Weekly Fiscal Facts are provided by the Wisconsin Policy Forum, the state’s leading resource for nonpartisan state and local government research and civic education. The Wisconsin Public Policy Forum logo can be downloaded here.
“Truth in Sentencing” law’s impact seen on prison population
The nature of prison admissions has shifted over the past three decades. In 1990, one in five (21.9 percent) inmates was admitted to prison after revocation for violating the terms of his or her parole and without a new sentence; in 2017, that share accounted for 36.5 percent of admissions.
Meanwhile, inmates entering prison with a new sentence decreased from 46.6 percent to 29.9 percent, and inmates admitted to prison after revocation for parole or extended supervision violations with a new sentence dropped from 27.4 percent to 23.3 percent in the same period.
The trend in revocations may be due in part to the “truth in sentencing” law. For offenses that occurred prior to 2000, inmates are generally eligible for discretionary release on parole after serving 25 percent of their sentence, and, barring any misconduct in prison, are typically required to be released after serving two-thirds of that sentence. Thus, an inmate sentenced to 12 years under the old law was eligible for release after three years, and had to be released after eight years. The inmate was then placed on parole for the remainder of his or her sentence.
Under TIS, however, inmates receive a bifurcated sentence of prison time followed by extended supervision, which must equal at least 25 percent of their prison time. Thus, an individual sentenced to 12 years in prison would face an additional three years’ extended supervision.
Offenders who violate the terms of their extended supervision could face longer time behind bars under TIS. Under the old law, inmates who violated the terms of their release could only be re-incarcerated for the time remaining on their parole; under TIS, inmates who are revoked may be required to serve the entire term of their extended supervision. For example, an offender who broke the rules with six months remaining on three years’ parole under the old law would serve at most six months; under TIS, it could be three years.
This information is a service of the Wisconsin Policy Forum, the state’s leading resource for nonpartisan state and local government research and civic education.
