| Vote Recommendation | Economic Freedom | Property Rights | Personal Responsibility | Limited Government | Individual Liberty |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Neutral | Neutral | Neutral | Neutral | Neutral | Neutral |
Relating to the provision of services by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice's developmentally disabled offender program.
No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.
HB 2897 would require the Department of Criminal Justice to develop and identify community resources to assist an developmentally disabled offenders successfully reenter and reintegrate into the community. The bill would also require the department to develop and implement a reentry and reintegration plan based on the individual needs of developmentally disabled offenders. The plan may include the coordination of treatment, identification of housing assistance, and delivery of other transitional services.
We support well-planned reentry and reintegration for offenders, especially for those most likely to re-offend. However, we are skeptical regarding the mandate for the department to develop community resources. This is a vague term which may allow the department engage in mission creep which grows the department's responsibility over time beyond what it should. For these reasons we remain neutral.