Reach of American
Correction also underscore the importance of this ongoing work,
Secretary Raemisch said.
“We look forward to continuing our work with members of the
Legislature, representatives of the criminal justice system and community
agencies who serve on the Special Committee on Justice Reinvestment
Initiative Oversight,” Secretary Raemisch said. “Through this
collaboration, we will identify other ways to strengthen our criminal
justice system, and at the same time control the costs of corrections and
prevent new crimes.”
###
