The new law won't go into effect until July 2022 in order to give the Department of Corrections time to upgrade its computer system. Repeals the four-level classification system for the awarding and calculation of earned sentence credits currently set to go into effect on July 1, 2022. 01/21/22 Senate: Passed by indefinitely in Rehabilitation and Social Services (8-Y 7-N) View bill here. Every person who is convicted of a felony offense committed on or after January 1, 1995, and who is sentenced to serve a term of incarceration in a state or local correctional facility shall be eligible to earn sentence credits in the manner prescribed by this article. the report shall include (i) the state fiscal impact of the sentence credit amendments, including any cost savings realized by reducing the length of time spent by persons in state correctional facilities; (ii) the number of persons affected by the sentence credit amendments and the distribution of such persons among state correctional As introduced, this bill was a recommendation of the . Department of Corrections; earned sentence credits. Virginia HB735 2022 Department of Corrections earned sentence credits Repeals the fourlevel classification system for the awarding and calculation of earned sentence credits currently set to go into effect on July 1 2022 Under current law a maximum of 45 sentence credits may be earned for each 30 days served . Read the Bill Outcome Bill Has Failed History Under current law, a maximum of 4.5 sentence credits may be earned for each 30 days served. However, in 2020 the General Assembly set out to change that. 5148, made many incarcerated Virginians eligible to earn increased sentence reductions, except for certain . Level I. For any offense other than those enumerated in subsection A for which sentence credits may be earned, earned sentence credits shall be awarded and calculated using the following four-level classification system: 1. Under current law, inmates can earn a maximum of 4.5 days off for every 30 days served a credit that will still be available to inmates excluded from the new program. Under a 2020 law backed by Democrats, Virginia began allowing inmates to earn more credits to reduce their sentences for good behavior or participation in rehabilitation programs. Repealing the Earned Sentence Credit law that passed in 2020 and is supposed to go into effect July 1, 2022 is outrageous. Begining July 1, 2022, many felony defendants may earn up to a maximum of 15 days per 30 days served (a minimum time served of 65%) . The bill provides that the earned sentence credit provisions of 53.1-202.3 of the Code of Virginia, which would become effective on July 1, 2022, shall apply retroactively to the . A. The 2020 law, H.B. Per the budget amendment approved by the Virginia General Assembly on June 17, 2022, any sentence or portion of a sentence imposed with an offense outlined in Code of Virginia 53.1-202.3, subsection A:1-17, will limit all earned sentence credit sentences, being served or to be served, to a maximum of 4.5 days per 30 days served. For persons receiving Level I sentence credits, 15 days shall be deducted from the person's sentence for every 30 days served. Previously, all inmates were eligible to earn a maximum of 4.5 days of "good time" credit for every 30 days served. Because the law requires the credits to be applied . The remainder of the bill has a delayed effective date of January 1, 2022, and requires the calculation of earned sentence credits to apply retroactively to the entire sentence of any inmate who is confined in a state correctional facility and participating in the earned sentence credit system on January 1, 2022. Earned Sentence Credit - 53.1-202.3 (Effective July 1, 2022) - Preliminary List 1 = 85% applies to all convictions. Child held outside VA, in violation of custody/visitation order KID-1017-F6 18.2-49 . The bill directs the Department to establish a program that allows victims to advocate on behalf of an inmate for reclassification of the inmate's sentence credits. . For 20+ years, the law allowed incarcerated individuals to earn 4.5 days worth of sentence credits for every 30 days served. Republican leaders claim that it is because the VA DOC will have to spend more money to employ counselors, educators, etc. In 2020, Virginia's General Assembly partially restored incentives for good behavior in prison that had been rolled back in a wave of draconian sentencing changes during the "tough-on-crime" era of the mid-1990s. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2021, and requires the calculation of earned sentence credits to apply retroactively to the entire sentence of any inmate who is confined in a state correctional facility and participating in the earned sentence credit system on July 1, 2021. Eligibility for earned sentence credits. Notwithstanding the provisions of 53.1-202.3, Code of Virginia, a maximum of 4.5 sentence credits may be earned for each 30 days served on a sentence that is concurrent with or consecutive to a sentence for a conviction of an offense enumerated in subsection A of 53.1-202.3, Code of Virginia." Explanation: Under current law, a maximum of 4.5 sentence credits may be earned for each 30 days served. This means that in a year, an individual could earn 54 days worth of credits. Repeals the four-level classification system for the awarding and calculation of earned sentence credits currently set to go into effect on July 1, 2022. So in every year, it was possible to get close to two months of credits. Virginia HB735 Earned sentence . It also includes a delayed enactment date of January 2022 to give the Department of Corrections time to reprogram its computer system.