The Department of Health and Human Services shall:

(1) Administer the clinical programs and services of the Beatrice State Developmental Center, the Lincoln Regional Center, the Norfolk Regional Center, the Hastings Regional Center, and such other medical facilities, including skilled nursing care and intermediate care facilities, as may be provided by the department;

(2) Plan, develop, administer, and operate mental health and intellectual disability clinics, programs, and services;

(3) Plan, develop, and execute the clinical programs and services carried on by the department; and

(4) Represent the department in its work with the University of Nebraska Medical Center concerning psychiatric services.

The Department of Health and Human Services shall consult and cooperate with the Department of Correctional Services so as to coordinate in an effective manner the activities of the departments with those related activities affecting the welfare of persons which are the responsibility of the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Correctional Services.

The Department of Health and Human Services with the assistance of the Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations to define criteria and standards for access by eligible deaf or hard of hearing persons to mental health, alcoholism, and drug abuse treatment programs.

(1) Youth rehabilitation and treatment centers shall be operated to provide programming and services to rehabilitate and treat juveniles committed under the Nebraska Juvenile Code. Each youth rehabilitation and treatment center shall be considered a separate placement. Each youth rehabilitation and treatment center shall provide:

(a) Safe and sanitary space for sleeping, hygiene, education, programming, treatment, recreation, and visitation for each juvenile;

(b) Health care and medical services;

(c) Appropriate physical separation and segregation of juveniles based on gender;

(d) Sufficient staffing to comply with state and federal law and protect the safety and security of each juvenile;

(e) Training that is specific to the population being served at the youth rehabilitation and treatment center;

(f) A facility administrator for each youth rehabilitation and treatment center who has the sole responsibility for administration of a single youth rehabilitation and treatment center;

(g) An evaluation process for the development of an individualized treatment plan within fourteen days after admission to the youth rehabilitation and treatment center;

(h) An age-appropriate and developmentally appropriate education program for each juvenile that can award relevant and necessary credits toward high school graduation that will be accepted by any public school district in the State of Nebraska. Juveniles committed to the youth rehabilitation and treatment centers are entitled to receive an appropriate education equivalent to educational opportunities offered within the regular settings of public school districts across the State of Nebraska;

(i) A case management and coordination process, designed to assure appropriate reintegration of the juvenile with his or her family, school, and community;

(j) Compliance with the requirements stated in Title XIX and Title IV-E of the federal Social Security Act, as such act existed on January 1, 2020, the Special Education Act, or other funding guidelines as appropriate;

(k) Research-based or evidence-based programming for all juveniles that includes a strong academic program and classes in health education, living skills, vocational training, behavior management and modification, money management, family and parent responsibilities, substance use awareness, physical education, job skills training, and job placement assistance; and

(l) Research-based or evidence-based treatment service for behavioral impairment, severe emotional disturbance, sex offender behavior, other mental health or psychiatric disorder, drug and alcohol addiction, physical or sexual abuse, and any other treatment indicated by a juvenile's individualized treatment plan.

(2) Each youth rehabilitation and treatment center shall be accredited by a nationally recognized entity that provides accreditation for juvenile facilities and shall maintain accreditation as provided in section 79-703 to provide an age-appropriate and developmentally appropriate education program.

(3) Each youth rehabilitation and treatment center shall electronically submit a report of its activities for the preceding fiscal year to the Clerk of the Legislature on or before July 15 of each year beginning on July 15, 2021. The annual report shall include, but not be limited to, the following information:

(a) Data on the population served, including, but not limited to, admissions, average daily census, average length of stay, race, and ethnicity;

(b) An overview of programming and services; and

(c) An overview of any facility issues or facility improvements.

The Department of Health and Human Services shall have the authority to direct all daily maintenance, minor repairs, custodial duties, and operations of a public building under the administration of the Department of Health and Human Services where a juvenile resides who is committed to the Office of Juvenile Services for placement at a youth rehabilitation and treatment center.

(1)(a) The office of Public Counsel shall conduct an annual physical review of the following state institutions:

(i) The Youth Rehabilitation and Treatment Center-Geneva;

(ii) The Youth Rehabilitation and Treatment Center-Kearney;

(iii) Any other facility operated and utilized as a youth rehabilitation and treatment center;

(iv) The Hastings Regional Center;

(v) The Lincoln Regional Center;

(vi) The Norfolk Regional Center; and

(vii) The Beatrice State Developmental Center.

(b) Such physical review may include a review of the condition of buildings and grounds and the physical wear and tear of buildings, fixtures, equipment, furniture, security systems, and any improvements to the facility.

(2) The office of Public Counsel shall report to the Legislature on the condition of such state institutions. The report shall be due on or before March 15, 2021, for the 2020 calendar year, and on or before December 15 of each year beginning in 2021, for the period beginning with December 1 of the prior year through November 30 of the then current year. Such report shall include, for each state institution listed in subdivision (1)(a) of this section:

(a) The findings and observations from the annual physical review;

(b) Recent inspection reports regarding the facility;

(c) Staffing information, listed separately for each state institution, including, but not limited to:

(i) The number of assaults on staff;

(ii) Staffing levels;

(iii) Staff retention rates; and

(iv) Staff turnover rates, including unfilled and vacant positions; and

(d) The number of reports received by the office of Public Counsel for each institution and any systemic issues identified as a result of such physical review.

(1) It is the intent of the Legislature to establish a reporting system in order to provide increased accountability and oversight regarding the treatment of juveniles in youth rehabilitation and treatment centers.

(2) Beginning on January 1, 2021, the Department of Health and Human Services shall submit a report electronically to the office of Inspector General of Nebraska Child Welfare each January 1, April 1, July 1, and October 1. Such report shall include the following information for the prior calendar quarter:

(a) The number of grievances filed at each youth rehabilitation and treatment center separated by facility;

(b) A categorization of the issues to which each grievance relates and the number of grievances received in each category;

(c) The process for addressing such grievances; and

(d) Any actions or changes made as a result of such grievances.

(1) The Department of Health and Human Services shall contract for the completion of a needs assessment and cost analysis for the establishment of an inpatient adolescent psychiatric unit housed within the Lincoln Regional Center. The department shall contract with an outside consultant with expertise in needs assessment and cost analysis of health care facilities within sixty days after May 26, 2021, for the purpose of conducting such assessment and analysis.

(2) The department shall submit a report electronically to the Health and Human Services Committee of the Legislature and the Clerk of the Legislature on or before December 1, 2021. Such report shall contain the following information:

(a) A needs assessment, including the number of adolescents expected to use such inpatient adolescent psychiatric unit;

(b) The cost of opening an existing facility at the Lincoln Regional Center for use as an inpatient adolescent psychiatric unit;

(c) The cost of reopening the facility at the Lincoln Regional Center, including the costs for necessary construction, upgrades, or repairs;

(d) Annual operating costs of such unit, including, but not limited to, any federal funds available to operate the unit in addition to General Fund appropriations; and

(e) Cost savings realized by moving adolescents from out-of-state institutions back to Nebraska for treatment at such unit.

(3) For purposes of this section, adolescent means a person under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court.

(1) The official names of the state institutions under the supervision of the Department of Health and Human Services shall be as follows: (a) Beatrice State Developmental Center, (b) Lincoln Regional Center, (c) Norfolk Regional Center, (d) Hastings Regional Center, (e) Youth Rehabilitation and Treatment Center-Kearney, and (f) Youth Rehabilitation and Treatment Center-Geneva.

(2)(a) This subsection applies beginning July 1, 2021.

(b) Except as provided in subdivision (2)(e) of this section, so long as the department operates the Youth Rehabilitation and Treatment Center-Kearney, such institution shall be used for the treatment of boys only.

(c) Except as provided in subdivision (2)(e) of this section, so long as the department operates the Youth Rehabilitation and Treatment Center-Geneva, such institution shall be used for the treatment of girls only.

(d) For any other facility operated and utilized as a youth rehabilitation and treatment center in compliance with state law, the department shall ensure safe and appropriate gender separation.

(e) In the event of an emergency, the department may use the Youth Rehabilitation and Treatment Center-Kearney, the Youth Rehabilitation and Treatment Center-Geneva, or another facility operated and utilized as a youth rehabilitation and treatment center in compliance with state law for the treatment of juveniles of both genders for up to seven days. During any such use the department shall ensure safe and appropriate gender separation.

(f) For purposes of this section, emergency means a public health emergency or a situation including fire, flood, tornado, natural disaster, or damage to the institution that renders an institution uninhabitable. Emergency does not include inadequate staffing.

(3) It is the intent of the Legislature that no institution under the supervision of the Department of Health and Human Services at which the department provides inpatient or subacute substance abuse or behavioral health residential treatment for juveniles under the jurisdiction of a juvenile court shall delay such treatment to a juvenile when such treatment has been determined necessary under subsection (2) of section 43-407 or has been ordered by a juvenile court.

The Department of Health and Human Services shall have oversight and general control of the Beatrice State Developmental Center, the hospitals for the mentally ill, such skilled nursing care and intermediate care facilities as may be established by the department, any facility operated and utilized as a youth rehabilitation and treatment center in compliance with state law, and all charitable institutions.

The Director of Correctional Services shall establish facilities and programs for persons committed to the Department of Correctional Services. The assignment to such programs shall be based on the evaluation and recommendation from the Diagnostic and Evaluation Center. The director shall not classify prisoners committed to the department into separate dwelling units solely on the basis of race; except that any prisoner may be isolated for insubordination, security, or rehabilitation.

(1) The Department of Health and Human Services also may use other public facilities or contract for the use of private facilities for the care and treatment of children in its legal custody who have been adjudged to be as described in subdivision (3)(a) of section 43-247. Placement of children in private or public facilities not under its jurisdiction shall not terminate the legal custody of the department. No state funds may be paid for care of a child in the home of a parent.

(2) For children committed to the Office of Juvenile Services, the Department of Health and Human Services may use other public facilities operated by the Department of Health and Human Services for the care and treatment of such children or may contract for the use of space in another facility operated and utilized as a youth rehabilitation and treatment center in compliance with state law.

(1) The Department of Health and Human Services shall have general control over the admission of patients and residents to all institutions over which it has jurisdiction. Each individual shall be assigned to the institution best adapted to care for him or her.

(2) A record of every patient or resident of every institution shall be kept complete from the date of his or her entrance to the date of his or her discharge or death. Such records shall be accessible only (a) to the department, a legislative committee, the Governor, any federal agency requiring medical records to adjudicate claims for federal benefits, and any public or private agency under contract to provide facilities, programs, and patient services, (b) upon order of a judge, court, or mental health board, (c) in accordance with sections 20-161 to 20-166, (d) to the Nebraska State Patrol pursuant to section 69-2409.01, (e) to those portions of the record required to be released to a victim as defined in section 29-119 in order to comply with the victim notification requirements pursuant to subsections (5) and (6) of section 81-1850, (f) to law enforcement and county attorneys when a crime occurs on the premises of an institution, (g) upon request when a patient or resident has been deceased for fifty years or more, (h) to current treatment providers, or (i) to treatment providers for coordination of care related to transfer or discharge. In addition, a patient or resident or his or her legally authorized representative may authorize the specific release of his or her records, or portions thereof, by filing with the department a signed written consent.

(3) Transfers of patients or residents from one institution to another shall be within the exclusive jurisdiction of the department and shall be recorded in the office of the department, with the reasons for such transfers.

(4) When the department is unable to assign a patient to a regional center or commit him or her to any other institution at the time of application, a record thereof shall be kept and the patient accepted at the earliest practicable date.

(5) The superintendents of the regional centers and Beatrice State Developmental Center shall notify the department immediately whenever there is any question regarding the propriety of the commitment, detention, transfer, or placement of any person admitted to a state institution. The department shall then investigate the matter and take such action as shall be proper. Any interested party who is not satisfied with such action may appeal such action, and the appeal shall be in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act.

(6) The department shall have full authority on its own suggestion or upon the application of any interested person to investigate the physical and mental status of any patient or resident of any regional center or the Beatrice State Developmental Center. If upon such investigation the department considers such patient or resident fit to be released from the regional center or Beatrice State Developmental Center, it shall cause such patient or resident to be discharged or released on convalescent leave.

The Department of Health and Human Services shall prepare an estimate of the appropriations necessary for the support and needed improvements of the institutions under its charge, and a report of their operation during the preceding biennium, for the use of the Legislature. The estimate shall be printed and may include a report of the results of investigation of methods of institution management and of treatment of patients and inmates, with suggestions for the betterment of any or all conditions.

(1) The Department of Health and Human Services shall gather information as to the expenditures of charitable institutions in this and other countries and regarding the best and most successful methods of caring for persons with an intellectual disability and persons with a mental disorder.

(2) The Department of Health and Human Services shall encourage scientific investigation of the treatment of mental problems, epilepsy, and all other diseases and causes that contribute to mental disabilities by the medical staffs of the state medical institutions. The department shall provide forms for statistical returns to be made by the institutions. The department shall make an investigation of the conditions, causes, prevention, and cure of epilepsy, intellectual disability, and mental disorders. The department shall give special attention to the methods of care, treatment, education, and improvement of the persons served by the institutions under its control and shall exercise a careful supervision of the methods to the end that, so far as practicable, the best treatment and care known to modern science shall be given to such persons and that the best methods of teaching, improving, and educating such persons shall be used.

The Department of Health and Human Services may examine any of the officers, attendants, guards, and other employees and make such inquiries as will determine their fitness for their respective duties and shall investigate and report to the Governor any abuses or wrongs alleged to exist in the institution. The department shall also electronically submit any such report to the Health and Human Services Committee of the Legislature.

The Department of Health and Human Services shall have the power to summon and examine witnesses under oath, to examine books and papers pertaining to the subject under investigation, and to compel the production of such books and papers. Witnesses who are not employees of the state shall receive the same fees as witnesses in civil cases in the district court, and their fees shall be paid by vouchers. Any officer or employee who interferes in any manner with the department's official investigation shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be removed from his or her position, and be fined in a sum not less than ten dollars nor more than one hundred dollars. The claim that any testimony or evidence sought to be elicited or produced may tend to incriminate the person giving or producing it, or expose him or her to public ignominy, shall not excuse him or her from testifying or producing the evidence, but any evidence given by a witness at such an investigation shall not be used against him or her in a criminal prosecution. A witness shall not be exempt from prosecution and punishment for perjury for testifying falsely at an investigation. It shall be the duty of the department to cause such testimony to be filed in the office of the department as soon thereafter as practicable, and such testimony shall be open for inspection. Any person failing to obey the orders of the department, issued under the provisions of this section, shall be reported by the department to the district court, or any judge thereof, and shall be dealt with by the court or judge as for contempt of court.

The Department of Health and Human Services shall be prepared to give any information desired by the Legislature concerning the institutions under its control, and its administration shall be subject to examination under oath by a legislative committee, touching any matter in regard to which the Legislature may desire information concerning the condition of the institutions, their inmates, and the performance of their duties by the department. The committee may call and examine under oath any other persons as witnesses in such investigation. Such examinations shall be conducted in the manner and subject to the provisions of section 83-114.

The Department of Health and Human Services shall have the power to bring all suits necessary to protect the interests of the state. Such proceedings shall be instituted in the name of the State of Nebraska.

There is hereby created the School District Reimbursement Fund for use by the Department of Health and Human Services. The fund shall consist of money received from school districts or the department for the operation of special education programs within the department. The fund shall be used for the operation of such programs pursuant to sections 79-1155 to 79-1158.

Any money in the fund available for investment shall be invested by the state investment officer pursuant to the Nebraska Capital Expansion Act and the Nebraska State Funds Investment Act.

(1) Out of the fund appropriated by the Legislature, the Department of Correctional Services shall purchase the materials for and manufacture the license plates each year for the various counties and the Department of Motor Vehicles. The Department of Motor Vehicles shall furnish to the Department of Correctional Services the information concerning license plates through a secure process and system, together with the number of plates to be manufactured for each county and the Department of Motor Vehicles for the current licensing year.

(2) The Department of Correctional Services shall deliver the license plates each year as directed by the Department of Motor Vehicles through a secure process and system.

The chief executive officer of the Department of Health and Human Services shall appoint the chief executive officer of each facility referred to in section 83-107.01. Each chief executive officer shall report to the chief executive officer of the department or his or her designee and shall serve full time and without term at the pleasure of the chief executive officer of the department.

(1) On or before December 1, 2020, the Department of Health and Human Services shall establish the position of superintendent of institutional schools to administer the education programs in state institutions under the supervision of the department that house juveniles and shall hire an individual meeting the qualifications required under section 79-801 to fill such position.

(2) The superintendent of institutional schools shall report directly to the chief executive officer of the Department of Health and Human Services.

(3) The superintendent of institutional schools shall report annually to the State Board of Education as a requirement for accreditation pursuant to section 79-703 of the education programs in state institutions under the supervision of the Department of Health and Human Services that house juveniles.

(4) Whenever a vacancy arises in the position of superintendent of institutional schools, the Department of Health and Human Services shall expediently hire another individual meeting the qualifications required under section 79-801 to fill such position.

Each official and employee who is given the custody of funds or property of the state shall be bonded or insured as required by section 11-201.

An Emergency Revolving Fund, not to exceed three thousand dollars for any one institution, upon order of the Department of Health and Human Services, shall be drawn from the State Treasurer, to be used by the chief executive officer of each institution as an emergency cash fund. The fund shall be drawn from the general maintenance appropriation for the department. An accounting of this fund shall be made by each executive officer once each month to the department.

The chief executive officer of any state institution under the control of the Department of Health and Human Services shall refer for investment in accordance with sections 72-1244 and 72-1267 any surplus of canteen funds or trust funds which he or she may have belonging to the residents of the institution under his or her control. The income accruing from the investment of canteen funds shall be used for the general entertainment of the residents of the institution. The income accruing from the investment of the residents' personal trust funds shall be distributed and prorated to each resident's personal trust account in accordance with the participation of each resident's personal account.

The Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Correctional Services shall have authority to petition the authorities of any city, town, or village in which a state institution is located, to grade, curb, and pave any street or streets upon which the grounds of the institution abut, where the streets are a part of a paving district, to waive any damage sustained by the grounds from the grading, curbing, or paving, and to charge the grounds with a proportionate share of the cost of paving. The contract for grading, curbing, and paving shall be let by the authorities of the city, town, or village, as provided for by the law governing the city, town, or village, and none of the provisions for the letting of contracts by the department shall apply. The cost of paving, including curbing and grading, assessed and levied against the property, shall be paid to the proper officers of the city, town, or village, by the State Treasurer, out of funds which may be appropriated by the Legislature for that purpose.

Wherever any paving district is created adjacent to any state institution or the Nebraska State Fairgrounds, the chief executive officer in charge of the state institution or the chairperson of the Nebraska State Fair Board for the fairgrounds is authorized to sign petitions, in the name of the state, to create paving districts.

Upon written request being filed with the Department of Transportation by the chief executive officer of any state institution, located more than one-half mile and not exceeding three miles from a railroad unloading track or permanent highway leading to a railroad unloading track, requesting aid for the improvement of a highway connecting the institution with the permanent highway or railroad unloading track, the department shall make a careful estimate of the cost of improving the highway, and the amount of the special benefits to abutting property, together with the excess of the cost of the improvement above the benefits. If the local authorities in charge of the highway shall adequately provide for the payment of the special benefits and one-half of the excess of the cost of the improvement, the department shall pay the remaining one-half of the excess from funds appropriated for that purpose.

The steward of each institution shall have charge of all supplies for that institution, and shall be charged therewith at their invoice value. Supplies shall be issued only on requisition by the chief executive officer, and on printed blanks which shall serve as the steward's vouchers. The steward shall report monthly to the Department of Health and Human Services or the Department of Correctional Services, whichever has jurisdiction, the amounts of supplies received, used, and on hand. At the close of the biennial period the steward shall make a comprehensive report to the department showing all the transactions of his or her department. Any shortage, not allowed by the department for unavoidable causes, shall be paid for by the steward within ten days after the amount due is officially determined, and in default of payment the steward shall forfeit his or her office and suit to recover the amount shall be instituted upon his or her official bond or equivalent commercial insurance policy.

The materiel administrator of the Department of Administrative Services shall purchase all necessary supplies for the institutions under the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Correctional Services, except, in its discretion, fresh fruit, vegetables, and emergency and minor purchases. The last-named supplies may be purchased by the chief executive officer or steward under the order of the department. An itemized statement of such purchases, duly verified, shall be filed with the department on the first day of each month. Estimates of needed supplies shall be furnished the department by each chief executive officer. Such estimates shall be examined by the department, and an itemized statement of such as are approved by the department, showing kind, quantity, and quality, shall be filed with the materiel administrator, and upon request shall be furnished to any applicant therefor.

Whenever any inmate of any public charitable institution shall be unable to provide suitable clothing for himself, and shall have no parent or legal guardian able and legally bound to do so, the county board of the county where the inmate last resided, before entering or applying for admission into the institution, shall adjudge and declare the inmate a pauper. The proper officers of the institution shall then provide suitable clothing for such person, and the inmate shall send the bill therefor to the county board. The county board shall then audit and allow the bill and cause a warrant therefor to be drawn upon the general fund of the county in favor of the officers of the institution.

The Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Correctional Services shall administer the provisions of sections 83-144 to 83-152.

All departments, institutions, and agencies of this state which are supported in whole or in part by taxation for state purposes and all counties and other political subdivisions of this state shall purchase from the Department of Correctional Services all articles required by them produced, printed, or manufactured by offenders confined in facilities of the Department of Correctional Services, or elsewhere, including products of any farms operated by the department unless such articles of equal quality and materials could be purchased from another supplier at a lesser cost. The quality and materials must be certified as being equal by the materiel division of the Department of Administrative Services. No such article shall be purchased by any department, institution, or agency of the state from any other source unless excepted from the provisions of this section as provided in sections 83-144 to 83-152. Printing by offenders shall be restricted to such as may be required at the various institutions under the jurisdiction of the department and such other printing requirements as may be determined by the materiel division of the Department of Administrative Services pursuant to subdivision (3) of section 81-152. No products of any institutional printing plant, other than that used by departments, institutions, agencies, and other political subdivisions of the state, shall be sold in competition with outside labor. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit the department from exchanging Department of Correctional Services-made goods with other states. Goods received from divisions of corrections outside of Nebraska shall be of the same status and will be subject to the same restrictions and penalties as if they had been manufactured in the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services. In cases of exchange of Department of Correctional Services-made goods with other states, the department is authorized to pay or receive in cash any differences that may exist in the articles exchanged, the amounts paid or received to be charged or credited to the Correctional Industries Revolving Fund. In exchange of Department of Correctional Services-made goods with other states, the goods received in exchange shall be restricted to such use and needs as may be required in the various institutions under the jurisdiction of the department. Any authorized agency, bureau, commission, or department of the federal government or any charitable, fraternal, or nonprofit corporation may purchase from the Department of Correctional Services goods produced or manufactured by offenders confined in facilities of the Department of Correctional Services, or elsewhere, including products of any farms operated by the department.

