Existing law requires the Secretary of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to evaluate a person who is newly committed to a state prison and classify incarcerated persons based on the evaluations, and, when reasonable, assign or reassign an incarcerated person to the institution of the appropriate security level and gender population nearest the incarcerated person’s home, unless other classification factors make that placement unreasonable.

This bill would require the department to contract with an independent research entity to conduct a study to reassess the entire security classification system, as specified. The bill would require the study to contain policy recommendations to enhance the effectiveness of the classification system, as specified. The bill would require the Office of the Inspector General to select the research entity to perform the study according to specified criteria, including, among others, that the entity has research institutions based in the California State University or the University of California and has demonstrated expertise on Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation policy and data. The bill would require the report to be published on or before January 1, 2028.