SJR 3 PRISONER RIGHTS LIMITED TO FEDERAL RIGHTS  SENATOR DAVE DONLEY , sponsor of SJR 3, explained the legislation adds a provision to the Alaska Constitution adopting the prisoners' rights standard contained in the U.S. Constitution as the appropriate standard to use in Alaska. Current Alaska standards are based on the Cleary consent decree, which is based on state and federal constitutional law, but does not identify which elements are from each. Lack of identification makes litigation difficult. Because the state and federal constitutions differ, the state courts may adopt different standards than those based on federal case law. SJR 3 adopts a single federal standard for dealing with prisoners' rights in Alaska. Number 036 SENATOR ELLIS asked if the federal corrections system is based on the principle of incarceration, while the state system is based on the goal of rehabilitation to further enhance public safety after prisoners are released. He questioned whether SJR 3 would nullify the goal of rehabilitation as a prime objective of Alaska's penal system and whether passage of SJR 3 would overturn the Cleary decree SENATOR DONLEY explained the Alaska Constitution, as amended in 1994, establishes five goals for prison administration: public protection, rehabilitation of the offender, victims' rights, restitution to victims, and community condemnation. Those goals will remain the constitutional guides for prison administration in Alaska, but the issue of cruel and unusual punishment will fall under federal guidelines. Cell size and access to certain facilities are examples of issues of cruel and unusual punishment that would be determined by federal guidelines. Senator Donley did not believe those issues have conflicting goals. Number 075 SENATOR ELLIS asked how passage of SJR 3 would affect the question of the constitutionality of a death penalty in Alaska. SENATOR DONLEY replied, in his opinion, it would have been difficult to argue the constitutionality of a death penalty in Alaska prior to 1994 because the constitution provided only two goals of the prison system: reformation and public protection. One would have to argue the death penalty was necessary for public protection which would be difficult since Alaska provides the option of absolute, life- time incarceration. The addition of the standard of community condemnation in 1994 has opened the door for a death penalty a little more. Because the death penalty has not been in existence since the Alaska Constitution was ratified, no litigation regarding this question has occurred in Alaska, so this area of law remains unexplored and court rulings remain difficult to predict. Number 114 SENATOR PARNELL requested a comparison of prisoner restrictions based on state and federal constitutions. SENATOR DONLEY replied the Division of Legal Services is unable to provide a breakdown because the settlement presents a total condition analysis and specifically states it is pursuant to both constitutions. The Courts have never identified which conditions are required under federal or state law. As long as the potential for a dual system exists, the court will not definitively discriminate between the two. A whole body of federal cases defining certain standards exists, which influence, but are not definitive, over state law. The delineation is very confusing and frustrating. He offered to provide Senator Parnell with a list of those federal cases that deal with prisoners' rights. SENATOR PARNELL requested the list be included in committee packets and asked whether any other state has adopted similar legislation. SENATOR DONLEY was not aware of any. Number 155 SENATOR ELLIS requested SJR 3 be held in committee for further consideration. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR agreed, and noted his belief that SJR 3 is innovative and provides the state the opportunity to revisit the entire Cleary question. SENATOR DONLEY remarked the Cleary settlement is unusual in that i contains no less than four separate provisions disallowing revisitation. A U.S. Supreme Court decision, however, permits states who have negotiated such settlements to renegotiate if a substantial change in conditions occurs. SJR 3 represents the type of condition change required for renegotiation. The Attorney General has not pursued the Legislature's request to revisit the Cleary settlement because no substantive change in conditions has occurred. Number 189 CHAIRMAN TAYLOR discussed the prison overcrowding problem and the court order entered by Judge Hunt. The cost may be as high as $3.5 million per year. Statistics for the month of January show every penal institution in the state full beyond maximum occupancy, therefore Alaska is still in contempt of the court order. He questioned whether passage of SJR 3 and use of the federal standard, to determine cell size and occupancy, would eliminate the overcrowding problem. SENATOR DONLEY commented the federal standard for multi-prisoner unit prohibitions is very different from the standards set in the Cleary settlement, which discourages more than two prisoners per unit. Most private institutions use the federal guidelines. Years of federal case law have been, and can be, used as a frame of reference for federal constitutional requirements; the State of Alaska does not have cases to use to determine what the state consitution requires. Number 231 MARGO KNUTH , Assistant Attorney General, encouraged the committee to hear from the Department of Law about the possible impact of SJR 3 on the Cleary settlement, and from the Department of Corrections about the criteria used to determine overcrowded conditions in state prisons. She is confident the state could not do better using the federal standards to determine overcrowding. The number of prisoners per cell is only one of a number of factors determining prisoner overcrowding. Alaska prisons were designed to house a much lower population than they currently house. The most serious problem is the physical limitations of existing facilities. Prison expansion will need to be addressed by this Legislature. CHAIRMAN TAYLOR thanked Ms. Knuth for her comments.