The Department of Correctional Services may sell braille books and materials produced by offenders confined in facilities of the department. The department may enter into contracts for the use of the services of such offenders to produce braille books and materials. The department may also service any braille machinery needed to produce braille products.

All purchases shall be made through the Department of Administrative Services upon the requisition of the proper authority of the department, institution or agency of the state, or of the county or other governmental subdivision requiring such articles.

The Director of Administrative Services may create an exception from the mandatory provisions of sections 83-144 to 83-152 when in the opinion of the director, the article produced or manufactured does not meet the reasonable requirements of the department, institution, or agency of the state. The Director of Correctional Services may create an exception from the mandatory provisions of sections 83-144 to 83-152 in any case when the requisition made cannot be completely complied with on account of an insufficient supply of the article or supplies required, or otherwise. No such department, institution, or agency of the state shall be allowed to evade the intent and meaning of this section by slight violations from standards adopted by the department, when articles produced or manufactured by it in accordance with its standards are reasonably adapted to the actual needs of the department, institution, or agency.

No voucher issued by any such department, institution or agency upon the Director of Administrative Services shall be questioned by him or by the State Treasurer on the ground that sections 83-144 to 83-152 shall not have been complied with by the department, institution or agency; but intentional violation of the provisions of such sections by any department, institution or agency continued after notice in writing from the Department of Correctional Services to desist, shall constitute malfeasance in office, and shall subject the officer, officers or public employees responsible for the violations to suspension or removal from office, in the manner provided by law in other cases of malfeasance.

The Department of Correctional Services shall prepare, annually, and at such other times as it may determine necessary, a catalog or bulletin sheets containing a description of all articles and supplies manufactured and produced by the department under sections 83-144 to 83-152. Copies of the catalog and bulletin sheets shall be sent by said department to all departments, institutions and agencies of the state referred to in section 83-145. On or before June 15 of each year, each constitutional state officer, each head of every executive department of the state and each titular head of each institution and other agency of the state shall report in writing to the Department of Administrative Services, estimates for the ensuing year commencing July 1, or ensuing quarter, if desired, the kinds and amounts of articles and supplies required by them for the ensuing year or quarter, referring in such estimates to the catalog and bulletin sheets issued by the Department of Correctional Services insofar as the articles and supplies indicated are included in the catalog or bulletin sheets.

All funds received by the Department of Correctional Services under sections 83-144 to 83-152 and from the recycling of material used in the production of goods or the provision of services by the department's correctional industries program shall be remitted to the State Treasurer for credit to the Correctional Industries Revolving Fund, which fund is hereby created. The fund shall be administered by the Director of Correctional Services. The fund (1) shall be used to pay all proper expenses incident to the administration of sections 83-144 to 83-152 and (2) may be used to carry out section 83-186.01, except that transfers from the fund to the General Fund may be made at the direction of the Legislature. Any money in the Correctional Industries Revolving Fund available for investment shall be invested by the state investment officer pursuant to the Nebraska Capital Expansion Act and the Nebraska State Funds Investment Act.

Goods produced in whole or in part by persons confined to the department in this state may be transported and sold in the same manner as goods produced by free persons, if persons confined to the department are paid at least minimum wage under state law. The minimum wage requirement does not apply to hobby and craft items produced by persons committed to the department on their own time with their own resources.

Goods produced in whole or in part by persons confined in another state or territory may be transported and sold in this state in the same manner as goods produced by persons committed to the department in this state may be transported or sold in that state or territory.

Any claim to money or personal property in the hands of the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Correctional Services, or the Department of Veterans' Affairs to the credit of an inmate or patient of any institution subject to the jurisdiction of such departments shall be required to be asserted within two years from and after either (1) the date of the death of the inmate or patient, while confined in such institution, or (2) the date of the discharge of the inmate or patient from such institution. If such claim is not presented within the time limited by this section, it shall be forever barred.

Upon the failure to assert a claim for money within two years as prescribed by section 83-153, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Correctional Services, or the Department of Veterans' Affairs shall transfer such money to a special fund to be set up for the use and benefit of all the inmates or patients of the institution in which the deceased or discharged inmate or patient was confined.

Upon the failure to assert a claim for personal property within two years as prescribed by section 83-153, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Correctional Services, or the Department of Veterans' Affairs shall sell the property, either with or without notice at either public or private sale, and shall place the proceeds of such sale in the special fund provided for by section 83-154.

Nothing contained in sections 83-153 to 83-156 shall be construed in such a manner as to prohibit the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Correctional Services, or the Department of Veterans' Affairs from voluntarily remitting or delivering to any present or former inmate or patient of any state institution, subject to the jurisdiction of such department, or to his or her heirs, legatees, or other persons lawfully entitled to the same, any money or other personal property in the hands of the department to the credit of such inmate or patient, either during the confinement of such inmate or patient, or at any time thereafter.

As used in the Nebraska Treatment and Corrections Act, unless the context otherwise requires:

(1) Board means the Board of Parole;

(2) Committed offender means any person who, under any provision of law, is sentenced or committed to a facility operated by the department or is sentenced or committed to the department other than a person adjudged to be as described in subdivision (1), (2), (3)(b), or (4) of section 43-247 by a juvenile court;

(3) Department means the Department of Correctional Services;

(4) Director means the Director of Correctional Services;

(5) Director of Supervision and Services means the Director of Supervision and Services appointed pursuant to section 83-1,101;

(6) Facility means any prison, reformatory, training school, reception center, community guidance center, group home, or other institution operated by the department;

(7) Good time means any reduction of sentence granted pursuant to sections 83-1,107 and 83-1,108;

(8) Maximum term means the maximum sentence provided by law or the maximum sentence imposed by a court, whichever is shorter;

(9) Minimum term means the minimum sentence provided by law or the minimum sentence imposed by a court, whichever is longer;

(10) Pardon authority means the power to remit fines and forfeitures and to grant respites, reprieves, pardons, or commutations;

(11) Parole term means the time from release on parole to the completion of the maximum term, reduced by good time;

(12) Person committed to the department means any person sentenced or committed to a facility within the department;

(13) Restrictive housing means conditions of confinement that provide limited contact with other offenders, strictly controlled movement while out of cell, and out-of-cell time of less than twenty-four hours per week; and

(14) Solitary confinement means the status of confinement of an inmate in an individual cell having solid, soundproof doors and which deprives the inmate of all visual and auditory contact with other persons.

There is hereby created a Department of Correctional Services which shall:

(1) Maintain and administer facilities required for the custody, control, correctional treatment, and rehabilitation of persons committed to the department and for the safekeeping of such other persons as may be remanded to the department in accordance with law;

(2) Develop policies and programs for the correctional treatment and rehabilitation of persons committed to the department;

(3) Supervise parolees who have been committed to the department; and

(4) Administer parole services in the facilities and in the community.

The department and the Division of Parole Supervision shall establish performance metrics for corrections and parole staff. Such metrics shall measure staff efficacy in providing rehabilitative and reentry services to committed offenders and parolees. Such metrics shall:

(1) Reflect a balanced approach that considers both compliance and enforcement measures as well as outcomes related to rehabilitation, reintegration, and public safety;

(2) Include indicators of progress for committed offenders and parolees, such as successful completion of treatment programs, educational attainment, employment status, and compliance with conditions of supervision;

(3) Emphasize the importance of providing supportive services, fostering positive relationships with committed offenders and parolees, and promoting successful community reentry; and

(4) Be aligned with best practices, stakeholder input, and the evolving goals and priorities of the criminal justice system.

The Governor shall appoint and fix the salary of the Director of Correctional Services with the approval of the Legislature. The Director of Correctional Services shall be qualified for his position by appropriate training and experience in corrections and such director shall have a minimum of ten years of correctional administrative work.

The Director of Correctional Services shall:

(1) Supervise and be responsible for the administration of the Department of Correctional Services;

(2) Establish, consolidate, or abolish any administrative subdivision within the department and appoint and remove for cause the heads thereof and delegate appropriate powers and duties to them;

(3) Establish and administer policies and programs for the operation of the facilities in the department and for the custody, control, safety, correction, and rehabilitation of persons committed to the department;

(4) Appoint and remove the chief executive officer of each facility and delegate appropriate powers and duties to him or her;

(5) Appoint and remove employees of the department and delegate appropriate powers and duties to them;

(6) Adopt and promulgate rules and regulations for the management, correctional treatment, and rehabilitation of persons committed to the department, the administration of facilities, and the conduct of officers and employees under his or her jurisdiction;

(7) Designate the place of confinement of persons committed to the department subject to section 83-176;

(8) Establish and administer policies that ensure that complete and up-to-date electronic records are maintained for each person committed to the department and which also ensure privacy protections. Electronic records shall include programming recommendations, program completions, time spent in housing other than general population, and medical records, including mental and behavioral health records;

(9) Collect, develop, and maintain statistical information concerning persons committed to the department, sentencing practices, and correctional treatment as may be useful in penological research or in the development of treatment programs;

(10) Provide training programs designed to equip employees for duty in the facilities and related services of the department and to raise and maintain the educational standards, level of performance, and safety of such employees;

(11) Notify law enforcement agencies of upcoming furloughs as required by section 83-173.01;

(12) Issue or authorize the issuance of a warrant for the arrest of any person committed to the department who has escaped from the custody of the department; and

(13) Exercise all powers and perform all duties necessary and proper in carrying out his or her responsibilities.

Two weeks prior to releasing a person convicted of a Class IA felony or sexual assault in the first degree on furlough, the Director of Correctional Services shall deliver a copy of the release authorization to at least one law enforcement agency in the jurisdiction in which such person is authorized to temporarily reside.

(1) No inmate shall be held in restrictive housing unless done in the least restrictive manner consistent with maintaining order in the facility and pursuant to rules and regulations adopted and promulgated by the department pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act.

(2) The department shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act establishing levels of restrictive housing as may be necessary to administer the correctional system. Rules and regulations shall establish behavior, conditions, and mental health status under which an inmate may be placed in each confinement level as well as procedures for making such determinations. Rules and regulations shall also provide for individualized transition plans, developed with the active participation of the committed offender, for each confinement level back to the general population or to society.

(3) On and after March 1, 2020, no inmate who is a member of a vulnerable population shall be placed in restrictive housing. In line with the least restrictive framework, an inmate who is a member of a vulnerable population may be assigned to immediate segregation to protect himself or herself, staff, other inmates, or inmates who are members of vulnerable populations pending classification. The department shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act regarding restrictive housing to address risks for inmates who are members of vulnerable populations. Nothing in this subsection prohibits the department from developing secure mental health housing to serve the needs of inmates with serious mental illnesses as defined in section 44-792, developmental disabilities as defined in section 71-1107, or traumatic brain injuries as defined in section 79-1118.01 in such a way that provides for meaningful access to social interaction, exercise, environmental stimulation, and therapeutic programming.

(4) For purposes of this section, member of a vulnerable population means an inmate who is eighteen years of age or younger, pregnant, or diagnosed with a serious mental illness as defined in section 44-792, a developmental disability as defined in section 71-1107, or a traumatic brain injury as defined in section 79-1118.01.

(1) At least ninety days prior to the release from incarceration or civil commitment or the termination of probation or parole supervision of an individual who is required to register under section 29-4003, the agency with jurisdiction over the individual shall provide notice to the Attorney General, the Nebraska State Patrol, the prosecuting county attorney, and the county attorney in the county in which an individual is incarcerated, supervised, or committed.

(2) The Board of Parole shall also provide notice to the Attorney General, the Nebraska State Patrol, the prosecuting county attorney, and the county attorney in the county in which such individual is incarcerated or committed within five days after scheduling a parole hearing for an individual who is required to register under section 29-4003.

(3) A county attorney shall, no later than forty-five days after receiving notice of the pending release of an individual pursuant to this section, notify the Attorney General whether the county attorney intends to initiate civil commitment proceedings against such individual upon his or her release from custody.

For purposes of sections 83-174 to 83-174.05:

(1) Dangerous sex offender means (a) a person who suffers from a mental illness which makes the person likely to engage in repeat acts of sexual violence, who has been convicted of one or more sex offenses, and who is substantially unable to control his or her criminal behavior or (b) a person with a personality disorder which makes the person likely to engage in repeat acts of sexual violence, who has been convicted of two or more sex offenses, and who is substantially unable to control his or her criminal behavior;

(2) Likely to engage in repeat acts of sexual violence means the person's propensity to commit sex offenses resulting in serious harm to others is of such a degree as to pose a menace to the health and safety of the public;

(3) Person who suffers from a mental illness means an individual who has a mental illness as defined in section 71-907;

(4) Person with a personality disorder means an individual diagnosed with a personality disorder;

(5) Sex offense means any of the offenses listed in section 29-4003 for which registration as a sex offender is required; and

(6) Substantially unable to control his or her criminal behavior means having serious difficulty in controlling or resisting the desire or urge to commit sex offenses.

(1) The Department of Correctional Services shall order an evaluation of the following individuals by a mental health professional to determine whether or not the individual is a dangerous sex offender:

(a) Individuals who have been convicted of (i) sexual assault of a child in the first degree pursuant to section 28-319.01 or (ii) sexual assault in the first degree pursuant to section 28-319;

(b) Individuals who have been convicted of two or more offenses requiring registration as a sex offender under section 29-4003 if one of the convictions was for any of the following offenses: (i) Kidnapping of a minor pursuant to section 28-313, except when the person is the parent of the minor and was not convicted of any other offense; (ii) sexual assault in the first degree pursuant to section 28-319 or sexual assault in the second degree pursuant to section 28-320; (iii) sexual assault of a child pursuant to section 28-320.01; (iv) sexual assault of a child in the first degree pursuant to section 28-319.01; (v) sexual assault of a child in the second or third degree pursuant to section 28-320.01; (vi) sexual assault of a vulnerable adult or senior adult pursuant to subdivision (1)(c) of section 28-386; (vii) incest of a minor pursuant to section 28-703; (viii) visual depiction of sexually explicit conduct of a child pursuant to section 28-1463.03; or (ix) any offense that is substantially equivalent to an offense listed in this section by any state, territory, commonwealth, or other jurisdiction of the United States, by the United States Government, or by court-martial or other military tribunal, notwithstanding a procedure comparable in effect to that described in section 29-2264 or any other procedure to nullify a conviction other than by pardon;

(c) Individuals convicted of a sex offense against a minor who have refused to participate in or failed to successfully complete the sex offender treatment program offered by the Department of Correctional Services or the Department of Health and Human Services during the term of incarceration. The failure to successfully complete a treatment program due to time constraints or the unavailability of treatment programming shall not constitute a refusal to participate in treatment; and

(d) Individuals convicted of failure to comply with the registration requirements of the Sex Offender Registration Act who have previously been convicted for failure to comply with the registration requirements of the act or a similar registration requirement in another state.

(2) The evaluation required by this section shall be ordered at least one hundred eighty days before the scheduled release of the individual. Upon completion of the evaluation, and not later than one hundred fifty days prior to the scheduled release of the individual, the department shall send written notice to the Attorney General, the county attorney of the county where the offender is incarcerated, and the prosecuting county attorney. The notice shall contain an affidavit of the mental health professional describing his or her findings with respect to whether or not the individual is a dangerous sex offender.

(1) Any individual who, on or after July 14, 2006, (a) is convicted of or completes a term of incarceration for a registrable offense under section 29-4003 and has a previous conviction for a registrable offense under such section, (b) is convicted of sexual assault of a child in the first degree pursuant to section 28-319.01, or (c) is convicted of or completes a term of incarceration for an aggravated offense as defined in section 29-4001.01, shall, upon completion of his or her term of incarceration or release from civil commitment, be supervised in the community by the Division of Parole Supervision for the remainder of his or her life.

(2) Notice shall be provided to the division by an agency or political subdivision which has custody of an individual required to be supervised in the community pursuant to subsection (1) of this section at least sixty days prior to the release of such individual from custody.

(3) Individuals required to be supervised in the community pursuant to subsection (1) of this section shall undergo a risk assessment and evaluation by the division to determine the conditions of community supervision to be imposed to best protect the public from the risk that the individual will reoffend.

(4) Conditions of community supervision imposed on an individual by the division may include the following:

(a) Drug and alcohol testing if the conviction resulting in the imposition of community supervision involved the use of drugs or alcohol;

(b) Restrictions on employment and leisure activities necessary to minimize interaction with potential victims;

(c) Requirements to report regularly to the individual's community supervision officer;

(d) Requirements to reside at a specified location and notify the individual's community supervision officer of any change in address or employment;

(e) A requirement to allow the division access to medical records from the individual's current and former providers of treatment;

(f) A requirement that the individual submit himself or herself to available medical, psychological, psychiatric, or other treatment, including, but not limited to, polygraph examinations; or

(g) Any other conditions designed to minimize the risk of recidivism, including, but not limited to, the use of electronic monitoring, which are not unduly restrictive.

An individual who violates one or more of the conditions of community supervision established for him or her pursuant to section 83-174.03 shall undergo a review by the Division of Parole Supervision to evaluate the risk posed to the public by the violation in question. The division may take any of the following actions in response to a violation of conditions of community supervision:

(1) Revise or impose additional conditions of community supervision in order to minimize the risk to the public from the continued presence of the individual in the community;

(2) Forward to the Attorney General or the county attorney in the county where the individual resides a request to initiate a criminal prosecution for failure to comply with the terms of community supervision; or

(3) Forward to the county attorney or Attorney General a recommendation that civil commitment proceedings be instituted with respect to the individual.

Failure to comply with the conditions of community supervision imposed by the Division of Parole Supervision is a Class IV felony for the first offense and a Class III felony for any subsequent offense.

Whenever the Director of Correctional Services finds that a person committed to the department requires specialized treatment, or treatment of a kind that is not feasible to provide within the department, the director may place such person in institutions providing such treatment in another jurisdiction and may agree to pay reimbursement therefor. A person so transferred to an out-of-state institution shall be subject to the rules and regulations of such institution concerning the custody, conduct, and discipline of its inmates but shall remain subject to the Nebraska Treatment and Corrections Act concerning his or her term, reduction of term, and release on parole.

(1) Whenever any person is sentenced or committed under any provision of law to a specific facility within the department or to the custody of the warden or superintendent of such facility, he or she shall be deemed to be sentenced or committed to the department.

(2) The director may designate as a place of confinement of a person committed to the department any available, suitable, and appropriate residence facility or institution, whether or not operated by the state, and may at any time transfer such person from one place of confinement to another.

There shall be in each facility a chief executive officer designated as warden or superintendent and such deputy or associate wardens or assistant superintendents as the director determines. The chief executive officer shall be responsible to the director for the custody, control, and correctional treatment of persons committed to the department and for the general administration of the facility. Deputy or associate wardens or assistant superintendents in each facility shall advise and be responsible to the chief executive officer of the facility and shall have such powers and duties as the chief executive officer delegates to them in accordance with law or pursuant to the directions of the director.

(1) The director shall establish and maintain, in accordance with the regulations of the department, an individual file for each person committed to the department. Each individual file shall include, when available and appropriate, the following information on such person:

(a) His or her admission summary;

(b) His or her presentence investigation report;

(c) His or her classification report and recommendation;

(d) Official records of his or her conviction and commitment as well as any earlier criminal records;

(e) Progress reports and admission-orientation reports;

(f) Reports of any disciplinary infractions and of their disposition;

(g) His or her parole plan; and

(h) Other pertinent data concerning his or her background, conduct, associations, and family relationships.

(2) Any decision concerning the classification, reclassification, transfer to another facility, preparole preparation, or parole release of a person committed to the department shall be made only after his or her file has been reviewed. The content of the file shall be confidential and shall not be subject to public inspection except by court order for good cause shown and shall not be accessible to any person committed to the department. An inmate may obtain access to his or her medical records by request to the provider pursuant to sections 71-8401 to 71-8407 notwithstanding the fact that such medical records may be a part of his or her individual department file. The department retains the authority to withhold mental health and psychological records of the inmate when appropriate.

(3) The program of each person committed to the department shall be reviewed at regular intervals and recommendations shall be made to the chief executive officer concerning changes in such person's program of treatment, training, employment, care, and custody as are considered necessary or desirable.

(4) The chief executive officer of the facility shall have final authority to determine matters of treatment classification within his or her facility and to recommend to the director the transfer of any person committed to the department who is in his or her custody.

(5) The director may at any time order a person committed to the department to undergo further examination and study for additional recommendations concerning his or her classification, custodial control, and rehabilitative treatment.

(6) Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit in any manner the authority of the Public Counsel to inspect and examine the records and documents of the department pursuant to sections 81-8,240 to 81-8,254, except that the Public Counsel's access to an inmate's medical or mental health records shall be subject to the inmate's consent. The office of Public Counsel shall not disclose an inmate's medical or mental health records to anyone else, including any person committed to the department, except as authorized by law.

Upon initial admission to a facility, each person committed to the department shall be given a physical examination and a thorough evaluation. The evaluation shall include such person's psychological, social, educational, and vocational condition and history and the motivation of the offense. A report containing the findings of the examination and evaluation shall be submitted on each such person to the chief executive officer of the facility. The report shall include recommendations regarding the facility to which such person should be assigned, the degree and kind of custodial control, and the program of treatment for rehabilitation, including medical and psychological treatment and educational and vocational training. A medical determination shall be made as to whether such person shall be kept apart from other persons committed to the department.

(1) When a physician designated by the Director of Correctional Services finds that a person committed to the department suffers from a physical disease or defect, or when a physician or psychologist designated by the director finds that a person committed to the department is mentally ill as defined in section 71-907, the chief executive officer of the facility may order such person to be segregated from other persons in the facility in the least restrictive manner possible. If the physician or psychologist is of the opinion that the person cannot be given proper treatment in that facility, the director may arrange for his or her transfer for examination, study, and treatment to any medical-correctional facility or to another institution in the Department of Health and Human Services where proper treatment is available. A person who is so transferred shall remain subject to the jurisdiction and custody of the Department of Correctional Services and shall be returned to the department when, prior to the expiration of his or her sentence, treatment in such facility is no longer necessary.

