More prisoners means more cost to Iowa taxpayers

The Des Moines Register

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Iowa has served as a model for other states by keeping its prison population among the lowest in the nation. It has done this by diverting the vast majority of convicted criminals into alternatives to prisons, including community corrections programs and facilities that keep offenders near their families, jobs and treatment.

Those are far more effective, and far less expensive, than building and operating prisons.

Unfortunately Iowa has veered from its own model in the past, and it may be headed there again. Iowa could face serious prison crowding in a very short time that could force construction of new prisons. The state can avoid that, however, by making changes in criminal sentences, and it should.

Iowa's nine prisons now house about 8,800 inmates, which is nearly 22 percent above what they were designed to hold. Based on changes in Iowa's criminal sentencing laws, the number of prison inmates is projected to grow by another 2,500 over the next 10 years, a new forecast by the Iowa Division of Criminal and Juvenile Justice Planning says. That number of inmates would put the prisons more than 50 percent above capacity, which would raise questions about safety and prisoners' rights. If the state takes no action, the federal courts might step in and order changes.

It need not come to that. After three decades of rapid prison growth, which led to historic construction and expansion of state prisons, the state managed to slow the growth. The projection of rapid growth is just an estimate, not a prediction, but it is more likely to come true if no changes are made. So the state must act.

The place to begin is by dealing with two of the major reasons why the prison population is forecast to grow: Mandatory minimum sentences and “special sentences” for sex offenders. These two sentencing laws approved by the Legislature in recent years are responsible for much of the long-term growth in the prison population.

Both should be changed.

Most convicts are automatically eligible for parole long before completing their sentences. This gives them incentive to behave in prison and to turn their lives around upon release. It's also an essential tool for limiting prison population. But the Legislature eliminated parole for some violent crimes and requires others to serve at least 70 percent of their sentences.

One-size-fits-all mandatory minimum sentences make no sense. The Legislature should let the courts, corrections officials and the Parole Board tailor sentences that fit each inmate.

A law enacted in 2005 requires offenders convicted of certain sex crimes to serve extended sentences on parole, ranging from 10 years to life, after release from prison. This is likely to add significantly to the prison population because larger-than-expected numbers of these offenders are being returned to prison for parole violations. Some sex offenders may need careful monitoring for a limited period of parole, but not all offenders, and not for decades. Here, too, the courts and Parole Board are best equipped to decide which ones.

Iowa let its prison population get out of hand beginning in the 1970s. That should not happen again. A failure to act inevitably means building more new prisons at huge construction and operating costs. The Legislature should take action beginning next session to make sure that is not necessary.

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