Bill: HB 3655, 85(R) - 2017

Relating to grants awarded to reimburse counties for the costs of monitoring defendants and victims in criminal cases involving family violence.

Estimated Two-year Net Impact to General Revenue Related Funds for HB3655, Committee Report 1st House, Substituted: a negative impact of ($2,800,000) through the biennium ending August 31, 2019.

The bill would make no appropriation but could provide the legal basis for an appropriation of funds to implement the provisions of the bill. 

This bill would task the criminal justice division to establish and administer a grant program. The grants would reimburse counties for all or part of the costs incurred as a result of the use of global positioning monitoring systems, for both defendants and victims of crimes related to family violence. The criminal justice division would be required to establish eligibility criteria and procedures and guidelines as applicable.

Governments are established for the protection of individual rights, and it is well within the proper role of government to use technology to protect victims of crimes in the way these devices are designed. However, it is not the proper role of state government to provide grants to counties who voluntarily use global positioning monitoring systems. This bill violates what we regard as the proper role of state government and we oppose HB 3655.