(2) When the physician or psychologist designated by the Director of Correctional Services finds that a person committed to the department suffers from a physical disease or defect or mental illness which in his or her opinion cannot be properly treated in any facility or institution in the Department of Health and Human Services, the director may arrange for his or her transfer for treatment to a hospital or psychiatric facility outside the department. The director shall make appropriate arrangements with other public or private agencies for the transportation to, and for the care, custody, and security of the person in, such hospital or psychiatric facility. While receiving treatment in such hospital or psychiatric facility, the person shall remain subject to the jurisdiction and custody of the Department of Correctional Services and shall be returned to the department when, prior to the expiration of his or her sentence, such hospital or psychiatric treatment is no longer necessary.

(3) The director shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations to establish evidence-based criteria which the department shall use to identify any person nearing release who should be evaluated to determine whether he or she is a mentally ill and dangerous person as defined in section 71-908. When two psychiatrists designated by the director find that a person about to be released or discharged from any facility is a mentally ill and dangerous person as defined in section 71-908, the director shall transfer him or her to, or if he or she has already been transferred, permit him or her to remain in, a psychiatric facility in the Department of Health and Human Services and shall promptly commence proceedings under the Nebraska Mental Health Commitment Act.

(4) The director shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations for risk assessment and management for inmates. Such rules and regulations shall establish a structured decisionmaking process that is consistent with professional standards of care and is consistent with available risk assessment and management guidelines. The process developed shall be performed by individuals with proper training and continuing education related to relevant areas of risk assessment and management. Appropriate quality assurance and outcome assessment shall be included to ensure fidelity to the process and address relevant challenges. The rules and regulations shall establish a rational process for prioritizing who shall be screened and evaluated and when, which shall include, but not be limited to: Incidents of violent activity during incarceration; attempts of suicide or other major self-harm behaviors; and a process for staff to nominate inmates for screening based upon behavior that raises concern for community safety as release approaches.

(5) The director shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations to ensure that all persons who are incarcerated receive a full mental health screening within the first two weeks of intake to determine whether or not an inmate is mentally ill as defined in section 71-907. Such determination shall be reflected in the inmate's individualized treatment plan and shall include adequate mental health treatment. If, at any point during his or her incarceration, an inmate is found to be mentally ill, such determination shall be reflected in the inmate's individualized treatment plan and shall include adequate mental health treatment.

On or before October 1, 2025, the department shall complete a study examining risk assessment tools employed by the department, the board, and the Office of Probation Administration. The department shall evaluate the feasibility of establishing a unified risk assessment framework across all criminal justice agencies.

(1) Each committed offender shall have regular medical and dental care. Each committed offender shall be adequately fed and clothed in accordance with the regulations of the department. No committed offender shall be required to wear stripes or other degrading apparel.

(2) The department shall allow each committed offender reasonable access to his or her attorney or attorneys. If a committed offender communicates with his or her attorney or attorneys by telephone or videoconferencing, such communication shall be provided without charge to the committed offender and without monitoring or recording by the department or law enforcement.

The director shall establish appropriate programs for each facility designed as far as practical to prepare and assist each person committed to the department to assume his or her responsibilities as a useful citizen. In developing such programs, the director shall seek to make available to each person capable of benefiting therefrom academic or vocational training, participation in productive work, religious and recreational activities, and such therapeutic measures as are practicable. No person shall be ordered or compelled to participate in religious activities.

(1) Structured programming shall be planned for all adult persons committed to the department. The structured programming shall include any of the following: Work programs, vocational training, behavior management and modification, money management, and substance abuse awareness, counseling, or treatment. Programs and treatment services shall address:

(a) Behavioral impairments, severe emotional disturbances, and other mental health or psychiatric disorders;

(b) Drug and alcohol use and addiction;

(c) Health and medical needs;

(d) Education and related services;

(e) Counseling services for persons committed to the department who have been physically or sexually abused;

(f) Work ethic and structured work programs;

(g) The development and enhancement of job acquisition skills and job performance skills; and

(h) Cognitive behavioral intervention.

Structured programming may also include classes and activities organized by inmate self-betterment clubs, cultural clubs, and other inmate-led or volunteer-led groups.

(2) The goal of such structured programming is to provide the skills necessary for the person committed to the department to successfully return to his or her home or community or to a suitable alternative community upon his or her release from the adult correctional facility. The Legislature recognizes that many inmate self-betterment clubs and cultural clubs help achieve this goal by providing constructive opportunities for personal growth.

(3) If a person committed to the department refuses to participate in the structured programming described in subsection (1) of this section, he or she may be subject to disciplinary action, except that a person committed to the department who refuses to participate in structured programming consisting of classes and activities organized by inmate self-betterment clubs, cultural clubs, or other inmate-led or volunteer-led groups shall not be subject to disciplinary action.

(4) Any person committed to the department who is qualified by reason of education, training, or experience to teach academic or vocational classes may be given the opportunity to teach such classes to committed offenders as part of the structured programming described in this section.

(5)(a) The department shall evaluate the quality of programs funded by the department, including whether program participation reduces recidivism. The department shall contract with an academic institution located within the State of Nebraska for each program evaluation. Each program evaluation shall be standardized and shall include a site visit, interviews with key staff, interviews with offenders, group observation, if applicable, and review of materials used for the program. The evaluation shall include adherence to concepts that are linked with program effectiveness, such as program procedures, staff qualifications, and fidelity to the program model of delivering offender assessment and treatment. Each program evaluation shall also include a rating on the effectiveness of the program and feedback to the department and the office of Inspector General of the Nebraska Correctional System concerning program strengths and weaknesses and recommendations for better adherence to evidence-based programming, if applicable.

(b) The evaluation shall also make recommendations regarding the availability of programs throughout the correctional system, the ability to deliver the programs in a timely manner, and the therapeutic environment in which such programs are delivered at each facility and shall include a cost-benefit analysis of each program, if applicable. Program evaluations shall be prioritized in the following order: (i) Clinical treatment programs; (ii) nonclinical treatment programs; and (iii) other structured programs. Clinical treatment programs shall be evaluated at least once every three years and nonclinical treatment and structured programs shall be evaluated at least once every eight years.

(c) For purposes of this subsection:

(i) Clinical treatment program means a program designed to address specific behavioral health needs delivered by a licensed behavioral health professional; and

(ii) Nonclinical treatment program means a cognitive behavioral intervention program delivered by volunteers or department staff.

The director shall establish a program to accept donations of books for use by committed offenders. The program shall seek to gather a culturally diverse selection of books.

(1) To establish good habits of work and responsibility, to foster vocational training, and to reduce the cost of operating the facilities, persons committed to the department shall be employed, eight hours per day, so far as possible in constructive and diversified activities in the production of goods, services, and foodstuffs to maintain the facilities, for state use, and for other purposes authorized by law. To accomplish these purposes, the director may establish and maintain industries and farms in appropriate facilities and may enter into arrangements with any other board or agency of the state, any natural resources district, or any other political subdivision, except that any arrangements entered into with school districts, educational service units, community colleges, state colleges, or universities shall include supervision provided by the department, for the employment of persons committed to the department for state or governmental purposes. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to effect a reduction in the number of work release positions.

(2) The director shall make rules and regulations governing the hours, the conditions of labor, and the rates of compensation of persons committed to the department. In determining the rates of compensation, such regulations may take into consideration the quantity and quality of the work performed by such person, whether or not such work was performed during regular working hours, the skill required for its performance, and the economic value of similar work outside of correctional facilities.

(3) Except as provided in section 83-183.01, wage payments to a person committed to the department shall be set aside by the chief executive officer of the facility in a separate fund. The fund shall enable such person committed to the department to contribute to the support of his or her dependents, if any, to make necessary purchases from the commissary, to set aside sums to be paid to him or her at the time of his or her release from the facility, and to pay restitution if restitution is required.

(4) The director shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations which will protect the committed offender's rights to due process and govern the collection of restitution as provided in section 83-184.01.

(5) The director may authorize the chief executive officer to invest the earnings of a person committed to the department. Any accrued interest thereon shall be credited to such person's fund.

(6) The director may authorize the chief executive officer to reimburse the state from the wage fund of a person committed to the department for:

(a) The actual value of property belonging to the state or any other person intentionally or recklessly destroyed by such person committed to the department during his or her commitment;

(b) The actual value of the damage or loss incurred as a result of unauthorized use of property belonging to the state or any other person by such person committed to the department;

(c) The actual cost to the state for injuries or other damages caused by intentional acts of such person committed to the department; and

(d) The reasonable costs incurred in returning such person committed to the department to the facility to which he or she is committed in the event of his or her escape.

(7) No person committed to the department shall be required to engage in excessive labor, and no such person shall be required to perform any work for which he or she is declared unfit by a physician designated by the director. No person who performs labor or work pursuant to this section shall be required to wear manacles, shackles, or other restraints.

(8) The director may authorize that a portion of the earnings of a person committed to the department be retained by that person for personal use.

A person committed to the department, who is earning at least minimum wage and is employed pursuant to sections 81-1827 and 83-183, shall have his or her wages set aside by the chief executive officer of the facility in a separate wage fund. The director shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations which will protect the inmate's rights to due process, provide for hearing as necessary before the Crime Victim's Reparations Committee, and govern the disposition of a confined person's gross monthly wage minus required payroll deductions and payment of necessary work-related incidental expenses for the following purposes:

(1) For the support of families and dependent relatives of the respective inmates;

(2) For the discharge of any legal obligations, including judgments for restitution as provided in section 83-184.01;

(3) To pay all or a part of the cost of their board, room, clothing, medical, dental, and other correctional services;

(4) To provide for funds payable to the person committed to the department upon his or her release;

(5) For the actual value of state property intentionally or willfully and wantonly destroyed by such person during his or her commitment;

(6) For reasonable costs incurred in returning such person to the facility to which he or she is committed in the event of escape; and

(7) For deposit in the Victim's Compensation Fund.

(1) When the conduct, behavior, mental attitude, and conditions indicate that a person committed to the department and the general society of the state will be benefited, and there is reason to believe that the best interests of the people of the state and the person committed to the department will be served thereby, in that order, the director may authorize such person, under prescribed conditions, to:

(a) Visit a specifically designated place or places and return to the same or another facility. An extension of limits may be granted to permit a visit to a dying relative, attendance at the funeral of a relative, the obtaining of medical services, the contacting of prospective employers, or for any other reason consistent with the public interest;

(b) Work at paid employment or participate in a training program in the community on a voluntary basis whenever:

(i) Such paid employment will not result in the displacement of employed workers, or be applied in skills, crafts, or trades in which there is a surplus of available gainful labor in the locality, or impair existing contracts for services; and

(ii) The rates of pay and other conditions of employment will not be less than those paid or provided for work of similar nature in the locality in which the work is to be performed; or

(c) Leave the facility to participate in substance abuse evaluations or treatment, attend rehabilitative programming or treatment, seek residency or employment, or participate in structured programming as provided in section 83-182.01 and return to the same or another facility. The department shall collaborate with community-based providers to enhance the availability of community-based options for such participation that meet the department's requirements for rehabilitative programming or treatment or structured programming.

(2) The wages earned by a person authorized to work at paid employment in the community under this section shall be credited by the chief executive officer of the facility to such person's wage fund. The director shall authorize the chief executive officer to withhold up to five percent of such person's net wages. The funds withheld pursuant to this subsection shall be remitted to the State Treasurer for credit as provided in subsection (2) of section 33-157.

(3) A person authorized to work at paid employment in the community under this section may be required to pay, and the director is authorized to collect, such costs incident to the person's confinement as the director deems appropriate and reasonable. Collections shall be deposited in the state treasury as miscellaneous receipts.

(4) A person authorized to work at paid employment in the community under this section may be required to pay restitution. The director shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations which will protect the committed offender's rights to due process and govern the collection of restitution as provided in section 83-184.01.

(5) The willful failure of a person to remain within the extended limits of his or her confinement or to return within the time prescribed to a facility designated by the director may be deemed an escape from custody punishable as provided in section 28-912.

(6) No person employed in the community under this section or otherwise released shall, while working in such employment in the community or going to or from such employment or during the time of such release, be deemed to be an agent, employee, or servant of the state.

(1) The department, in consultation with the State Court Administrator, shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations to provide an effective process for the transfer of funds for the purpose of satisfying restitution orders.

(2) A sentencing order requiring an inmate to pay restitution shall be treated as a court order authorizing the department to withhold and transfer funds for the purpose of satisfying a restitution order.

(3) This section applies to funds in the wage fund of any inmate confined in a correctional facility on or after August 30, 2015.

(4) The department shall report annually to the Legislature on the collection of restitution from wage funds. The report shall include the total number of inmates with restitution judgments, the total number of inmates with wage funds, the total number of inmates with both, the number of payments made to either victims or clerks of the court, the average amount of payments, and the total amount of restitution collected. The report shall be submitted electronically.

(1) The following persons shall be allowed to visit any facility in the Department of Correctional Services at any time:

(a) Members of the Legislature;

(b) Members of the judiciary;

(c) Members of the Board of Pardons;

(d) Members of the Board of Parole; and

(e) Members of the clergy, subject to the approval of the Director of Correctional Services.

(2) The chief executive officer of a facility may permit any other person to visit the facility.

(1) The Legislature finds that:

(a) Research reveals that children who have parents involved in their lives perform better academically and socially in school, experience fewer mental health and substance abuse issues, and are less likely to commit serious crime;

(b) Strategies to address family stability and intergenerational poverty are specifically needed for children with incarcerated parents; and

(c) Research reveals that family-based reentry planning, including relationship development and housing and employment strategies, results in lower recidivism and greater family economic stability.

(2) The department shall implement a program for the purpose of providing in Nebraska adult correctional facilities an evidence-based program of parent education, early literacy, relationship skills development, and reentry planning involving family members of incarcerated parents prior to their release. Incarcerated parents of children between birth and five years of age shall have priority for participation in the program. The department may award a contract to operate the program. Such contract shall be based on competitive bids as provided in sections 73-101 to 73-105. The department shall track data related to program participation and recidivism.

(1) When a person committed to the department is released from a facility on parole, on post-release supervision, or upon final discharge, the person shall be returned any personal possessions taken upon confinement, and the chief executive officer of the facility shall furnish the person with a written notice as required in section 83-1,118, clothing appropriate for the season of the year, a transportation ticket to the place where he or she will reside, if within the continental limits of the United States or if not, the state may purchase transportation to the nearest United States border en route to such residence, and such sum of money as may be prescribed by the regulations of the department to enable the person to meet his or her immediate needs. If at the time of release the person is too ill or feeble or otherwise unable to use public means of transportation, the chief executive officer may make special arrangements for transportation to the place where the person will reside.

(2) At the time of release, the person shall also be paid his or her earnings and any accrued interest thereon set aside in the wage fund. Such earnings and interest shall be paid either in a lump sum or otherwise as determined by the chief executive officer to be in the best interest of the person. No less than one-third of such fund shall be paid upon release, and the entire fund shall be paid within six months of the person's release.

(3) The department shall send a copy of the release or discharge to the court which committed the person and also to the sheriff of the county in which the court is located and, when such county contains a city of the metropolitan class, to the police department of such city.

The Legislature affirms the importance of parole as a program for the supervised release of inmates making the transition from confinement to responsible citizenship. Therefor the Legislature intends that committed offenders who are eligible for parole have the opportunity to complete the final stages of their sentences on parole.

(1) There is hereby created the Board of Parole. For administrative purposes only, the board shall be within the Board of Pardons. Nothing in the Nebraska Treatment and Corrections Act shall be construed to give the director or the Board of Pardons any authority, power, or responsibility over the Board of Parole, its employees, or the exercise of its functions under the provisions of the act. The employees of the Board of Parole shall be covered by the State Personnel System.

(2) Employees of the Board of Parole shall consist of the following:

(a) The administrative staff necessary to assist the board with parole reviews, revocations, and hearings;

(b) At least one legal counsel;

(c) At least one fiscal analyst, policy analyst, or data analyst; and

(d) At least one staff member to assist with the daily supervision and training of employees of the board.

The Board of Parole shall consist of five full-time members to be appointed by the Governor. The members of the board shall be of good character and judicious temperament. The members of the board shall have all the powers and duties of board members commencing on the date of appointment. The appointments shall be subject to confirmation by the Legislature at its next regular session following the appointments. At least one member of the board shall be of an ethnic minority group, at least one member shall be female, and at least one member shall have a professional background in corrections.

One of the five members of the board shall be designated as chairperson by the Governor. In addition to the chairperson's duties as a member of the board as prescribed in subsection (1) of section 83-192, he or she shall supervise the administration and operation of the board and shall carry out the duties prescribed in subsection (2) of such section.

(1) The members of the Board of Parole shall have terms of office of six years and until their successors are appointed. The successors shall be appointed in the same manner as provided for the members first appointed, and a vacancy occurring before expiration of a term of office shall be similarly filled for the unexpired term. A member of the board may be reappointed. The members of the board shall be removed for disability, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office by the Board of Pardons after a hearing. The Board of Pardons shall promptly file in the office of the Secretary of State a complete statement of the charges, its findings and disposition, and a complete record of the proceedings.

(2) For purposes of this section, neglect of duty includes not attending a total of twelve full days of hearings of the Board of Parole within a calendar year. A member's failure to attend a hearing day shall not count toward such limit if the failure was due to a medical appointment that could not reasonably be rescheduled or delayed, a family emergency, illness, an act of God, or similar circumstances beyond the member's control.

The members of the Board of Parole shall devote full time to their duties with such board and shall not engage in any other business or profession or hold any other public office. No member shall, at the time of his or her appointment or during his or her tenure, serve as the representative of any political party or of any executive committee or governing body thereof or as an executive officer or employee of any political party, organization, association, or committee. A member shall resign from the board upon filing as a candidate for any elective public office. Each member of the board shall receive an annual salary to be fixed by the Governor. Such salaries shall be paid in equal monthly portions.

The board shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations that include:

(1) Clearly defined and easily understood written mission statements and strategic plans encompassing public safety and rehabilitation. The board shall align such statements and plans with those of the department;

(2) Procedures to ensure that victims are appropriately notified and given the opportunity to provide input in the rulemaking process;

(3) A requirement that board members receive initial and ongoing training on cultural competency, implicit bias, an understanding of the historical perspective of how and why parole was created, the powers and duties of the board, and ethics. Such training shall address current suggested best practices and enhance and strengthen members' decisionmaking skills;

(4) A requirement that board members receive initial and ongoing training on motivational interviewing using approaches and materials developed and approved by the National Institute of Corrections;

(5) A code of ethics for members of the board;

(6) Requirements and procedures for the board to incorporate evidence-based practices that reduce recidivism. This includes, but is not limited to, a requirement that the board measure performance outcomes and develop transparent, written criteria that shall be considered when making decisions on whether to grant or revoke parole and when setting the conditions of parole;

(7) Methods by which the board will enhance opportunities for the success of people released on parole by collaborating with partners within and outside of the criminal justice system, supporting the supervision of people released on parole in their communities, employing informal social controls, and enabling people released on parole to participate meaningfully in the supervision process; and

(8) Policies and standard practices that will assist in ensuring neutrality, impartiality, and objectivity as an integral part of the board's culture and practices.

(1) The Board of Parole shall:

(a) Determine the time of release on parole of committed offenders eligible for such release;

(b) Fix the conditions of parole, revoke parole, issue or authorize the issuance of warrants for the arrest of parole violators, and impose other sanctions short of revocation for violation of conditions of parole;

(c) Determine the time of mandatory discharge from parole;

(d) Visit and inspect any facility, state or local, for the detention of persons charged with or convicted of an offense and for the safekeeping of such other persons as may be remanded to such facility in accordance with law;

(e) Within two years after July 1, 2006, implement the utilization of a validated risk and needs assessment in coordination with the Department of Correctional Services and the Division of Parole Supervision. The assessment shall be prepared and completed by the department or the division for use by the board in determining release on parole;

(f) Review the record of every parole-eligible committed offender annually when he or she is within three years of his or her earliest parole eligibility date.

The review schedule shall be based on court-imposed sentences or statutory minimum sentences, whichever are greater. The board is not required to review the record of a committed offender when the committed offender's parole eligibility date is within one month of his or her mandatory discharge date. Nothing in such schedule shall prohibit the board from reviewing a committed offender's case at any time;

(g) Appoint and remove all employees of the board as prescribed by the State Personnel System and delegate appropriate powers and duties to them;

(h) Carry out its duties under section 83-962 during a correctional system overcrowding emergency;

(i) Adopt and promulgate rules and regulations; and

(j) Exercise all powers and perform all duties necessary and proper in carrying out its responsibilities under the Nebraska Treatment and Corrections Act.

(2) The chairperson of the board shall:

(a) Supervise the administration and operation of the board;

(b) Serve in an advisory capacity to the director in administering parole services within any facility;

(c) Interpret the parole program to the public with a view toward developing a broad base of public support;

(d) Conduct research for the purpose of evaluating and improving the effectiveness of the parole system;

(e) Recommend parole legislation to the Governor;

(f) Adopt and promulgate rules and regulations for the administration and operation of the board;

(g) Take all actions necessary to assist the board in carrying out its duties under section 83-962 during a correctional system overcrowding emergency; and

(h) Exercise all other powers and perform all other duties necessary and proper in carrying out his or her responsibilities as chairperson.

(3) This section does not prohibit a committed offender from requesting that the board review his or her record. The board is not required to review a committed offender's record more than once a year, except as otherwise required by statute, including section 83-962.

The Board of Parole Grant Awards Cash Fund is created. All funds received by virtue of public grants awarded to the Board of Parole shall be remitted to the State Treasurer for credit to the fund. The fund shall be utilized by the board for the purposes stated in the individual grant applications and awards. Any money in the fund available for investment shall be invested by the state investment officer pursuant to the Nebraska Capital Expansion Act and the Nebraska State Funds Investment Act.

The Board of Parole shall not have jurisdiction over persons who are committed to the Department of Correctional Services after being found neglected, dependent, delinquent or in need of special supervision in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 43, article 2.

The Board of Parole shall, when requested by the Board of Pardons, advise it concerning applications requesting the exercise of pardon authority and shall make such investigation and collect such records as may bear on such applications.

In the performance of its duties, the Board of Parole, or any member thereof, shall have the power to issue subpoenas, to compel the attendance of witnesses and the production of books, papers, and other documents pertinent to the subject of an inquiry, and to administer oaths and take the testimony of persons under oath. Subpoenas so issued may be served by any sheriff, constable, police officer, parole officer, or peace officer in the same manner as similar process in the district court. Any person who knowingly testifies falsely, submits any false affidavit or deposition, fails to appear when subpoenaed, or fails or refuses to produce such material pursuant to the subpoena shall be subject to the same orders and penalties to which a person before the district court is subject. Any district court of this state, upon application by the board, may compel the attendance of such witnesses, the production of such material, and the giving of testimony before the board by an attachment for contempt or otherwise in the same manner as production of evidence may be compelled before such court. Every person shall attend as a witness when subpoenaed anywhere within the state and shall be entitled to the same fees, if requested, as a witness in the district court and mileage as provided in section 81-1176 for state employees. Fees, mileage, and actual expense, if any, necessarily incurred in securing the attendance of witnesses shall be paid by the board.

Three members of the Board of Parole shall constitute a quorum for the purpose of transacting any official business. The decisions of the Board of Parole shall be by majority vote. The board shall keep a record of its acts and shall notify the Director of Correctional Services of its decisions relating to offenders who are or have been committed.

(1) This section applies to the board whenever it makes a determination of whether to grant or deny parole, sets the conditions of parole, or determines the sanctions for a violation of parole.

(2) The board shall serve as an impartial, neutral, and objective decisionmaker and shall be insulated from undue influences of specific ideological views and positions and from predetermined conceptions of the desired outcomes of proceedings before the board.

(3) If the board collaborates with or receives input from other entities within the criminal justice system, the board shall do so in a manner that respects and reinforces impartiality, neutrality, and objectivity.

(4) The board shall consider all evidence regarding a committed offender in an impartial, neutral, and objective manner.

(5) The board shall not recommend or require that a committed offender complete or participate in any program or treatment not included in the offender's department-approved personalized program plan created under section 83-1,107.

(6) The board shall not make recommendations to the department regarding specific custody levels for committed offenders.

When making decisions regarding parole, the board shall consider information and reports provided by the Reentry Continuity Advisory Board created under section 47-1117.

The Board of Parole shall have the power to direct the Director of Correctional Services to keep records concerning committed offenders which the board deems pertinent to its functions.

A person shall be guilty of a Class IV felony if he or she threatens or attempts to threaten harm to a member or an employee of the Board of Parole with the purpose to influence a decision, an opinion, a recommendation, a vote, or any other exercise of discretion as member or employee of the board or if he or she privately addresses to any member or employee of the board any representation, entreaty, argument, or other communication designed to influence the outcome of any matter which is or may come before the board on the basis of considerations other than those authorized by law.

The provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act shall not apply to the Board of Parole or to the exercise of its functions.

(1) There is hereby created the Division of Parole Supervision within the department. The employees of the division shall consist of the Director of Supervision and Services, the field parole service officers, and all other division staff. The division shall be responsible for the following:

(a) The administration of parole services in the community, including administration of the Community Work Release and Reentry Centers Act;

(b) The maintenance of all records and files associated with the Board of Parole;

(c) The daily supervision and training of staff members of the division, including training regarding evidence-based practices in supervision pursuant to section 83-1,100.02; and

(d) The assessment, evaluation, and supervision of individuals who are subject to parole supervision, including lifetime community supervision pursuant to section 83-174.03.

(2) Parole officers shall be compensated with salaries substantially equal to other state employees who have similar responsibilities, including employees of the Office of Probation Administration. This subsection shall apply only to field parole service officers and support staff and shall not apply to the Director of Supervision and Services or any other management-level position.

(3) This section does not prohibit the division from maintaining daily records and files associated with the Board of Pardons.

(1) For purposes of this section:

(a) Levels of supervision means the determination of the following for each person on parole:

(i) Supervision contact requirements, including the frequency, location, methods, and nature of contact with the parole officer;

(ii) Substance abuse testing requirements and frequency;

(iii) Contact restrictions;

(iv) Curfew restrictions;

(v) Access to available programs and treatment, with priority given to moderate-risk and high-risk parolees; and

(vi) Severity of graduated responses to violations of supervision conditions;

(b) Responsivity factors means characteristics of a parolee that affect the parolee's ability to respond favorably or unfavorably to any treatment goals; and

(c) Risk and needs assessment means an actuarial tool that has been validated in Nebraska to determine the likelihood of the parolee engaging in future criminal behavior.

(2) The Division of Parole Supervision shall establish an evidence-based process that utilizes a risk and needs assessment to measure criminal risk factors, specific individual needs, and responsivity factors.

(3) The risk and needs assessment shall be performed at the commencement of the parole term and every six months thereafter by division staff trained and certified in the use of the risk and needs assessment.

(4) The validity of the risk and needs assessment shall be tested at least every five years.

(5) Based on the results of the risk and needs assessment, the division shall target parolee criminal risk and need factors by focusing sanction, program, and treatment resources on moderate-risk and high-risk parolees.

(6) The division shall provide training to its parole officers on (a) use of a risk and needs assessment, (b) risk-based supervision strategies, (c) relationship skills, (d) cognitive behavioral interventions, (e) community-based resources, (f) criminal risk factors, (g) targeting criminal risk factors to reduce recidivism, (h) proper use of a matrix of administrative sanctions, custodial sanctions, and rewards developed pursuant to section 83-1,119, and (i) addressing responsivity factors. Each parole officer shall complete the training requirements set forth in this subsection within one year after his or her hire date or September 1, 2024, whichever is later.

(7) The division shall provide training for chief parole officers to become trainers so as to ensure long-term and self-sufficient training capacity in the state.

(1) The board, in consultation with the department, shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations to reduce the number of inmates under the custody of the department who serve their entire sentence in a correctional facility and are released without supervision. The rules and regulations shall establish clear guidelines and procedures to ensure that each parolee is subject to a minimum of nine months of supervision and shall place priority on providing supervision lengths that enable meaningful transition periods for all offenders. The rules and regulations shall ensure that each inmate eligible for parole is assessed for risk of reoffending using a validated risk and needs assessment provided by the department and shall incorporate into the release decision an inmate's assessed risk of reoffending, past criminal history, program completion, institutional conduct, and other individual characteristics related to the likelihood of reoffending into parole release decisions.

(2) By February 1 of each year, the board and the department shall submit a report to the Legislature, the Supreme Court, and the Governor that describes the percentage of offenders sentenced to the custody of the department who complete their entire sentence and are released with no supervision. The report shall document characteristics of the individuals released without supervision, including the highest felony class of conviction, offense type of conviction, most recent risk assessment, status of the individualized release or reentry plan, and reasons for the release without supervision. The report also shall provide recommendations from the department and board for changes to policy and practice to meet the goal of achieving a reduction in the number of inmates under the custody of the department who serve their entire sentence in a correctional facility and are released without supervision. The report to the Legislature shall be submitted electronically.

(3) The department, in consultation with the board, shall maintain a list of individuals who are eligible for parole but are expected to complete their entire sentence in the custody of the department and be released with no supervision. This list shall be used to facilitate the placement of committed offenders in community work release and reentry centers under the Community Work Release and Reentry Centers Act.

The Director of Correctional Services shall appoint a Director of Supervision and Services who shall be a person with appropriate experience and training, including, but not limited to, familiarity with the implementation of evidence-based processes for utilizing risk and needs assessments to measure criminal risk factors and specific individual needs.

The Director of Supervision and Services shall:

(1) Supervise and administer the Division of Parole Supervision;

(2) Establish and maintain policies, standards, and procedures for the field parole service and the community supervision of sex offenders pursuant to section 83-174.03;

(3) Divide the state into parole districts and appoint district parole officers and such other employees as may be required to carry out adequate parole supervision of all parolees, prescribe their powers and duties, and obtain division offices for staff in each district as may be necessary;

(4) Cooperate with the Board of Parole, the courts, the Community Corrections Division of the Nebraska Commission on Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice, and all other agencies, public and private, which are concerned with the treatment or welfare of persons on parole;

(5) Provide the Board of Parole and district judges with any record of a parolee which the board or such judges may require;

(6) Make recommendations to the Board of Parole or district judge in cases of violation of the conditions of parole, issue warrants for the arrest of parole violators when so instructed by the board or district judge, notify the Director of Correctional Services of determinations made by the board, and upon instruction of the board, issue certificates of parole and of parole revocation to the facilities and certificates of discharge from parole to parolees;

(7) Organize and conduct training programs for the district parole officers and other employees;

(8) Use the funds provided under section 83-1,107.02 to augment operational or personnel costs associated with the development, implementation, and evaluation of enhanced parole-based programs and purchase services to provide such programs aimed at enhancing adult parolee supervision in the community and treatment needs of parolees. Such enhanced parole-based programs include, but are not limited to, specialized units of supervision, related equipment purchases and training, and programs that address a parolee's vocational, educational, mental health, behavioral, or substance abuse treatment needs, including evidence-based peer and family support programs;

(9) Ensure that any risk or needs assessment instrument utilized by the system be periodically validated;

(10) Report annually to the Governor and electronically to the Clerk of the Legislature beginning January 1, 2015, the number of parole revocations and the number of technical violations of parole;

(11) Take all actions necessary to assist the board in carrying out its duties under section 83-962 during a correctional system overcrowding emergency; and

(12) Exercise all powers and perform all duties necessary and proper in carrying out his or her responsibilities.

The field parole service, consisting of district parole officers working under the direction of the Director of Supervision and Services or district judge, shall be responsible for the investigation, supervision, and assistance of parolees, probationers, or individuals subject to community supervision under section 83-174.03. The field parole service shall be sufficient in size to assure that no district parole officer carries a case load larger than is compatible with adequate parole investigation or supervision.

A parole officer assigned by the Director of Supervision and Services to supervise individuals subject to lifetime community supervision pursuant to section 83-174.03 shall:

(1) Make investigations, prior to an individual subject to community supervision being released from incarceration, in cooperation with institutional caseworkers at prisons, mental health facilities, and county jails, to determine the community supervision conditions necessary to protect the public and make reasonable advance preparation for release into the community;

(2) Assist individuals subject to community supervision to comply with the conditions of supervision and to make a successful adjustment in the community;

(3) Supervise individuals subject to community supervision by keeping informed of their conduct and condition;

(4) Make reports as required by the Director of Supervision and Services to determine the effectiveness of community supervision in protecting the public or the progress of an individual subject to community supervision;

(5) Cooperate with social welfare agencies and treatment providers to ensure that individuals subject to community supervision receive any necessary services or treatment;

(6) Inform the Director of Supervision and Services when, in the opinion of the community supervision officer, an individual is in violation of the conditions of his or her community supervision, and whenever necessary exercise the power of arrest as provided in section 83-1,102;

(7) Conduct periodic reviews of the conditions of community supervision imposed on an individual as required by the Director of Supervision and Services; and

(8) Exercise all powers and perform all duties necessary and proper in carrying out his or her responsibilities.

(1) Prior to the release from incarceration of an individual subject to lifetime community supervision pursuant to section 83-174.03, the Division of Parole Supervision shall:

(a) Notify the individual in writing that he or she is subject to community supervision upon completion of his or her criminal sentence;

(b) Inform the individual subject to community supervision of the process by which conditions of community supervision are determined and his or her right to submit relevant information to the division for consideration when establishing the conditions of supervision;

(c) Determine the individual's risk of recidivism if released into the community, utilizing a validated risk assessment tool;

(d) After considering the information required in subdivision (e) of this subsection, determine the conditions of supervision which will most effectively minimize the risk of the individual committing another sex offense. The conditions shall be the least restrictive conditions available, in terms of the effect on the individual's personal freedom, which minimize the risk of recidivism and are compatible with public safety; and

(e) In determining the conditions of supervision to be imposed, the division shall consider the following:

(i) A report prepared by the institutional caseworkers relating to the individual's personality, social history, and adjustment to authority and including any recommendations which the staff of the facility may make;

(ii) All official reports of the individual's prior criminal record, including reports and records of earlier probation and parole experiences;

(iii) The presentence investigation report;

(iv) The reports of any physical, mental, and psychiatric examinations of the individual;

(v) Any relevant information which may be submitted by the individual, his or her attorney, the victim of the crime, or other persons; and

(vi) Such other relevant information concerning the individual as may be reasonably available.

(2) Upon completion of the risk assessment and the determination of the conditions of community supervision and no later than thirty days prior to the completion of the individual's criminal sentence, the division shall issue a certificate of community supervision to the individual containing the conditions of community supervision he or she will be required to comply with upon the completion of his or her criminal sentence. The Director of Supervision and Services shall include with the certificate written information on how to appeal the determination of the conditions of community supervision.

The Division of Parole Supervision shall review the conditions of community supervision imposed on an individual pursuant to section 83-174.03 on an annual basis and shall provide the individual the opportunity to submit written materials to the division for consideration during such review.

If the division determines, after reviewing the individual's conduct while under supervision and any other relevant facts, that one or more of the conditions of community supervision imposed upon the individual is no longer necessary to reduce the risk of the individual reoffending or is no longer the least restrictive condition compatible with public safety, the division shall revise the conditions of community supervision so that the individual's freedom is not unnecessarily restricted.

(1) Whenever a determination or revision of the conditions of community supervision is made by the Division of Parole Supervision, the individual subject to the conditions shall be entitled to an appeal. The appeal shall be heard by the district court in the county where the individual resides. The individual shall be informed of his or her right to request counsel, and if counsel is requested the court shall determine if the individual is indigent. If the court finds the individual to be indigent, it shall appoint counsel from the public defender's office to represent the individual during the appeal.

(2) In an appeal contesting the determination or revision of the conditions of community supervision, the burden of proof shall be on the individual subject to community supervision to show by clear and convincing evidence (a) that the conditions in question will not reduce the risk of the individual reoffending or otherwise protect the public or (b) that the condition is overly restrictive of the individual's freedom and a less restrictive condition is available which is equally or more effective in reducing the risk of the individual reoffending.

A district parole officer shall:

(1) Make investigations, prior to a committed offender's release on parole, in cooperation with institutional caseworkers and the Board of Parole to determine the adequacy of parole plans and make reasonable advance preparation for release on parole;

(2) Assist a committed offender who requests assistance prior to release or a parolee to comply with the conditions of parole and to make a successful adjustment in the community, including facilitating the transitional needs of housing and employment, access to and participation in job training services in the community, access to mental health services, assisting with applications for health care coverage or ensuring that the committed offender or parolee knows how to apply for and obtain health care coverage, and assisting with enrollment in the medical assistance program established pursuant to the Medical Assistance Act, if eligible, to ensure that the committed offender or parolee has access to such program close to the time of release or soon thereafter;

(3) Supervise parolees by keeping informed of their conduct and condition, utilizing global positioning systems and other monitoring technology as needed during the period of supervision;

(4) Make such reports as required by the Director of Supervision and Services or district judge to determine the effectiveness of the parole system or the progress of an individual parolee;

(5) Cooperate with social welfare agencies;

(6) Observe the work of any parole officer under his or her supervision from time to time;

(7) Inform the Director of Supervision and Services when, in his or her opinion, any eligible parolee's conduct and attitude warrant his or her discharge from active supervision, or when any parolee's violation of the conditions of parole is of sufficient seriousness to require action by the Board of Parole or district judge and whenever necessary exercise the power of arrest as provided in section 83-1,119;

(8) Delegate in his or her discretion any of the above responsibilities to a parole officer under his or her supervision; and

(9) Exercise all powers and perform all duties necessary and proper in carrying out his or her responsibilities.

(1) Credit against the maximum term and any minimum term shall be given to an offender for time spent in custody as a result of the criminal charge for which a prison sentence is imposed or as a result of the conduct on which such a charge is based. This shall specifically include, but shall not be limited to, time spent in custody prior to trial, during trial, pending sentence, pending the resolution of an appeal, and prior to delivery of the offender to the custody of the Department of Correctional Services, the county board of corrections, or, in counties which do not have a county board of corrections, the county sheriff.

(2) Credit against the maximum term and any minimum term shall be given to an offender for time spent in custody under a prior sentence if he or she is later reprosecuted and resentenced for the same offense or for another offense based on the same conduct. In the case of such a reprosecution, this shall include credit in accordance with subsection (1) of this section for time spent in custody as a result of both the original charge and any subsequent charge for the same offense or for another offense based on the same conduct.

(3) If an offender is serving consecutive or concurrent sentences, or both, and if one of the sentences is set aside as the result of a direct or collateral proceeding, credit against the maximum term and any minimum term of the remaining sentences shall be given for all time served since the commission of the offenses on which the sentences set aside were based.

(4) If the offender is arrested on one charge and prosecuted on another charge growing out of conduct which occurred prior to his or her arrest, credit against the maximum term and any minimum term of any sentence resulting from such prosecution shall be given for all time spent in custody under the former charge which has not been credited against another sentence.

(5) Credit for time served shall only be given in accordance with the procedure specified in this subsection:

(a) Credit to an offender who is eligible therefor under subsections (1), (2), and (4) of this section shall be set forth as a part of the sentence; or

(b) Credit to an offender who is eligible therefor under subsection (3) of this section shall only be given by the court in which such sentence was set aside by entering such credit in the final order setting aside such sentence.

(1)(a) Within sixty days after initial classification and assignment of any offender committed to the department, all available information regarding such committed offender shall be reviewed and a committed offender department-approved personalized program plan document shall be drawn up. The document shall specifically describe the department-approved personalized program plan and the specific goals the department expects the committed offender to achieve. The document shall also contain a realistic schedule for completion of the department-approved personalized program plan. The department-approved personalized program plan shall be developed with the active participation of the committed offender. The department shall provide programs to allow compliance by the committed offender with the department-approved personalized program plan.

Programming may include, but is not limited to:

(i) Academic and vocational education, including teaching such classes by qualified offenders;

(ii) Substance abuse treatment;

(iii) Mental health and psychiatric treatment, including criminal personality programming;

(iv) Constructive, meaningful work programs; and

(v) Any other program deemed necessary and appropriate by the department.

(b) A modification in the department-approved personalized program plan may be made to account for the increased or decreased abilities of the committed offender or the availability of any program. Any modification shall be made only after notice is given to the committed offender. The department may not impose disciplinary action upon any committed offender solely because of the committed offender's failure to comply with the department-approved personalized program plan, but such failure may be considered by the board in its deliberations on whether or not to grant parole to a committed offender.

(2)(a) The department shall reduce the term of a committed offender by six months for each year of the offender's term and pro rata for any part thereof which is less than a year.

(b) In addition to reductions granted in subdivision (2)(a) of this section, the department shall reduce the term of a committed offender by three days on the first day of each month following a twelve-month period of incarceration within the department during which the offender has not been found guilty of (i) a Class I or Class II offense or (ii) more than three Class III offenses under the department's disciplinary code. Reductions earned under this subdivision shall not be subject to forfeit or withholding by the department.

(c) The total reductions under this subsection shall be credited from the date of sentence, which shall include any term of confinement prior to sentence and commitment as provided pursuant to section 83-1,106, and shall be deducted from the maximum term, to determine the date when discharge from the custody of the state becomes mandatory.

(3) While the offender is in the custody of the department, reductions of terms granted pursuant to subdivision (2)(a) of this section may be forfeited, withheld, and restored by the chief executive officer of the facility with the approval of the director after the offender has been notified regarding the charges of misconduct.

(4) The department, in consultation with the board, shall ensure that a release or reentry plan is complete or near completion when the offender has served at least eighty percent of his or her sentence. For purposes of this subsection, release or reentry plan means a comprehensive and individualized strategic plan to ensure an individual's safe and effective transition or reentry into the community to which he or she resides with the primary goal of reducing recidivism. At a minimum, the release or reentry plan shall include, but not be limited to, consideration of the individual's housing needs, medical or mental health care needs, and transportation and job needs and shall address an individual's barriers to successful release or reentry in order to prevent recidivism. The release or reentry plan does not include an individual's programming needs included in the individual's personalized program plan for use inside the prison. However, the department shall include in the release or reentry plan information regarding the individual's progress on the individual's personalized program plan for use inside the prison.

(5)(a) The department shall make treatment programming available to committed offenders as provided in section 83-1,110.01 and shall include continuing participation in such programming as part of each offender's department-approved personalized program plan developed under subsection (1) of this section.

(b) Any committed offender with a mental illness shall be provided with the community standard of mental health care. The mental health care shall utilize evidence-based therapy models that include an evaluation component to track the effectiveness of interventions.

(c) Any committed offender with a mental illness shall be evaluated before release to ensure that adequate monitoring and treatment of the committed offender will take place or, if appropriate, that a commitment proceeding under the Nebraska Mental Health Commitment Act or the Sex Offender Commitment Act will take place.

(6)(a) Within thirty days after any committed offender has been paroled, all available information regarding such parolee shall be reviewed and a case plan document shall be drawn up and approved by the Division of Parole Supervision. The document shall specifically describe the approved case plan and the specific goals the division expects the parolee to achieve. The document shall also contain a realistic schedule for completion of the approved case plan. The approved case plan shall be developed with the active participation of the parolee. During the term of parole, the parolee shall comply with the approved case plan and the division shall provide programs to allow compliance by the parolee with the approved case plan.

Programming may include, but is not limited to:

(i) Academic and vocational education;

(ii) Substance abuse treatment;

(iii) Mental health and psychiatric treatment, including criminal personality programming;

(iv) Constructive, meaningful work programs;

(v) Community service programs; and

(vi) Any other program deemed necessary and appropriate by the division.

(b) A modification in the approved case plan may be made to account for the increased or decreased abilities of the parolee or the availability of any program. Any modification shall be made only after notice is given to the parolee. Intentional failure to comply with the approved case plan by any parolee as scheduled for any year, or pro rata part thereof, shall cause disciplinary action to be taken by the division resulting in the forfeiture of up to a maximum of three months' good time for the scheduled year.

(7) While the offender is in the custody of the board, reductions of terms granted pursuant to subdivision (2)(a) of this section may be forfeited, withheld, and restored by the director upon the recommendation of the board after the offender has been notified regarding the charges of misconduct or breach of the conditions of parole.

(8) Good time or other reductions of sentence granted under the provisions of any law prior to July 1, 1996, may be forfeited, withheld, or restored in accordance with the terms of the Nebraska Treatment and Corrections Act.

(9) Pursuant to rules and regulations adopted by the probation administrator and the director, an individualized post-release supervision plan shall be collaboratively prepared by the Office of Probation Administration and the department and provided to the court to prepare individuals under custody of the department for post-release supervision. All records created during the period of incarceration shall be shared with the Office of Probation Administration and considered in preparation of the post-release supervision plan.

(1) Unless otherwise provided by this section, whenever an adult offender is paroled, the board shall require a parolee to pay a monthly parole programming fee.

(2) Parolees under the supervision of the Division of Parole Supervision shall pay a monthly parole programming fee of twenty-five dollars, not later than the tenth day of each month, beginning the second month of parole supervision and continuing for the duration of the parole.

(3) The board shall waive payment of the monthly parole programming fee in whole or in part if after a hearing a determination is made that such payment would constitute an undue hardship on the parolee due to limited income, employment or school status, or physical or mental handicap. Such waiver shall be in effect only during the period of time that the parolee is unable to pay his or her monthly parole programming fee.

(4) When monthly parole programming fees are waived, in whole or in part, the parole officer, pursuant to rules and regulations adopted by the board, may contract with the parolee to perform approved community service at the rate of five dollars per hour in lieu of payment of monthly parole programming fees. A parolee may be required to pay a participation fee in order to take advantage of community service programs. A parolee may not accumulate more than three months' advance credit for community service. The use of community service alternatives does not preclude the imposition of other intermediate measures.

(5) The division with the approval of the Board of Parole shall implement sanctions if a parolee defaults in the payment of monthly parole programming fees or any installment thereof as established by subsection (2) of this section, except that parole shall not be revoked nor shall the parolee be imprisoned for such nonpayment if the parolee is financially unable to make the payment.

(6) If the board determines that the default in payment described in subsection (5) of this section was not attributable to a deliberate refusal to obey the order of the board or to failure on the parolee's part to make a good faith effort to obtain the funds required for payment, the board may allow the parolee additional time for payment, reduce the amount of each installment, or revoke the fees or the unpaid portion in whole or in part.

(7) No parolee shall be required to pay more than one monthly parole programming fee per month.

(8) The imposition of monthly parole programming fees in this section shall be considered separate and apart from specific service delivery fees.

(9) Any adult offender received for supervision pursuant to section 29-2637 or the Interstate Compact for Adult Offender Supervision shall be assessed a monthly parole programming fee during the period of time the offender is actively supervised by Nebraska parole authorities.

(10) A parolee shall pay the fees described in this section to the division. The division shall remit all fees to the State Treasurer for credit to the Parole Program Cash Fund.

(11) The board and the division shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations to carry out this section.

The Parole Program Cash Fund is created. All funds collected pursuant to section 83-1,107.01 shall be remitted to the State Treasurer for credit to the fund. The fund shall be utilized by the Division of Parole Supervision for the purposes stated in subdivision (8) of section 83-1,102. Any money in the fund available for investment shall be invested by the state investment officer pursuant to the Nebraska Capital Expansion Act and the Nebraska State Funds Investment Act.

(1) The board shall conduct Parole School sessions in each facility on a regular and recurring basis to equip committed offenders with the knowledge, skills, and confidence needed to navigate the parole process successfully.

(2) Parole School curriculum shall include, but need not be limited to, the following areas:

(a) Understanding parole guidelines, including:

(i) Comprehensive instruction on the legal framework and regulations governing parole;

(ii) Explanation of eligibility criteria and conditions for parole release; and

(iii) Clarification on the role of the board in its decisionmaking process;

(b) Preparing for parole board hearings, including:

(i) Guidance on compiling a thorough parole packet, including personal statements, character references, and evidence of rehabilitation efforts;

(ii) Workshops on effective communication and presentation skills for the parole board hearing; and

(iii) Mock parole board hearings to simulate real-life scenarios and receive constructive feedback;

(c) Factors considered by the board, including:

(i) Factors considered under section 83-1,114;

(ii) Insight into the importance of demonstrating remorse, accountability, and rehabilitation efforts; and

(iii) Strategies for addressing past mistakes and highlighting personal growth and positive change; and

(d) Interacting with parole board and parole officers, including:

(i) Training on respectful and professional communication with board members and parole officers;

(ii) Role-playing exercises to practice answering difficult questions and addressing concerns raised by the board; and

(iii) Guidance on complying with parole conditions and navigating the reintegration process post-release.

(1) The board shall reduce, for good conduct in conformity with the conditions of parole, a parolee's parole term by ten days for each month of such term. The total of such reductions shall be deducted from the maximum term, less good time granted pursuant to section 83-1,107, to determine the date when discharge from parole becomes mandatory.

(2) Reductions of the parole terms may be forfeited, withheld, and restored by the board after the parolee has been consulted regarding any charge of misconduct or breach of the conditions of parole.

The chief executive officer of a facility shall regularly report all good time and all forfeitures, withholdings, and restorations of good time to the director. On the basis of such report, the director shall inform the board and the Director of Supervision and Services of all committed offenders who are expected to become eligible for release on parole within the next three months.

(1) Every committed offender shall be eligible for parole upon the earliest of the following:

(a) When the offender has served one-half the minimum term of his or her sentence as provided in sections 83-1,107 and 83-1,108;

(b) For a committed offender serving a maximum term of twenty years or less, two years prior to the offender's mandatory discharge date; or

(c) For a committed offender serving a maximum term of more than twenty years, when the offender has served eighty percent of the time until the offender's mandatory discharge date.

(2) The board shall conduct a parole review not later than sixty days prior to the date a committed offender becomes eligible for parole as provided in this subsection, except that if a committed offender is eligible for parole upon his or her commitment to the department, a parole review shall occur as early as is practical. No such reduction of sentence shall be applied to any sentence imposing a mandatory minimum term.

(3)(a) This subsection applies to any committed offender sentenced to consecutive terms, whether received at the same time or at any time during the original sentence.

(b) The maximum terms shall be added to compute the new maximum term which, less good time, shall determine the date when discharge from the custody of the state becomes mandatory.

(c) The committed offender shall be eligible for release on parole upon the earliest of the following:

(i) When the offender has served the total of one-half the minimum term as provided in sections 83-1,107 and 83-1,108;

(ii) For a committed offender serving a maximum term of twenty years or less, two years prior to the offender's mandatory discharge date; or

(iii) For a committed offender serving a maximum term of more than twenty years, when the offender has served eighty percent of the time until the offender's mandatory discharge date.

The department shall provide substance abuse therapy required by section 28-416 prior to the first parole eligibility date of the committed person. Based on the recommendations, if any, regarding psychological treatment of the committed person pursuant to section 83-179, the department shall provide the person with adequate access or availability to mental health therapy prior to the first parole eligibility date of the committed person. If the board finds that the department did not provide adequate access or availability to the committed person prior to the first parole eligibility date, the board may waive the requirement of section 28-416 only if, as a condition of parole, the committed person agrees to attend and complete therapy which is recommended by the board.

(1) A committed offender who is not under sentence of death or of life imprisonment and who because of an existing medical or physical condition is determined by the department to be terminally ill or permanently incapacitated may be considered for medical parole by the board. A committed offender may be eligible for medical parole in addition to any other parole. The department shall identify committed offenders who may be eligible for medical parole based upon their medical records.

(2) The board shall decide to grant medical parole only after a review of the medical, institutional, and criminal records of the committed offender and such additional medical evidence from board-ordered examinations or investigations as the board in its discretion determines to be necessary. The decision to grant medical parole and to establish conditions of release on medical parole in addition to the conditions stated in subsection (3) of this section is within the sole discretion of the board.

(3) As conditions of release on medical parole, the board shall require that the committed offender agree to placement for medical treatment and that he or she be placed for a definite or indefinite period of time in a hospital, a hospice, or another housing accommodation suitable to his or her medical condition, including, but not limited to, his or her family's home, as specified by the board.

(4) The parole term of a medical parolee shall be for the remainder of his or her sentence as reduced by any adjustment for good conduct pursuant to the Nebraska Treatment and Corrections Act.

(1) If during the term of medical parole the medical condition of a medical parolee improves to the extent that he or she is no longer eligible for medical parole, the board may order that he or she be returned to the custody of the department to await a hearing to determine whether the medical parole should be revoked.

(2) If medical parole is revoked due to improvement in the medical condition of the parolee, he or she shall serve the balance of his or her sentence with credit for time served on medical parole and without forfeiture of any credits accrued for good conduct pursuant to the Nebraska Treatment and Corrections Act prior to medical parole.

(3) If a medical parolee whose medical parole is revoked due to improvement in his or her medical condition would otherwise be eligible for parole or any other release program, he or she may be considered for such release program.

(4) In addition to revocation of medical parole pursuant to subsection (1) of this section, medical parole may also be revoked for violation of any condition of the medical parole established by the board.

(1) Any offender who was under the age of eighteen years when he or she committed the offense for which he or she was convicted and incarcerated shall, if the offender is denied parole, be considered for release on parole by the Board of Parole every year after the denial.

(2) During each hearing before the Board of Parole for the offender, the board shall consider and review, at a minimum:

(a) The offender's educational and court documents;

(b) The offender's participation in available rehabilitative and educational programs while incarcerated;

(c) The offender's age at the time of the offense;

(d) The offender's level of maturity;

(e) The offender's ability to appreciate the risks and consequences of his or her conduct;

(f) The offender's intellectual capacity;

(g) The offender's level of participation in the offense;

(h) The offender's efforts toward rehabilitation; and

(i) Any other mitigating factor or circumstance submitted by the offender.

(1) A committed offender may be eligible for geriatric parole if the committed offender:

(a) Is not serving a sentence for a Class I, IA, or IB felony; is not serving a sentence for an offense that includes as an element sexual contact or sexual penetration; and is not otherwise serving a sentence of life imprisonment;

(b) Is seventy-five years of age or older; and

(c) Has served at least fifteen years of the sentence for which currently incarcerated.

(2) A committed offender may be eligible for geriatric parole in addition to any other parole. The department shall identify committed offenders who may be eligible for geriatric parole.

(3) The board shall decide to grant geriatric parole only after a review of the decision guidelines as set forth in the board's rules and regulations and the factors set forth in section 83-1,114.

(4) The parole term of a geriatric parolee shall be for the remainder of the parolee's sentence as reduced by any adjustment for good conduct pursuant to the Nebraska Treatment and Corrections Act.

(5) The board shall require as a condition of geriatric parole that the parolee wear or use an electronic monitoring device for a period of at least eighteen months. For purposes of this subsection, electronic monitoring device means a device worn by or affixed to a person which is used to track the physical location of such person.

(1)(a) A committed offender serving an indeterminate sentence under which he or she may become eligible for parole shall be interviewed and have his or her record reviewed by two or more members of the board or a person designated by the board within sixty days before the expiration of his or her minimum term less any reductions as provided in section 83-1,110.

(b) If the committed offender is a qualified offender as defined in section 83-1,111.01, the committed offender shall enter into a streamlined parole contract as provided in such section.

(2) If the committed offender is a qualified offender, the review shall be limited to verifying that the committed offender is a qualified offender and whether the committed offender has already fulfilled the streamlined parole contract. If the committed offender has not yet fulfilled the streamlined parole contract, a subsequent review shall be set for the date the committed offender will fulfill the streamlined parole contract, assuming the committed offender will meet the requirements of subsection (3) of section 83-1,111.01.

(3)(a) This subsection applies if the committed offender is not a qualified offender or has been found at a review under subsection (2) of this section to have not fulfilled the terms of the streamlined parole contract. If, in the opinion of the reviewers, the review indicates the offender is reasonably likely to be granted parole and has a potential parole term of no less than one month, the board shall schedule a public hearing before a majority of its members. At such hearing the offender may present evidence, call witnesses, and be represented by counsel. If, in the opinion of the reviewers, the review indicates the offender should be denied parole, the offender may request an additional review by a majority of the members of the board. A review by the majority of the members of the board may be conducted not more than once annually. Any hearing and review shall be conducted in an informal manner, but a complete record of the proceedings shall be made and preserved.

(b) The board shall render its decision regarding the committed offender's release on parole within a reasonable time after the hearing or review. The decision shall be by majority vote of the board. The decision shall be based on the entire record before the board which shall include the opinion of the person who conducted the review. If the board denies parole, written notification listing the reasons for such denial and the recommendations for correcting deficiencies which cause the denial shall be given to the committed offender within thirty days following the hearing.

(c) If the board fixes the release date, such date shall be not more than six months from the date of the committed offender's parole hearing or from the date of last reconsideration of his or her case, unless there are special reasons for fixing a later release date.

(d) If the board defers the case for later reconsideration, the committed offender shall be afforded a parole review at least once a year until a release date is fixed. The board may order a reconsideration or a rehearing of the case at any time.

(4) The release of a committed offender on parole shall not be upon the application of the offender but by the initiative of the board. No application for release on parole made by a committed offender or on his or her behalf shall be entertained by the board. This subsection does not prohibit the Director of Correctional Services from recommending to the board that it consider an individual offender for release on parole.

(1) A qualified offender serving a sentence imposed prior to September 2, 2023, who has not yet received a review from the board shall, at the review, enter into a streamlined parole contract under this section.

(2) A qualified offender serving a sentence imposed on or after September 2, 2023, shall, at the qualified offender's first review from the board, enter into a streamlined parole contract under this section.

(3) Under a streamlined parole contract, a qualified offender shall be released on parole on the qualified offender's parole eligibility date, without a hearing before the board, if:

(a) In the twenty-four-month period prior to the eligibility date, the qualified offender has not committed a Class I offense under the department's disciplinary code; and

(b) The qualified offender has completed all diagnostic evaluations provided by the department and any programming or treatment required by the department for substance abuse, sex offenses, and violence reduction.

(4) If a qualified offender does not meet the requirements of subsection (3) of this section, the board shall consider the offender's parole eligibility as provided for nonqualified offenders under section 83-1,111.

(5) For purposes of this section:

(a) Qualified offender means a committed offender who is serving an indeterminate sentence under which the committed offender may become eligible for parole and who is not serving a sentence for a violent felony;

(b) Serious bodily injury has the same meaning as in section 28-109;

(c) Sexual contact and sexual penetration have the same meanings as in section 28-318; and

(d) Violent felony means an offense which is a Class IIIA felony or higher which:

(i) Includes, as an element of the offense:

(A) Sexual contact or sexual penetration;

(B) The threat to inflict serious bodily injury or death on another person, the infliction of serious bodily injury on another person, or causing the death of another person; or

(C) The use of physical force against another person; or

(ii) Consists of attempt, conspiracy, being an accessory to, or aiding and abetting a felony with any of the offenses described in subdivision (5)(d)(i) of this section as the underlying offense.

(1) Each committed offender eligible for parole shall, in advance of his or her parole hearing, have a parole plan in accordance with the rules of the Board of Parole. Whenever the board determines that it will facilitate the parole hearing, it may furnish the offender with any information and records to be considered by it at the hearing.

(2) An offender shall be permitted to advise with any person whose assistance he or she desires, including his or her own legal counsel, in preparing for a hearing before the Board of Parole.

The board shall require any person who is incarcerated pursuant to subdivision (9) or (10) of section 60-6,197.03 to complete all diagnostic evaluations provided by the department and all programming required by the department prior to being considered eligible for parole. If the programming required by the department cannot be completed during the person’s period of incarceration but can be provided in the community, and the board in its discretion believes the incarcerated person will participate in programming available in the community, the board may waive the programming requirement of this section and, as a condition of parole, require that such programming be completed by the person during his or her parole term.

The Board of Parole and its employees shall have access at all reasonable times to any committed offender over whom the board may have jurisdiction and shall have means provided for communication with and observing the committed offender. The board shall be furnished such reports as it may require concerning the conduct and character of any committed offender and any other information deemed pertinent by the board in determining whether a committed offender should be paroled.

(1) Whenever the board considers the release of a committed offender who is eligible for release on parole, it shall order his or her release unless it is of the opinion that his or her release should be deferred because:

(a) There is a substantial risk that he or she will not conform to the conditions of parole; or

(b) Subject to subsection (3) of this section, his or her continued correctional treatment, medical care, or vocational or other training in the facility will substantially enhance his or her capacity to lead a law-abiding life when released at a later date.

(2) In making its determination regarding a committed offender's release on parole, the board shall give consideration to the decision guidelines as set forth in its rules and regulations and shall take into account each of the following factors:

(a) The adequacy of the offender's parole plan, including sufficiency of residence, employment history, and employability;

(b) The offender's institutional behavior;

(c) The offender's previous experience on parole and how recent such experience is;

(d) Whether the offender has completed a risk and needs assessment completed pursuant to section 83-192; and

(e) Any testimony or written statement by a victim as provided in section 81-1848.

(3) Parole shall not be denied for a committed offender solely because the department did not offer or delayed programming due to operational issues, including staffing shortages, maintenance issues, or lack of funding.

(4) If the board denies or defers parole, the board shall select a single primary reason for such denial or deferral.

Before making a determination regarding a committed offender's release on parole, the Board of Parole shall consider the following:

(1) A report prepared by the institutional caseworkers relating to his or her personality, social history, and adjustment to authority, and including any recommendations which the staff of the facility may make;

(2) All official reports of his or her prior criminal record, including reports and records of earlier probation and parole experiences;

(3) The presentence investigation report;

(4) Recommendations regarding his or her parole made at the time of sentencing by the sentencing judge;

(5) The reports of any physical, mental, and psychiatric examinations of the offender;

(6) Any relevant information which may be submitted by the offender, his or her attorney, the victim of his or her crime, or other persons;

(7) The risk and needs assessment completed pursuant to section 83-192; and

(8) Such other relevant information concerning the offender as may be reasonably available.

(1) When a committed offender is released on parole, the board shall require as a condition of parole that the offender refrain from engaging in criminal conduct and may require the offender to submit to periodic testing for drug and alcohol use. The board may also require, either at the time of the offender's release on parole or at any time while the offender remains on parole, that the offender conform to any of the following conditions of parole:

(a) Meet specified family responsibilities;

(b) Devote himself or herself to an approved employment;

(c) Remain in the geographic limits fixed in the certificate of parole unless granted written permission to leave such limits;

(d) Report, as directed, to his or her district parole officer;

(e) Reside at the place fixed in the certificate of parole and notify his or her district parole officer of any change in address or employment;

(f) Submit himself or herself to available medical, psychological, psychiatric, or other treatment;

(g) Refrain from associating with persons known to him or her to be engaged in criminal activities or, without permission of his or her district parole officer, with persons known to him or her to have been convicted of a crime; and

(h) Satisfy any other conditions specially related to the cause of his or her offense and not unduly restrictive of his or her liberty or conscience.

(2) Before release on parole, a parolee shall be provided with a certificate of parole setting forth the conditions of the parole.

The Board of Parole may in appropriate cases require a parolee, as a condition of his parole, either at the time of his release on parole or at any time while he remains under parole supervision, to reside in a community guidance center, boarding facility, halfway house, hospital, or other special residence facility, for such period and under such supervision or treatment as the board may deem appropriate.

(1) If, in the opinion of the board, upon receipt of information from the Director of Supervision and Services, a parolee has shown suitable compliance with his or her parole programming plan, the board may reduce the level of supervision for a parolee that is commensurate with the best interests of the parolee and is compatible with the protection of the public.

(2) The board shall discharge a parolee from parole when the time served in the custody of the department and the time served on parole equal the maximum term less good time.

(3) The department shall discharge a committed offender from the custody of the department when the time served in the facility equals the maximum term less good time.

(4) Upon completion of the lawful requirements of the sentence, the department shall provide the parolee or committed offender with a written notice regarding his or her civil rights. The notice shall inform the parolee or committed offender that voting rights are restored upon completion of the sentence. The notice shall also include information on restoring other civil rights through the pardon process, including application to and hearing by the Board of Pardons.

(5) The Board of Parole may discharge a parolee from parole when such parolee is under the supervision of another state's correctional institution and such offender has reached the expiration date of his or her Nebraska parole term.

(1) For purposes of this section:

(a) Absconding parole supervision means a parolee has purposely avoided supervision for a period of at least two weeks and reasonable efforts by a parole officer and staff to locate the parolee in person have proven unsuccessful;

(b) Administrative sanction means additional parole requirements imposed upon a parolee by his or her parole officer, with the full knowledge and consent of the parolee, designed to hold the parolee accountable for substance abuse or technical violations of conditions of parole, including, but not limited to:

(i) Counseling or reprimand by the Division of Parole Supervision;

(ii) Increased supervision contact requirements;

(iii) Increased substance abuse testing;

(iv) Referral for substance abuse or mental health evaluation or other specialized assessment, counseling, or treatment;

(v) Imposition of a designated curfew for a period to be determined by the division; and

(vi) Travel restrictions to stay within his or her county of residence or employment unless otherwise permitted by the division;

(c) Contract facility means a county jail that contracts with the department to house parolees or other offenders under the jurisdiction of the department;

(d) Substance abuse violation means a parolee's activities or behaviors associated with the use of chemical substances or related treatment services resulting in a violation of an original condition of parole, including:

(i) Positive breath test for the consumption of alcohol if the parolee is required to refrain from alcohol consumption;

(ii) Positive urinalysis for the illegal use of drugs;

(iii) Failure to report for alcohol testing or drug testing; and

(iv) Failure to appear for or complete substance abuse or mental health treatment evaluations or inpatient or outpatient treatment; and

(e) Technical violation means a parolee's activities or behaviors which create the opportunity for re-offending or diminish the effectiveness of parole supervision resulting in a violation of an original condition of parole and includes:

(i) Moving traffic violations;

(ii) Failure to report to his or her parole officer;

(iii) Leaving the state without the permission of the Board of Parole;

(iv) Failure to work regularly or attend training or school;

(v) Failure to notify his or her parole officer of change of address or employment;

(vi) Frequenting places where controlled substances are illegally sold, used, distributed, or administered; and

(vii) Failure to pay fines, court costs, restitution, or any fees imposed pursuant to section 83-1,107.01 as directed.

Technical violation does not include absconding parole supervision.

(2) The division shall develop a matrix of rewards for compliance and positive behaviors and graduated administrative sanctions and custodial sanctions for use in responding to and deterring substance abuse violations and technical violations. A custodial sanction of thirty days in a correctional facility or a contract facility shall be designated as the most severe response to a violation in lieu of revocation.

(3) Whenever a parole officer has reasonable cause to believe that a parolee has committed or is about to commit a substance abuse violation or technical violation while on parole, but that the parolee will not attempt to leave the jurisdiction and will not place lives or property in danger, the parole officer shall either:

(a) Impose one or more administrative sanctions based upon the parolee's risk level, the severity of the violation, and the parolee's response to the violation. If administrative sanctions are to be imposed, the parolee shall acknowledge in writing the nature of the violation and agree upon the administrative sanction. The parolee has the right to decline to acknowledge the violation. If he or she declines to acknowledge the violation, the parole officer shall take action pursuant to subdivision (3)(b) of this section. A copy of the report shall be submitted to the Board of Parole; or

(b) Submit a written report to the Board of Parole, outlining the nature of the parole violation, and request the imposition of a custodial sanction of up to thirty days in a correctional facility or a contract facility. On the basis of the report and such further investigation as the board may deem appropriate, the board shall determine whether and how the parolee violated the conditions of parole and may:

(i) Dismiss the charge of violation; or

(ii) If the board finds a violation justifying a custodial sanction, issue a warrant if necessary and impose a custodial sanction of up to thirty days in a correctional facility or a contract facility.

(4) Whenever a parole officer has reasonable cause to believe that a parolee has violated or is about to violate a condition of parole by a violation other than a substance abuse violation or a technical violation and the parole officer has reasonable cause to believe that the parolee will not attempt to leave the jurisdiction and will not place lives or property in danger, the parole officer shall submit a written report to the Board of Parole which may, on the basis of such report and such further investigation as it may deem appropriate:

(a) Dismiss the charge of violation;

(b) Determine whether the parolee violated the conditions of his or her parole;

(c) Impose a custodial sanction of up to thirty days in a correctional facility or a contract facility;

(d) Revoke his or her parole in accordance with the Nebraska Treatment and Corrections Act; or

(e) Issue a warrant for the arrest of the parolee.

(5) Whenever a parole officer has reasonable cause to believe that a parolee has violated or is about to violate a condition of parole and that the parolee will attempt to leave the jurisdiction or will place lives or property in danger, the parole officer shall arrest the parolee without a warrant and call on any peace officer to assist him or her in doing so.

(6) Whenever a parolee is arrested with or without a warrant, he or she shall be detained in a local jail or other detention facility operated by the Department of Correctional Services pending completion of review of parole proceedings by the Board of Parole. Immediately after such arrest and detention, the parole officer shall notify the Board of Parole and submit a written report of the reason for such arrest. A complete investigation shall be made by the Division of Parole Supervision and submitted to the board. After prompt consideration of such written report, the board shall order the parolee's release from detention or continued confinement to await a final decision on imposition of a custodial sanction or the revocation of parole.

(7) The Board of Parole shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations necessary to carry out this section.

Whenever a parolee is charged with a violation of parole, he or she shall be entitled to a prompt hearing on such charge by the Board of Parole, which hearing in no event shall occur more than thirty days after receipt of the parole officer's written report. At such hearing, the parolee shall be permitted to be present, to testify, to produce witnesses, to cross-examine adverse witnesses, and to introduce such other evidence as may be pertinent. The parolee shall be informed of his or her right to request counsel at such hearing, and if the parolee thereafter makes such request, based on a timely and colorable claim (1) that he or she has not committed the alleged violation of the conditions upon which he or she is at liberty, or (2) that, even if the violation is a matter of public record or is uncontested, there are substantial reasons which justified or mitigated the violation and make revocation inappropriate and that the reasons are complex or otherwise difficult to develop or present, and upon consideration of whether or not the parolee appears to be capable of speaking effectively for himself or herself, the board in the exercise of sound discretion may provide counsel unless retained counsel is available to the parolee. In every case in which a request for counsel is refused, the grounds for refusal shall be stated in the record.

A committed offender while on parole shall remain in the legal custody and control of the Board of Parole. The board may at any time revoke the parole of an offender or recommit him or her to the custody of the Department of Correctional Services, with or without cause.

(1) If the board finds that the parolee has engaged in criminal conduct, the board may order revocation of the parolee's parole.

(2) If the board finds that the parolee did violate a condition of parole but is of the opinion that revocation of parole is not appropriate, the board may order that:

(a) The parolee receive a reprimand and warning;

(b) Parole supervision and reporting be intensified;

(c) Good time granted pursuant to section 83-1,108 be forfeited or withheld;

(d) The parolee serve a custodial sanction of up to thirty days in a correctional facility or a contract facility as defined in section 83-1,119; or

(e) The parolee be required to conform to one or more additional conditions of parole which may be imposed in accordance with the Nebraska Treatment and Corrections Act.

(3) Cumulative custodial sanctions in a correctional facility or a contract facility under this section and section 83-1,119 shall not exceed sixty days. If a parolee has previously received sixty days of cumulative custodial sanctions before the current violation, the board shall either order revocation of the parolee's parole or one or more of the other sanctions described in subsection (2) of this section.

(4) Time spent in custodial sanctions under this section and section 83-1,119 shall be credited to the parolee's sentence.

(1) Except as provided in subsection (3) of this section, the board does not have jurisdiction over a person who is committed to the department in accordance with section 29-2204.02 for a Class III, IIIA, or IV felony committed on or after August 30, 2015, unless the person is also committed to the department in accordance with section 29-2204 for (a) a sentence of imprisonment for a Class III, IIIA, or IV felony committed prior to August 30, 2015, or (b) a sentence of imprisonment for a Class I, IA, IB, IC, ID, II, or IIA felony.

(2) Except as provided in subsection (3) of this section, the board does not have jurisdiction over a person committed to the department for a misdemeanor sentence imposed consecutively or concurrently with a Class III, IIIA, or IV felony sentence for an offense committed on or after August 30, 2015, unless the person is also committed to the department in accordance with section 29-2204 for (a) a sentence of imprisonment for a Class III, IIIA, or IV felony committed prior to August 30, 2015, or (b) a sentence of imprisonment for a Class I, IA, IB, IC, ID, II, or IIA felony.

(3) This section does not apply to medical parole under section 83-1,110.02 or geriatric parole under section 83-1,110.05.

(1) The Division of Parole Supervision shall create a pilot program to establish a technical parole violation residential housing program. The purpose of the program is to provide accountability and intensive support for individuals on parole who commit technical violations, without revoking them fully back to prison.

(2) The program shall provide a structured environment for selected individuals on parole who have committed technical violations. The program shall be based upon a therapeutic community model. Participants in the program shall, at a minimum, be required to take part in counseling, educational, and other programs as the Division of Parole Supervision deems appropriate, to provide community service, and to submit to drug and alcohol screening.

(3) An individual on parole shall not be placed in the pilot program until the Division of Parole Supervision has determined the individual is a suitable candidate in accordance with policies and guidelines developed by the division.

(4) On or before June 1, 2024, the Division of Parole Supervision shall electronically submit a report to the Judiciary Committee of the Legislature regarding the pilot program. The report shall evaluate effects of the pilot program on recidivism and make recommendations regarding expansion of or changes to the program.

(5) For purposes of this section, technical violation has the same meaning as in section 83-1,119.

(1) A parolee whose parole is revoked shall be recommitted to the department until discharge from the custody of the state becomes mandatory or until reparoled by the board.

(2) The time from the date of the parolee's declared delinquency until the date of arrest for the custody of the board shall not be counted as any portion of the time served.

(3) A parolee whose parole has been revoked shall be considered by the board for reparole at any time in the same manner as any other committed offender eligible for parole.

(4) Except in the case of a parolee who has left the jurisdiction or his or her place of residence, action revoking a parolee's parole and recommitting the parolee for violation of the conditions of parole must be taken before the expiration of the parole term less good time. A parolee who has left the jurisdiction or his or her place of residence shall be treated as a parole violator and, when apprehended, shall be subject to recommitment or to supervision for the balance of the parole term as of the date of the violation.

(1) If a warrant or detainer is placed against a committed offender by a court, parole agency, or other authority of this or any other jurisdiction, the Director of Supervision and Services shall inquire before such offender becomes eligible for parole whether the authority concerned intends to execute or withdraw the warrant or detainer when the offender is released.

(2) If the authority notifies the Director of Supervision and Services that it intends to execute the warrant or detainer when the offender is released, the Director of Supervision and Services shall advise the authority concerned of the sentence under which the offender is held, the time of parole eligibility, any decision of the board relating to the offender, and the nature of the offender's adjustment during imprisonment and shall give reasonable notice to such authority of the offender's release date.

(3) The board may parole an offender who is eligible for release to a warrant or detainer. If an offender is paroled to such a warrant or detainer, the board may provide, as a condition of release, that if the charge or charges on which the warrant or detainer is based are dismissed, or are satisfied after conviction and sentence, prior to the expiration of the offender's parole term, the authority to whose warrant or detainer the offender is released shall return the offender to serve the remainder of the parole term or such part as the board may determine.

(4) If a person paroled to a warrant or detainer is thereafter sentenced and placed on probation, or released on parole in another jurisdiction, prior to the expiration of the parole term less good time in this state, the board may permit the person to serve the remainder of the parole term or such part as the board may determine concurrently with the person's new probation or parole term. Such concurrent terms may be served in either of the two jurisdictions, and supervision shall be administered in accordance with the Interstate Compact for Adult Offender Supervision.

(1) The Board of Parole and the Division of Parole Supervision may maintain an individual file for each person who is under the jurisdiction of the Board of Parole. Such file may be maintained electronically and shall include, when available and appropriate, the following information on such person:

(a) Admission summary;

(b) Presentence investigation report;

(c) Classification reports and recommendations;

(d) Official records of conviction and commitment along with any earlier criminal records;

(e) Progress reports and admission-orientation reports;

(f) Reports of any disciplinary infractions and their disposition;

(g) Risk and needs assessments;

(h) Parole plan and parole placement and investigation worksheets;

(i) Decision guideline scores;

(j) Parole case plan;

(k) Parole progress reports and contact notes;

(l) Arrest and violation reports, including disposition;

(m) Parole proceedings orders and notices;

(n) Other documents related to parole supervision;

(o) Correspondence; and

(p) Other pertinent data concerning his or her background, conduct, associations, and family relationships.

(2) Any decision concerning release on or revocation of parole or imposition of sanctions shall be made only after the individual file has been reviewed. The contents of the individual file shall be confidential unless disclosed in connection with a public hearing and shall not be subject to public inspection except by court order for good cause shown. The contents of the file shall not be accessible to any person under the jurisdiction of the Board of Parole. A person under the jurisdiction of the board may obtain access to his or her medical records by request to the provider pursuant to sections 71-8401 to 71-8407 notwithstanding the fact that such medical records may be a part of his or her parole file. The board and the Division of Parole Supervision have the authority to withhold decision guideline scores, risk and needs assessment scores, and mental health and psychological records of a person under the jurisdiction of the board when appropriate.

(3) Nothing in this section limits in any manner the authority of the Public Counsel to inspect and examine the records and documents of the board and the Division of Parole Supervision pursuant to sections 81-8,240 to 81-8,254, except that the Public Counsel's access to the medical or mental health records of a person under the jurisdiction of the board shall be subject to his or her consent. The office of Public Counsel shall not disclose the medical or mental health records of a person under the jurisdiction of the board to anyone else, including any other person under the jurisdiction of the board, except as authorized by law.

(4) For any person under the jurisdiction of the Board of Parole, the board shall provide such person's (a) name, (b) parole officer, and (c) conditions of parole to the Nebraska Commission on Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice which shall provide access to such information to law enforcement agencies through the state's criminal justice information system.

There is hereby created the Board of Pardons which shall consist of the Governor, Attorney General, and Secretary of State. The Governor shall be chairperson of the board. The Secretary of State shall be secretary of the board and keep its records or designate such a record keeper.

Any person in the custody of the Department of Correctional Services or under supervision of the Board of Parole shall be subject to the provisions of the Nebraska Treatment and Corrections Act.

The Board of Pardons shall:

(1) Exercise the pardon authority as defined in section 83-170 for all criminal offenses except treason and cases of impeachment;

(2) Adopt and promulgate rules and regulations for its own administration and operation;

(3) Appoint and remove its employees as prescribed by the State Personnel System and delegate appropriate powers and duties to them;

(4) Consult with the Board of Parole concerning applications for the exercise of pardon authority;

(5) Consult with the Department of Motor Vehicles concerning applications received from the department pursuant to section 60-6,209 for the exercise of pardon authority; and

(6) Exercise all powers and perform all duties necessary and proper in carrying out its responsibilities under the provisions of the Nebraska Treatment and Corrections Act.

The department, subject to available resources, shall provide all accounting, budgeting, and payroll services to the Board of Pardons and the Board of Parole at no expense to such boards.

(1) The Board of Pardons may, in its sole discretion, when granting a reprieve to any person who has made application pursuant to section 60-6,209, order such person to obtain an ignition interlock permit and to operate only motor vehicles equipped with an ignition interlock device approved by the Director of Motor Vehicles. The Board of Pardons may order the person to hold the ignition interlock permit and use an ignition interlock device for a period of time not to exceed any period of revocation the applicant is subject to at the time the application for a license reinstatement is made.

(2) Any person ordered by the Board of Pardons to operate only motor vehicles equipped with such an ignition interlock device shall make application to the director for the issuance of an ignition interlock permit pursuant to section 60-4,118.06.

(3)(a) Except as provided in subdivision (3)(b) of this subsection, any such person restricted to operating a motor vehicle equipped with such an ignition interlock device is guilty of a Class I misdemeanor if he or she (i) operates upon the highways of this state a motor vehicle without such an ignition interlock device, (ii) operates a motor vehicle equipped with such an ignition interlock device which has been disabled, bypassed, or altered in any way, or (iii) operates a motor vehicle equipped with such an ignition interlock device without obtaining an ignition interlock permit.

(b) Any such person restricted to operating a motor vehicle equipped with such an ignition interlock device is guilty of a Class IV felony if he or she (i)(A) operates upon the highways of this state a motor vehicle without such an ignition interlock device, (B) operates a motor vehicle equipped with such an ignition interlock device which has been disabled, bypassed, or altered in any way, or (C) operates a motor vehicle equipped with such an ignition interlock device without obtaining an ignition interlock permit and (ii) operates the motor vehicle as described in subdivision (i)(A), (B), or (C) of this subdivision when he or she has a concentration of two-hundredths of one gram or more by weight of alcohol per one hundred milliliters of his or her blood or a concentration of two-hundredths of one gram or more by weight of alcohol per two hundred ten liters of his or her breath.

(4) The court shall, as a part of the judgment of conviction for a violation of subdivision (3)(b) of this section, order such person not to drive any motor vehicle for any purpose for a period of fifteen years from the date ordered by the court. The court shall also order that the operator's license of such person be revoked for a like period. The revocation shall be administered upon sentencing, upon the final judgment of any appeal or review, or upon the date that any probation is revoked.

In the performance of official duties, the Board of Pardons or any member thereof shall have the power to issue subpoenas, to compel the attendance of witnesses and the production of books, papers, and other documents pertinent to the subject of an inquiry, and to administer oaths and take the testimony of persons under oath. Subpoenas so issued may be served by any sheriff, constable, police officer, parole officer, or peace officer in the same manner as similar process in the district court. Any person who knowingly testifies falsely, submits any false affidavit or deposition, fails to appear when subpoenaed, or fails or refuses to produce such material pursuant to the subpoena shall be subject to the same orders and penalties to which a person before the district court is subject. Any district court of this state, upon application by the board, may compel the attendance of such witnesses, the production of such material, and the giving of testimony before the board by an attachment for contempt or otherwise in the same manner as production of evidence may be compelled before such court. Every person shall attend as a witness when subpoenaed anywhere within the state and shall be entitled to the same fees, if requested, as a witness in the district court and mileage as provided in section 81-1176 for state employees. Fees, mileage, and actual expense, if any, necessarily incurred in securing the attendance of witnesses shall be paid by the board.

(1) Any person desiring the Board of Pardons to exercise its pardon authority shall request an application from its secretary. The application shall be returned to the secretary and shall state the specific relief requested and such other information as is prescribed by the board.

(2) Any person whose operator's license has been revoked pursuant to a conviction for a violation of section 60-6,196 or 60-6,197 for a third or subsequent time for a period of fifteen years and who desires the Board of Pardons to exercise its pardon authority shall make application pursuant to section 60-6,209.

(3) Any application filed pursuant to subsection (1) or (2) of this section shall be considered with or without a hearing by the board at its next regular scheduled meeting. If a hearing is held, it shall be conducted in an informal manner and a record of the proceedings shall be made and preserved according to the guidelines of the board.

(1) After consideration of the application and after such further investigations as it may deem appropriate, the Board of Pardons shall either grant or deny the relief requested or grant such other relief as may be justified. The board may decline to accept further applications after the initial application for pardon from an offender for any prescribed amount of time, but in no case shall such time exceed two years. The board shall notify the offender in writing of any restriction for subsequent applications after the hearing on the initial application.

(2) The Board of Pardons may, in appropriate cases when a person has been convicted of a felony and has been granted a pardon by the appropriate authority of this state or is hereafter granted a pardon for a conviction occurring prior to, on, or subsequent to August 25, 1969, empower the Governor to expressly authorize such person to receive, possess, or transport in commerce a firearm.

(3) All actions of the Board of Pardons shall be by majority vote and shall be filed in the office of the Secretary of State or the office designated by the Secretary of State.

An offender who has been granted a reprieve may be committed by the Board of Pardons to the Department of Correctional Services. The costs of transporting the offender to the department shall be allowed and paid by the state.

Whenever an application for exercise of the pardon authority is filed with the secretary of the Board of Pardons by a committed offender who is under a sentence of death, the sentence shall not be carried out until the board rules upon such application. If the board denies the relief requested it may set the time and date of execution and refuse to accept for filing further applications from such offender.

A person shall be guilty of a Class IV felony if he threatens or attempts to threaten harm to a member of the Board of Pardons with the purpose to influence his decision, opinion, recommendation, vote, or other exercise of discretion as member of the board or if he purposely or knowingly privately addresses to any member of the board any representation, entreaty, argument or other communication designed to influence the outcome of any application which is or may come before the board on the basis of considerations other than those authorized by law.

The provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act shall not apply to the Board of Pardons or to the exercise of its functions.

Sections 83-170 to 83-1,135.05 shall be known and may be cited as the Nebraska Treatment and Corrections Act.

(1) It is the intent of the Legislature that the changes made to the Nebraska Treatment and Corrections Act by Laws 2003, LB 46, with respect to parole eligibility apply to all committed offenders under sentence and not on parole on May 24, 2003, and to all persons sentenced on and after such date.

(2) It is the intent of the Legislature that the changes made to sections 29-2262, 29-2266, 29-2281, 83-182.01, 83-183, 83-183.01, 83-184, 83-1,119, and 83-1,122 by Laws 2015, LB605, and sections 83-184.01, 83-1,100.02, and 83-1,100.03 apply to all committed offenders under sentence, on parole, or on probation on August 30, 2015, and to all persons sentenced on and after such date.

(3) It is the intent of the Legislature that the changes made to sections 28-105, 29-2204.02, 29-2260, 29-2262, 29-2263, 29-2266, 29-2267, 29-2268, 47-401, 47-502, 83-187, 83-1,119, 83-1,122, and 83-1,122.01 by Laws 2016, LB1094, and sections 29-2266.01 to 29-2266.03 and 83-1,135.03 apply to all committed offenders under sentence, on parole, or on probation on or after April 20, 2016, and to all persons sentenced on and after such date.

(4) It is the intent of the Legislature that the changes made to sections 83-1,110.02 and 83-1,122.01 by Laws 2018, LB841, apply to all committed offenders under sentence or on parole on or after July 19, 2018, and to all persons sentenced on and after such date.

(5) Except as otherwise provided in section 83-1,111.01, it is the intent of the Legislature that the changes made to sections 83-1,100.02, 83-1,110, 83-1,110.05, 83-1,111, 83-1,111.01, 83-1,114, and 83-1,122.02 by Laws 2023, LB50, apply to all committed offenders under sentence or on parole on or after September 2, 2023, and to all persons sentenced on and after such date.

A parolee serving a custodial sanction in a correctional facility or contract facility may be granted the privilege of leaving the facility during necessary and reasonable hours for any of the following purposes:

(1) Seeking employment;

(2) Working at his or her employment;

(3) Conducting such person's own business or other self-employed occupation, including housekeeping and attending to the needs of such person's family;

(4) Attending any high school, college, university, or other educational or vocational training program or institution;

(5) Serious illness or death of a member of such person's immediate family;

(6) Medical treatment;

(7) Outpatient or inpatient treatment for alcohol or substance abuse; or

(8) Engaging in other rehabilitative activities.

Rules and regulations may authorize the Director of Correctional Services to issue guidance documents and internal procedural documents not inconsistent with law and rules and regulations. Such guidance documents and internal procedural documents shall be made available to the public at one public location and on the department’s website unless the safety and security of a correctional institution would be placed at imminent and substantial risk by such publication. If any guidance document or internal procedural document is not made available to the public, notice shall be given to the deputy public counsel for corrections and to the Inspector General of the Nebraska Correctional System. The notice shall identify all documents not publicly available by title, number of pages, and date adopted. All guidance documents and internal procedural documents shall be made available to any member of the Legislature upon request. Security manuals shall be made available to the Legislature for inspection upon request, but shall not be copied or removed from secure locations as designated by the director.

The Department of Correctional Services shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act regarding any procedures or policies used by the department for any situation where an inmate, under the authority of the department, is outside a correctional facility operated by the department or a contract facility as defined in section 83-1,119 unless the safety and security of a correctional institution would be placed at imminent and substantial risk by such publication.

There are hereby created six developmental disability regions in the state. Each region shall consist of the following counties:

Region 1 shall consist of Sioux, Dawes, Sheridan, Box Butte, Scotts Bluff, Morrill, Garden, Kimball, Banner, Cheyenne, and Deuel counties;

Region 2 shall consist of Grant, Hooker, Thomas, Arthur, McPherson, Logan, Keith, Lincoln, Perkins, Dawson, Chase, Hayes, Frontier, Gosper, Dundy, Hitchcock, and Red Willow counties;

Region 3 shall consist of Blaine, Loup, Garfield, Wheeler, Custer, Valley, Greeley, Sherman, Howard, Merrick, Buffalo, Hall, Hamilton, Phelps, Kearney, Adams, Clay, Furnas, Harlan, Franklin, Webster, and Nuckolls counties;

Region 4 shall consist of Cherry, Keya Paha, Boyd, Brown, Rock, Holt, Knox, Cedar, Dixon, Antelope, Pierce, Wayne, Dakota, Thurston, Madison, Stanton, Cuming, Burt, Boone, Platte, Colfax, and Nance counties;

Region 5 shall consist of Saunders, York, Seward, Lancaster, Otoe, Polk, Butler, Fillmore, Saline, Gage, Johnson, Nemaha, Thayer, Jefferson, Pawnee, and Richardson counties; and

Region 6 shall consist of Dodge, Washington, Douglas, Sarpy, and Cass counties.

The Nebraska institution for persons with intellectual disabilities who require residential care shall be known and designated as the Beatrice State Developmental Center.

The Beatrice State Developmental Center shall provide residential care and humane treatment for those persons with intellectual disabilities who require residential care, shall study to improve their condition, shall classify them, and shall furnish such training in industrial, mechanical, agricultural, and academic subjects as they may be capable of learning. Whenever the Department of Health and Human Services determines that continued residence in the Beatrice State Developmental Center is no longer necessary for the welfare, care, treatment, or training of such person, it shall have authority to discharge or transfer such person as provided in section 83-387. The Department of Health and Human Services shall discharge any person from the Beatrice State Developmental Center without requiring sterilization of such person, if the discharge satisfies the requirements of this section, notwithstanding any court order, judgment, or decree rendered prior to December 25, 1969, requiring sterilization as a condition of discharge.

Where the person named in the petition for commitment is a resident, patient, or inmate of a state institution, the court may commit the person to the care and custody of the Department of Health and Human Services. The department may, in its discretion, detain the resident, patient, or inmate in the institution in which he or she is a resident, patient, or inmate at the time of the hearing, subject to the rules of that institution, or may transfer him or her to the Beatrice State Developmental Center.

The Department of Health and Human Services is authorized to utilize space which is temporarily surplus to the needs of the Lincoln Regional Center and the Norfolk Regional Center facilities under their jurisdiction for patients committed to or lawfully confined in the Beatrice State Developmental Center. Patients so transferred to the Lincoln Regional Center or the Norfolk Regional Center shall be housed in facilities separate and apart from facilities used to house patients committed to such hospital, and after their transfer such patients shall receive the same type of care, custody, and treatment as they would have received had they remained at the Beatrice State Developmental Center, and the charges for their care and maintenance shall be the same as though they were housed at the Beatrice State Developmental Center, and the charges shall be collected in the manner provided in this section and sections 83-227.02, 83-350, and 83-363 to 83-380.

(1) The Department of Health and Human Services is authorized to use space which is temporarily surplus to the needs of any institution under its control, except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, for the care, custody, and treatment of the inmates of any other such institution when space at such latter institution is inadequate and the facilities of the institution to which transfer is made are suitable to the needs of the inmate. Inmates so transferred shall receive the same care, custody, and treatment as they would have received had they not been transferred. If the cost of the care, custody, and treatment of such inmate is recoverable by the institution from which the transfer was made, it shall be recovered in the manner provided in sections 83-363 to 83-380.

(2) Subsection (1) of this section shall not be construed to permit the transfer of inmates to or from any Department of Correctional Services facility unless expressly authorized by law.

The state hospital established in Lancaster County for the treatment of mental illnesses shall be known as the Lincoln Regional Center. The state hospital established in Madison County shall be known as the Norfolk Regional Center.

Psychiatric services under the control of the Board of Regents of the University of Nebraska shall be under the jurisdiction of the Chancellor of the University of Nebraska Medical Center, who shall report to the Board of Regents through the President of the University of Nebraska. The chancellor or his or her designee shall be responsible for the administration and preparation of the psychiatric services budget and shall have the same powers, authority, and duties as prescribed for the chief executive officers of the state hospitals described in section 83-305.

The psychiatric services at the University of Nebraska Medical Center shall operate and be subject to sections 83-305 to 83-357.

The Department of Health and Human Services or the Director of Correctional Services may order the temporary transfer of any person committed to the Department of Health and Human Services or the Department of Correctional Services to the University of Nebraska Medical Center with the concurrence of the chancellor thereof for special diagnosis and treatment of any illness such person may suffer which cannot be properly diagnosed or treated by the medical facilities of the institution of which he or she is a patient or inmate. The responsibility of guarding any such patient or inmate transferred shall remain with the institution of which he or she is a patient or inmate. The Department of Health and Human Services or the Department of Correctional Services shall pay, out of the proper account, all expenses incurred by the University of Nebraska Medical Center on behalf of any patient or inmate so transferred by the respective department.

The Department of Health and Human Services shall utilize a rehabilitation model when appropriate for services provided at the regional centers under the jurisdiction of the department. For purposes of this section, rehabilitation model means a comprehensive approach to treatment and rehabilitation of a person with a disability caused by a mental illness in order to assure that such person can perform those physical, emotional, social, and intellectual skills needed to live and work in the community.

(1) The Legislature finds that a need exists for additional behavioral health treatment beds for inmates in the state correctional system. In order to follow an orderly and reasonable process based upon defined and documented need and an analysis of the utilization of existing facilities, the Legislature authorizes the Division of Behavioral Health of the Department of Health and Human Services to study the feasibility of the establishment of a Hastings Correctional Behavioral Health Treatment Center at the Hastings Regional Center.

(2)(a) The Division of Behavioral Health of the Department of Health and Human Services shall prepare a complete program statement for the Hastings Correctional Behavioral Health Treatment Center, prepared in accordance with the Procedural Manual for Capital Construction Projects, as approved by the state building division of the Department of Administrative Services. The state building division shall assist the Department of Health and Human Services in the preparation and submission of the program statement.

(b) The program statement shall plan for the long-term needs of the mentally ill inmates in the correctional system as well as inmates who have drug and alcohol addictions. The intent is to provide a facility for up to two hundred inmates in one or more buildings at the Hastings Regional Center renovated or constructed to meet the needs of the program. The program statement shall identify the classification of inmates to be placed in the center, the programs needed to provide mental health and substance abuse treatment, and the capital cost of renovation needed to fully support the program objectives. The program statement shall estimate building renovation costs, staffing costs, and operational costs for the center along with a proposed project schedule.

(c) The completed program statement shall be submitted electronically to the Governor and Legislature by December 15, 2014.

The Department of Health and Human Services shall hold in trust, for the state hospitals for the mentally ill, all real or personal property given or bequeathed, to be applied for any purpose connected with the institutions.

Every patient in any state hospital for the mentally ill shall be allowed to write whenever the patient desires and to whomever the patient may choose, and the chief executive officer of the hospital, upon request, shall supply each patient, not otherwise supplied, with suitable writing materials and postage, at the expense of the state, sufficient for writing at least one letter per week. Such letters shall be regularly and promptly collected and shall be placed in the United States mail for delivery unless the chief executive officer of the hospital has on file a written request from a recipient or potential recipient that letters shall not be mailed to such recipient or unless there is reasonable cause to believe that the contents of any letter are threatening.

The Department of Health and Human Services may accept patients for care and treatment upon the written application of a patient. Such written application may be made by persons desiring to receive care and treatment in one of the state hospitals for the mentally ill to the chief executive officer of the state hospital in which the patient wishes to receive treatment.

The Department of Health and Human Services shall provide the mental health boards with blanks for warrants, certificates, and other forms, such as will enable them to comply with sections 83-313 to 83-357, and also with printed copies of the applicable rules and regulations of the department.

(1) If at any time it becomes necessary, for lack of capacity or other cause, to establish priorities for the admission of patients into the state hospitals for the mentally ill, admission shall be limited to: (a) Patients whose care in the state hospital is necessary in order to protect the public health and safety; (b) defendants who are determined by a court to be incompetent to stand trial and who remain lodged in the county jail; (c) patients committed by a mental health board under the Nebraska Mental Health Commitment Act or the Sex Offender Commitment Act, by a district court, or by a tribal court as provided in section 71-964 or 71-1226.01; (d) patients who are most likely to be benefited by treatment in the state hospitals, regardless of whether such patients are committed by a mental health board or whether such patients seek voluntary admission to one of the state hospitals; and (e) when cases are equally meritorious, in all other respects, patients who are indigent.

(2) The Lincoln Regional Center shall provide a minimum number of beds equal to the following percentages of total available capacity:

(a) Ten percent for patients entering the facility pursuant to subdivision (1)(a) of this section;

(b) Ten percent for patients entering the facility pursuant to subdivision (1)(b) of this section;

(c) Thirty percent for patients entering the facility pursuant to subdivision (1)(c) of this section;

(d) Ten percent for patients entering the facility pursuant to subdivision (1)(d) of this section;

(e) Ten percent for patients entering the facility pursuant to subdivision (1)(e) of this section; and

(f) Thirty percent to remain unallocated for the Department of Health and Human Services to allocate according to the priorities established in subsection (1) of this section as needed to reduce existing waiting lists.

(3) Beginning on or before November 1, 2022, the Department of Health and Human Services shall make available on its website a weekly report on the capacity and status of state-operated mental health facilities, including, but not limited to, the capacity and wait times associated with each priority category established in subsection (1) of this section.

Any voluntary patient in a state hospital for the mentally ill who no longer meets the clinical and legal requirements for treatment at such hospital shall be discharged by the chief executive officer of such hospital.

Patients in the state hospitals for the mentally ill having no legal settlement in this state, or whose legal settlement cannot be ascertained, shall be supported at the expense of the state. This section shall apply to all such patients now in the hospitals and shall include expenses already incurred and remaining unpaid. The Department of Health and Human Services may authorize the removal of any such patient at the expense of the state.

If the mental health board finds that a person committed to a state hospital for the mentally ill by the board has, or probably has, a legal settlement in some other county in the state, the board shall immediately notify the mental health board of that county of its finding and commitment. The board members so notified shall thereupon inquire and ascertain, if possible, whether the patient has a legal settlement in their county and shall immediately notify the chief executive officer of the hospital and the board members of the county from which the patient was committed of the result of their inquiry. If the legal settlement of a patient cannot for a time be ascertained and is afterwards found, the notices provided for in this section shall then be given.

When the chief executive officer of a state hospital for the mentally ill has been notified, as provided for in sections 83-313 to 83-357, that a patient sent to the hospital from one county has a legal settlement in another county of the state, the chief executive officer shall thereafter hold and treat such patient as from the latter county.

Expenses incurred by one county, on account of a mentally ill and dangerous person or a dangerous sex offender as defined in section 83-174.01 whose legal settlement is in another county of the state, shall be refunded, with lawful interest thereon, by the county in which the mentally ill and dangerous person or dangerous sex offender has his or her legal settlement. Such expenses shall be presented to the county board of the county sought to be charged, which shall allow and pay them the same as other claims. Whenever a patient of any facility over which the Department of Health and Human Services has control has been adjudicated a mentally ill and dangerous person or a dangerous sex offender as defined in section 83-174.01 and committed to a state hospital for the mentally ill, and the expenses of the adjudication and commitment have been paid by the county in which the institution is located, the county clerk of that county shall certify the total amount of the expenses thus incurred to the Department of Health and Human Services. The department shall audit the expenses so certified and shall file a statement of the amount found due with the Director of Administrative Services, and a warrant shall be drawn on the General Fund in favor of the county from which the mentally ill and dangerous person or dangerous sex offender was committed.

All patients in the state hospitals for the mentally ill shall be regarded as standing on an equal footing. The patients, according to their different conditions of mind and body and their respective needs, shall be provided for and treated with equal care. If the relatives or immediate friends of any patient desire special care and pay the expenses thereof, such patient shall have special care and shall be provided with a special attendant as may be agreed upon with the chief executive officer. In such cases the charges for the special care and attendance shall be paid quarterly in advance.

Mentally ill persons from other states and territories may be admitted to the state hospitals for the mentally ill upon equal footing and on same conditions as private-pay patients. The sum to be paid monthly for the care, maintenance, and treatment of such patients shall be fixed by the Department of Health and Human Services and shall be collected quarterly in advance by the stewards of the hospitals and accounted for the same as other funds in their hands belonging to the State of Nebraska.

Any person taking care of a mentally ill person, and restraining such a person, either with or without authority, who shall treat such person with wanton severity, harshness or cruelty, or shall in any way abuse such a person, shall be guilty of a Class V misdemeanor and shall also be liable in an action for all damages sustained by such mentally ill person.

The liberty of any person supposed to be mentally ill shall not be restrained by any person not acting under the authority of the county board of mental health except to the extent for the period that may be necessary for the safety of persons and property, and until authority can be obtained.

As used in sections 83-227.01, 83-227.02, 83-350, and 83-363 to 83-380, unless the context otherwise requires:

(1) Department means the Department of Health and Human Services;

(2) State institution means the state hospitals at Lincoln and Norfolk, the Beatrice State Developmental Center, and such other institutions as may hereafter be established by the Legislature for the care and treatment of persons with a mental disorder or persons with an intellectual disability;

(3) Relative means the spouse of a patient or, if the patient has no spouse and is under the age of majority at the time he or she is admitted, the parents of a patient in a state institution; and

(4) Parents means either or both of a patient's natural parents unless such patient has been legally adopted by other parents, in which case parents means either or both of the adoptive parents.

When any person is admitted to a state institution or other inpatient treatment facility pursuant to an order of a mental health board under the Nebraska Mental Health Commitment Act or the Sex Offender Commitment Act or receives treatment prescribed by such institution or facility following release or without being admitted as a resident patient, the patient and the patient's relatives shall be liable for the cost of the care, support, maintenance, and treatment of such person to the extent and in the manner provided by sections 83-227.01, 83-227.02, 83-350, and 83-363 to 83-380. Such sections also shall apply to persons admitted to a state institution as transferees from any state penal institution or youth rehabilitation and treatment center but only after the expiration of the time for which the transferees were originally sentenced or committed.

The department shall periodically determine the individual cost, exclusive of the cost of education, for the care, support, maintenance, and treatment of the patients in each state institution and for persons receiving treatment prescribed by an institution following release or without being admitted as a resident patient. In making such determinations, the department may use averaging methods for each institution if, in the judgment of the department, it is not practicable to compute the cost for each patient. The cost of capital expenditures and capital construction shall not be included in making such determinations.

The department shall assess against the patient or his or her relatives all or such part of the cost determined under section 83-365 as they are able to pay, in the judgment of the department, except that a patient who is placed in a state institution to receive appropriate special education pursuant to the Special Education Act or his or her relatives shall be assessed only for medical care and medical treatment costs as determined pursuant to rules and regulations adopted and promulgated by the department in accordance with section 83-371.

The liability of each relative, except a spouse, shall cease when relatives shall have completed payments assessed pursuant to sections 83-227.01, 83-227.02, 83-350, and 83-363 to 83-380 for one hundred eighty months, or when the patient attains the age of majority, whichever shall occur first.

Except as provided in section 71-809, the department shall determine the ability of a patient to pay by consideration of the following factors: (1) Taxable income reportable under Nebraska law; (2) the patient's age; (3) the number of his or her dependents and their ages and mental and physical conditions; (4) the patient's length of care or treatment; (5) his or her liabilities; and (6) his or her assets including health insurance coverage.

When the department determines that a patient is unable to pay the entire cost determined pursuant to section 83-365, the department shall then determine the ability of his relatives to pay such cost. In making this determination, the department shall consider the relative's taxable income reportable under Nebraska law, and the patient's length of care and treatment. At the request of the relative, the department also shall consider other relevant factors in the interest of avoiding undue hardship. Such factors may include the relative's age, provision for his retirement years, his assets, his liabilities, the number of his dependents, and their mental and physical condition and educational requirements.

When any relative willfully fails to furnish to the department, upon request, the information required by sections 83-227.01, 83-227.02, 83-350, and 83-363 to 83-380 as to his taxable income, such relative shall be deemed to have ability to pay the entire cost determined under sections 83-227.01, 83-227.02, 83-350, and 83-363 to 83-380.

Pursuant to the provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act, the department shall adopt appropriate rules and regulations for making the determinations required by sections 83-227.01, 83-227.02, 83-350, and 83-363 to 83-380.

It shall be the duty of the county board in each county to make such investigation as the department may require with regard to the ability to pay of any patient or relative of a patient who resides within the county. In making such investigation, the county board shall act in accordance with the rules and regulations of the department and shall promptly submit the required information to the department.

Any determination of the ability of a patient or relative to pay shall remain in effect until a redetermination is made. A redetermination shall be made annually and at such additional times when, in the judgment of the department, it is appropriate to do so, or when a request is made by the patient or relative who is liable for the payments.

Any patient or relative aggrieved by a determination of ability to pay may request a hearing before the department. The department shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations to govern the conduct of such hearings. The department may appoint an examiner who shall have power to preside at such hearing, administer oaths, examine witnesses, and take testimony and shall report the same to the department. Such hearings shall be held in the county in which the person requesting the hearing resides, if such person so requests, in which event it shall be the duty of the county board to attend such hearing. The department shall deliver the decision within sixty days after the conclusion of the hearing. Any patient or relative aggrieved by a decision following a hearing may appeal such decision, and such appeal shall be in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act.

When any patient or relative fails to pay the amounts determined to be due under sections 83-227.01, 83-227.02, 83-350, and 83-363 to 83-380, the state of Nebraska may proceed against such person in the manner authorized by law for the recovery of money owed to a creditor. The Attorney General shall represent the state in such actions, but may authorize the county attorney for the county in which such person resides or owns property to investigate and prosecute the action on behalf of the state.

When the full cost determined to be necessary for the care, support, maintenance, and treatment of any patient is not paid by the patient or his or her relatives within thirty days of receipt of such care, (1) the county in which the patient resides shall pay (a) the first fifteen dollars per day of the unpaid cost for each of the first thirty days at the Hastings Regional Center, the Lincoln Regional Center, the Norfolk Regional Center, or other inpatient treatment facility where the patient is receiving inpatient treatment pursuant to an order of a mental health board under the Nebraska Mental Health Commitment Act or the Sex Offender Commitment Act, (b) the first ten dollars per day of the unpaid cost for each of the first thirty days at the Beatrice State Developmental Center, and (c) the first three dollars per day of the unpaid costs for each day after the first thirty days at any such institution, (2) the balance of the unpaid cost shall be borne by the state, and (3) the county in which the patient resides shall be credited by the department for amounts collected from such patient or his or her relatives in excess of the portion of such costs borne by the state.

In all cases in which a guardian has been named for any person liable for payments under sections 83-227.01, 83-227.02, 83-350, and 83-363 to 83-380, the guardian shall represent such person in all matters arising under sections 83-227.01, 83-227.02, 83-350, and 83-363 to 83-380 and shall be liable in the same manner as he would be on any other matters arising from the guardianship.

No person shall be liable for the cost of the care, support, maintenance, and treatment of any patient except as provided in sections 83-363 to 83-380, but the amounts determined to be due and unpaid at the time of the death of a patient or relative shall constitute a claim against the estate of such patient or relative. The department may accept voluntary payments on behalf of any patient from any person who is not liable for payments.

In the absence of fraud, a patient and his relatives shall be liable only to the extent of assessments actually made against them respectively, in accordance with sections 83-227.01, 83-227.02, 83-350, and 83-363 to 83-380. For the purposes of sections 83-227.01, 83-227.02, 83-350, and 83-363 to 83-380, it shall be deemed fraudulent for any patient or his relatives to transfer any assets or property to another person for the purpose of affecting the determination of ability to pay. When it is determined that such a fraudulent transfer has been made, the department shall consider the value of such assets or property transferred in determining the ability to pay under section 83-368 or 83-369.

Within thirty days after June 30, 1971, and each year thereafter, the department shall certify to the Director of Administrative Services all amounts not previously certified due to each state institution from the several counties having patients chargeable thereto. The Director of Administrative Services shall thereupon notify the county clerk of each county of the amount each county owes. The county board shall add to its next levy an amount sufficient to raise the amount certified as due. The county shall pay the amount certified into the state treasury on or before the next June 1 following such certification.

Upon the discharge from a treatment facility, an indigent person who has received mental-health-board-ordered treatment may file an affidavit with the Department of Health and Human Services or the mental health board requesting that prescription medicine which the regional center treating psychiatrist or the patient's treating physician has prescribed as necessary for the patient's mental health treatment be provided to him or her. Such affidavit shall include the following: (1) That the patient qualifies as an indigent person who is unable to pay under the same standards of ability to pay as set forth in sections 83-363 to 83-380; and (2) that such prescription medicine has been prescribed by the regional center's treatment psychiatrist or the patient's treating physician as necessary for the patient's mental health treatment. The mental health board shall refer such requests it receives to the Department of Health and Human Services and the department shall provide such prescription medicine as may be necessary for such former patient's mental health treatment so long as he or she remains an outpatient and his or her treating physician continues to prescribe and certify that such prescription medicine is necessary for the patient's mental health treatment and he or she continues to be an indigent person as determined under the same standards of ability to pay as set forth in sections 83-363 to 83-380. The Department of Health and Human Services may adopt and promulgate rules and regulations to carry out the provisions of this section in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act, including, but not limited to, hearings necessary to determine whether such person is qualified to receive such medications and whether such medication is necessary for the patient's mental health treatment.

As used in sections 83-217, 83-218, and 83-381 to 83-390, unless the context otherwise requires:

(1) Person with an intellectual disability means any person of significant subaverage general intellectual functioning which is associated with significant impairments in adaptive functioning manifested before the age of twenty-two years. Significant subaverage general intellectual functioning shall refer to a score of seventy or below on a properly administered and valid intelligence quotient test;

(2) Department means the Department of Health and Human Services or such person or agency within the Department of Health and Human Services as the chief executive officer of the department may designate; and

(3) Residential facility means an institution specified under section 83-217 to provide residential care by the State of Nebraska for persons with an intellectual disability.

Except as provided in sections 79-1148 and 79-1149, the department shall have jurisdiction of the admission of persons with an intellectual disability to a residential facility. Applications for admission to a residential facility shall be filed with the department.

(1) An application for admission shall be made in writing by one of the following persons:

(a) If the person applying for admission has a court-appointed guardian, the application shall be made by the guardian; and

(b) If the person applying for admission does not have a court-appointed guardian and has not reached the age of majority, as established by section 43-2101, as such section may from time to time be amended, the application shall be made by both parents if they are living together or by the parent having custody of such person if both parents are not then living or are not then living together.

(2) The county court of the county of residence of any person with an intellectual disability or the county court of the county in which a state residential facility is located shall have authority to appoint a guardian for any person with an intellectual disability upon the petition of the husband, wife, parent, person standing in loco parentis to such person, a county attorney, or any authorized official of the department. If the guardianship proceedings are initiated by an official of the department, the costs thereof may be taxed to and paid by the department if the person with an intellectual disability is without means to pay the costs. The department shall pay such costs upon presentation of a proper claim by the judge of the county court in which the proceedings were initiated. The costs of such proceedings shall include court costs, attorneys' fees, sheriffs' fees, psychiatric fees, and other necessary expenses of the guardianship.

An application for admission to a residential facility shall contain the name, age, and place of residence of the person for whom admission is requested. The application shall set forth the name of the person submitting the application and the capacity in which he or she makes the application. The application shall contain authorization for the department to obtain all relevant medical records and information concerning the person for whom admission is requested.

Upon receipt of an application for admission, the department shall refer the person for whom admission is requested to an agency or person specially qualified in the diagnosis of mental or related conditions for examination and evaluation. Within fourteen days of referral, the agency or person making such examination and evaluation shall return the findings of the examination and evaluation to the department. The findings and evaluation may also include recommendations with respect to the placement of the person for whom admission is requested in a residential facility. The department may require further examination of the person for whom admission is requested.

The department shall examine all information concerning the person for whom admission is requested and shall determine therefrom whether the person is a person with an intellectual disability and whether residence in the residential facility is necessary for the welfare, care, treatment, or training of such person. Such determination shall be made in writing and shall set forth the reasons for the determination. If at any time it shall become necessary, for want of room or other cause, to discriminate in the admission of persons with an intellectual disability to residential facilities, the selection shall be made as follows: (1) Persons whose care is necessary in order to protect themselves or the public health and safety; (2) persons who are most likely to be benefited thereby; (3) persons shall next be admitted in the order in which their applications for admission have been filed with the department; and (4) when cases are equally meritorious in all other respects, an indigent person or a person from an indigent family shall be given preference.

At such time as the department determines that continued residence in a residential facility will no longer benefit a person with an intellectual disability, the department shall arrange for the discharge or transfer of such person from the residential facility. The department shall give reasonable notice to the person authorized to make an application for admission for such person under subsection (1) of section 83-383 that the department intends to discharge or transfer such person. The department shall also be responsible for the placement of such person in any other available program or facility and in the development of other methods for the care, treatment, and training of such person.

No person admitted to a residential facility upon the application of his or her parent or parents shall be detained in a residential facility after attaining the age of majority as established by section 43-2101, as such section may from time to time be amended, unless a guardian for such person makes an application for continued residence for such person in the facility under section 83-383 or such person is committed as provided by law for involuntary commitments.

A person admitted to a residential facility under the provisions of sections 83-217, 83-218, and 83-381 to 83-390 shall be immediately discharged from the residential facility after notice of intention to remove the person with an intellectual disability has been given by the person authorized to make an application for admission under subsection (1) of section 83-383 and the normal discharge procedures are completed.

A person shall not lose his or her rights as a citizen, his or her property rights, or his or her legal capacity by reason of being admitted to a residential facility. The department may make reasonable rules and regulations concerning the exercise of such rights within the residential facility. Every person admitted to a residential facility under sections 83-217, 83-218, and 83-381 to 83-390 shall have an absolute right to communicate with the department, any court, a member of his or her family who does not file a written objection thereto with the department, a physician, or an attorney and to be visited at any reasonable hour by a physician or attorney. The department may make reasonable rules and regulations concerning communication by letter or otherwise with any other person or agency and concerning the right to receive other visitors.

For purposes of sections 83-108 and 83-391 to 83-393, unless the context otherwise requires:

(1) Department means the Department of Health and Human Services; and

(2) Facility means a skilled nursing care or intermediate care facility.

The department may establish, operate, and administer skilled nursing care and intermediate care facilities. No such facility shall be established, operated, or administered without having complied with the laws, rules, and regulations establishing standards for construction, maintenance, and operation of such facilities and the care of persons in such facilities, and no such facility shall be established, operated, or administered without a license pursuant to the Health Care Facility Licensure Act.

Any person who needs the care provided in a facility shall be eligible for admission to such facility, and admission shall not be restricted to persons who receive services in any other institution operated by the department at the time application is made.

When any committed offender offers violence to any officer or employee of the Department of Correctional Services or to any other person or committed offender, or attempts to do any injury to the buildings, or to any workshop or to any appurtenances thereof, or disobeys or resists any reasonable command of an officer or employee, such officers and employees shall use all reasonable means to prevent such violence or injury and to enforce the observance of discipline. No officer or employee shall be liable, either civilly or criminally, for any damage to property or injury to any person, including death resulting therefrom, caused by him or his order, while performing any duty under this section, unless such act or order was manifestly beyond the scope of the authority of such officer or employee.

Any person who purposely or knowingly allows any committed offender to escape or, without the approval of the chief executive officer of the facility, allows any offender to be visited, conversed with, comforted, or relieved or conveys to or from any committed offender any communication or article shall be guilty of a Class IV felony.

The Director of Correctional Services shall receive, safely keep, and subject to the discipline of the Department of Correctional Services, any criminal convicted of any crime against the United States, and sentenced to confinement therein by any court of the United States sitting within this state, until such sentence is executed or until such offender is discharged by due course of law. The United States shall support such offender and pay the expenses of executing his sentence.

When any convicted prisoner is delivered to the chief executive officer, the officer having the prisoner in charge shall deliver to the chief executive officer a certified copy of the sentence received by the officer from the clerk of the district court and shall take from the chief executive officer a certificate of the delivery of the prisoner. The certified copy of the sentence shall be evidence of the facts contained therein.

Each county shall pay the costs of transporting convicted prisoners to any Department of Correctional Services adult facility and the cost of returning fugitives from justice.

The expenses and fees of sheriffs and other officers incurred in conveying convicted prisoners to any Department of Correctional Services adult facility shall be examined, adjusted, and approved by the county board and paid out of the treasury of the county in which the crime was committed. The county board shall allow expenses and fees at the following rates: (1) For the sheriff, six dollars per day for time actually necessary in conveying a prisoner to the facility and return; and (2) for each assistant or guard absolutely necessary, six dollars per day. No allowance for assistance shall be made when only one prisoner is conveyed to a facility. The county board shall allow the actual and necessary traveling expenses in going and coming. When the trip is made by automobile, mileage included in such expenses shall be computed at the rate provided in section 33-117 for county sheriffs and deputy county sheriffs for each mile actually and necessarily traveled by the most direct route.

When any inmate escapes from any Department of Correctional Services adult facility, the chief executive officer of the facility shall use all proper means for the apprehension of the inmate.

No officer or employee of the Department of Correctional Services who has charge, control, or direction of any inmates shall be in any manner whatever financially interested in the work or profit of the labor of any inmate, and no such officer or employee shall receive any pay, gift, gratuity, or favor of a valuable character from any person interested either directly or indirectly in such labor. Any person violating this section shall be guilty of a Class IV felony. The offense may be reduced to a misdemeanor upon recommendation of the jury, if the court concurs in the recommendation. In such a case, the defendant shall be summarily discharged by the Director of Correctional Services.

No officer or employee of the Department of Correctional Services shall employ inmates on work in which he or she or any other officer has a personal interest. No such officer or employee shall be connected with or have any interest in the business or shops belonging to the department.

The second day of September in each year, the birthday of John Howard, the author of prison reform throughout the world, shall be observed as a legal holiday in all the penal and reformatory institutions of this state and shall be known as "Howard's Day".

Disciplinary procedures in adult institutions administered by the Department of Correctional Services shall be governed by the provisions of sections 83-4,109 to 83-4,123.

For purposes of sections 83-4,109 to 83-4,123, unless the context otherwise requires:

(1) Director shall mean the Director of Correctional Services; and

(2) Department shall mean the Department of Correctional Services.

(1) The department shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations to establish criteria for justifiably and reasonably determining which rights and privileges an inmate forfeits upon commitment and which rights and privileges an inmate retains.

(2) Such rules and regulations shall include, but not be limited to, criteria concerning (a) disciplinary procedures and a code of offenses for which discipline may be imposed, (b) disciplinary segregation, (c) grievance procedures, (d) good-time credit, (e) mail and visiting privileges, and (f) rehabilitation opportunities.

(3) The rules and regulations adopted pursuant to sections 83-4,109 to 83-4,123 shall in no manner deprive an inmate of any rights and privileges to which he or she is entitled under other provisions of law or under policies adopted in a correctional facility.

(1) Copies of all rules and regulations shall be filed pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act and shall be distributed to all adult correctional facilities in this state.

(2) Inmates shall be informed of rules and policies concerning behavior and discipline, inmate rights and developmental opportunities, work or education programs, and complaint procedures at the facility. Such rules and policies, or significant portions thereof, shall be posted at conspicuous places throughout the facility.

All adult disciplinary action within the system of the department shall be pursuant to sections 83-4,109 to 83-4,123. Inmates shall be informed of rules of behavior and discipline. Such rules shall be posted or otherwise made available to the inmates.

(1) There shall be no corporal punishment or disciplinary restrictions on diet.

(2) Disciplinary restrictions on clothing, bedding, mail, visitations, use of toilets, washbowls, or scheduled showers shall be imposed only for abuse of such privilege or facility and only as authorized by written directives, guidance documents, and operational manuals.

(3) No person shall be placed in solitary confinement.

(4) The director shall issue an annual report on or before September 15 to the Governor and the Clerk of the Legislature. The report to the Clerk of the Legislature shall be issued electronically. For all inmates who were held in restrictive housing during the prior year, the report shall contain the race, gender, age, and length of time each inmate has continuously been held in restrictive housing. The report shall also contain:

(a) The number of inmates held in restrictive housing;

(b) The reason or reasons each inmate was held in restrictive housing;

(c) The number of inmates held in restrictive housing who have been diagnosed with a mental illness or behavioral disorder and the type of mental illness or behavioral disorder by inmate;

(d) The number of inmates who were released from restrictive housing directly to parole or into the general public and the reason for such release;

(e) The number of inmates who were placed in restrictive housing for his or her own safety and the underlying circumstances for each placement;

(f) To the extent reasonably ascertainable, comparable statistics for the nation and each of the states that border Nebraska pertaining to subdivisions (4)(a) through (e) of this section;

(g) The mean and median length of time for all inmates held in restrictive housing; and

(h) A description of all inmate housing areas that hold inmates in a setting that is neither general population nor restrictive housing, including the purpose of each setting, data on how many inmates were held in such settings, the average length of stay in such settings, information on programs provided in each setting, data on program completions in each setting, staffing levels and types of staff in each setting, and any other information or data relevant to the operation of such settings. For the purposes of this subdivision, general population means an inmate housing area that allows out-of-cell movement without the use of restraints, a minimum of six hours per day of out-of-cell time, regular access to programming areas outside the living unit, and access to services available to the broader population.

(1) The chief executive officer of each facility of the department shall be responsible for the discipline of inmates who reside in such facility. No inmate shall be punished except upon the order of the chief executive officer of the facility, and no punishment shall be imposed otherwise than in accordance with this section.

(2) Except in flagrant or serious cases, punishment for misconduct shall consist of deprivation of privileges. In cases of flagrant or serious misconduct, the chief executive officer may order that an inmate's reduction of term as provided in section 83-1,107 be forfeited or withheld and also that the inmate be confined in disciplinary segregation. During the period of disciplinary segregation, such inmate shall be put on an adequate and healthful diet. An inmate in disciplinary segregation shall be visited at least once every eight hours. No cruel, inhuman, or corporal punishment shall be used on any inmate.

(3) The chief executive officer shall maintain a record of breaches of discipline, of the disposition of each case, and of the punishment, if any, for each such breach. Each breach of discipline shall be entered in the inmate's file, together with the disposition or punishment for the breach.

(4) The chief executive officer may recommend to the director that an inmate who is considered to be incorrigible by reason of frequent intentional breaches of discipline or who is detrimental to the discipline or the morale of the facility be transferred to another facility for stricter safekeeping and closer confinement, subject to the provisions of section 83-176.

(5) The department shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations to define the term flagrant or serious misconduct.

Before disciplinary measures are taken against an inmate for drug or alcohol violations, an inmate may request and the department shall provide independent confirmation testing of positive results of urinalysis testing. If the confirmation test remains positive, the inmate may be required to pay the cost of the confirmation test.

Any review of disciplinary action imposed upon any person shall be pursuant to sections 83-4,109 to 83-4,123. The director shall establish procedures to review the disciplinary actions of inmates. The director may establish one or more administrative review boards within the department to review disciplinary actions. No member of any review board shall also be a member of a disciplinary hearing board, but the same considerations for appointing members to the disciplinary hearing board may apply to appointing members to a review board.

A written report of any infraction shall be filed with the warden within seventy-two hours of the occurrence of such infraction or the discovery of it. Such report shall be placed in the files of the institution or facility.

No disciplinary proceeding shall be commenced more than eight calendar days after the infraction or the discovery of such infraction unless the committed person is unable or unavailable for any reason to participate in a disciplinary proceeding.

In disciplinary cases which may involve the imposition of disciplinary isolation or the loss of good-time credit, the director shall establish disciplinary procedures consistent with the following principles:

(1) Any person or persons who initiate a disciplinary charge against an inmate shall not determine the disposition of the charge. The director may establish one or more disciplinary boards to hear and determine charges. To the extent possible, a person representing the treatment or counseling staff of the institution or facility shall participate in determining the disposition of the disciplinary case;

(2) An inmate charged with a violation of department rules of behavior shall be given notice of the charge including a statement of the misconduct alleged and of the rules such conduct is alleged to violate. Such notice shall be given at least twenty-four hours before a hearing on the matter is held;

(3) An inmate charged with a violation of rules shall be entitled to a hearing on that charge at which time he or she shall have an opportunity to appear before and address the person or persons deciding the charge. The individual bringing the charge shall also appear at such hearing;

(4) The person or persons determining the disposition of the charge may also summon to testify any witnesses or other persons with relevant knowledge of the incident. The inmate charged shall be permitted to question any person so summoned and shall be allowed to call witnesses and present documentary evidence in his or her defense when permitting him or her to do so will not be unduly hazardous to institutional safety or correctional goals. The person or persons determining the disposition of charges shall state his, her, or their reasons in writing for refusing to call a witness;

(5) If the charge is sustained, the inmate charged shall be entitled to a written statement of the decision by the persons determining the disposition of the charge, which statement shall include the basis for the decision and the disciplinary action, if any, to be imposed;

(6) A change in work, education, or other program assignment shall not be used for disciplinary purposes;

(7) The inmate charged shall be entitled to an adequate opportunity to prepare a defense. Such opportunity shall include the right to assistance and advice in preparing and presenting a defense from any inmate in general population or staff member at the institution where the hearing is held. Such inmate or staff member may serve in such an advisory capacity for the inmate so charged;

(8) Any hearing conducted pursuant to this section shall be tape recorded, and such recording shall be preserved for a period of six months; and

(9) The standard of proof to sustain the charge shall be substantial evidence.

Nothing in sections 83-4,109 to 83-4,123 shall be construed as to restrict or impair an inmate's free access to the courts and necessary legal assistance in any cause of action arising under such sections or to judicial review for disciplinary cases which involve the imposition of disciplinary isolation or the loss of good-time credit in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act. Such judicial review may only be invoked after completion of any review of the hearing prescribed by section 83-4,122 by the department.

(1) It is hereby declared to be the policy of the State of Nebraska that all criminal detention facilities in this state shall conform to certain minimum standards of construction, maintenance, and operation and that all juvenile detention facilities and staff secure juvenile facilities in this state shall conform to certain minimum standards relating to the operation and physical structure of such facilities and the care of, programs for, and discipline of juveniles at such facilities.

(2) To further such policy, the Jail Standards Board is hereby created. For administrative and budgetary purposes such board shall be within the Nebraska Commission on Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice. The board shall consist of the Director of Correctional Services or, if the Director of Correctional Services chooses not to serve on the board, a person appointed by the director to serve in lieu of the director, the State Fire Marshal or his or her designee, and ten appointive members, three of whom shall be from each of the three congressional districts, to be appointed by the Governor. The appointive members of the board shall be appointed from recommendation lists containing at least three names submitted by the Nebraska Association of County Officials, the Nebraska County Sheriffs Association, the Nebraska State Bar Association, and the Police Officers Association of Nebraska. The appointive members of the board shall consist of: (a) Two county commissioners or supervisors; (b) one county sheriff; (c) one municipal police chief; (d) one member of the Nebraska State Bar Association; (e) two lay people; (f) one person who at the time of his or her appointment is serving as an administrator responsible for the operation and maintenance of a juvenile detention facility; (g) one person who at the time of his or her appointment is serving as an administrator responsible for the operation and maintenance of a staff secure juvenile facility; and (h) one person who at the time of his or her appointment is serving as an administrator or jailer responsible for the operation and maintenance of a criminal detention facility having an average daily population of greater than fifty persons.

(3) The terms of office for all members initially appointed shall be three years. Upon completion of the initial term of the board, the Governor shall appoint one member from each congressional district for a term of one year, one member from each congressional district for a term of two years, and one member from each congressional district for a term of three years. Succeeding appointees shall be representative of the same congressional district and shall be appointed for terms of three years. An appointee to a vacancy occurring from an unexpired term shall serve out the term of his or her predecessor. Members whose terms have expired shall continue to serve until their successors have been appointed. The member authorized by Laws 2013, LB561, shall be appointed by the Governor within ninety days after May 30, 2013.

(4) The members of the board shall serve without compensation, but they shall be reimbursed for expenses while engaged in the performance of their official duties as provided in sections 81-1174 to 81-1177.

For purposes of sections 83-4,124 to 83-4,134.02:

(1) Criminal detention facility means any institution operated by a political subdivision or a combination of political subdivisions for the careful keeping or rehabilitative needs of adult or juvenile criminal offenders or those persons being detained while awaiting disposition of charges against them. Criminal detention facility does not include any institution operated by the Department of Correctional Services. Criminal detention facilities shall be classified as follows:

(a) Type I Facilities means criminal detention facilities used for the detention of persons for not more than twenty-four hours, excluding nonjudicial days;

(b) Type II Facilities means criminal detention facilities used for the detention of persons for not more than ninety-six hours, excluding nonjudicial days; and

(c) Type III Facilities means criminal detention facilities used for the detention of persons beyond ninety-six hours;

(2) Juvenile detention facility means an institution operated by a political subdivision or political subdivisions for the secure detention and treatment of persons younger than eighteen years of age, including persons under the jurisdiction of a juvenile court, who are serving a sentence pursuant to a conviction in a county or district court or who are detained while waiting disposition of charges against them. Juvenile detention facility does not include any institution operated by the department;

(3) Juvenile facility means a residential child-caring agency as defined in section 71-1926, a juvenile detention facility or staff secure juvenile facility as defined in this section, a facility operated by the Department of Correctional Services that houses youth under the age of majority, or a youth rehabilitation and treatment center;

(4) Room confinement means the involuntary restriction of a juvenile placed alone in a cell, alone in a room, or alone in another area, including a juvenile's own room, except during normal sleeping hours, whether or not such cell, room, or other area is subject to video or other electronic monitoring; and

(5) Staff secure juvenile facility means a juvenile residential facility operated by a political subdivision (a) which does not include construction designed to physically restrict the movements and activities of juveniles who are in custody in the facility, (b) in which physical restriction of movement or activity of juveniles is provided solely through staff, (c) which may establish reasonable rules restricting ingress to and egress from the facility, and (d) in which the movements and activities of individual juvenile residents may, for treatment purposes, be restricted or subject to control through the use of intensive staff supervision. Staff secure juvenile facility does not include any institution operated by the department.

(1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, the Jail Standards Board shall have the authority and responsibility:

(a) To develop minimum standards for the construction, maintenance, and operation of criminal detention facilities;

(b) To perform other duties as may be necessary to carry out the policy of the state regarding criminal detention facilities, juvenile detention facilities, and staff secure juvenile facilities as stated in sections 83-4,124 to 83-4,134.02; and

(c) Consistent with the purposes and objectives of the Juvenile Services Act, to develop standards for juvenile detention facilities and staff secure juvenile facilities, including, but not limited to, standards for physical facilities, care, programs, and disciplinary procedures, and to develop guidelines pertaining to the operation of such facilities.

(2) The Jail Standards Board shall not have authority over or responsibility for correctional facilities that are accredited by a nationally recognized correctional association. A correctional facility that is accredited by a nationally recognized correctional association shall show proof of accreditation annually to the Jail Standards Board. For purposes of this subsection, nationally recognized correctional association includes, but is not limited to, the American Correctional Association or its successor.

On or before July 1, 1979, the Jail Standards Board shall study, develop, and implement minimum standards for the construction, maintenance, and operation of criminal detention facilities pursuant to sections 83-4,128 to 83-4,130.

The minimum standards for the construction of criminal detention facilities shall include but not be limited to standards for the planning, design, or actual construction of new, modified, or renovated facilities, in excess of five thousand dollars.

The standards for the maintenance of criminal detention facilities shall include but not be limited to standards for:

(1) The staffing, training, and demeanor of personnel;

(2) The procedures for the admission and release of prisoners;

(3) The assignment procedures for assigning prisoners to housing, programs, and related activities;

(4) The establishment of a standardized records and statistical system for criminal detention facilities;

(5) The establishment of systems and procedures for the handling of prisoner mail, visits, and telephone services;

(6) The procedures for prisoner access to the media, general library, exercise, and recreation;

(7) The procedures for prisoner access to legal material, legal counsel, and religion;

(8) The supervision and uses of the facility arsenal, firearms, and key room;

(9) Food services;

(10) Health services; and

(11) Prisoner conduct.

The standards for the operation of criminal detention facilities shall include but not be limited to standards for:

(1) The classification and reclassification of prisoners;

(2) The rehabilitative services required for prisoners;

(3) The disciplinary procedures for prisoners;

(4) The grievance procedure for prisoners; and

(5) The search and admission of visitors.

Personnel of the Nebraska Commission on Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice shall visit and inspect each criminal detention facility, juvenile detention facility, and staff secure juvenile facility in the state, except correctional facilities accredited by a nationally recognized correctional association pursuant to subsection (2) of section 83-4,126, for the purpose of determining the conditions of confinement, the treatment of persons confined in the facilities, and whether such facilities comply with the minimum standards established by the Jail Standards Board. A written report of each inspection shall be made within thirty days following such inspection to the appropriate governing body responsible for the criminal detention facility, juvenile detention facility, or staff secure juvenile facility involved. The report shall specify those areas in which the facility does not comply with the required minimum standards.

If an inspection under sections 83-4,124 to 83-4,134.02 discloses that the criminal detention facility, juvenile detention facility, or staff secure juvenile facility does not meet the minimum standards established by the Jail Standards Board, the board shall send notice, together with the inspection report, to the governing body responsible for the facility. The appropriate governing body shall promptly meet to consider the inspection report, and the inspection personnel shall appear before the governing body to advise and consult concerning appropriate corrective action. The governing body shall then initiate appropriate corrective action within six months after the receipt of such inspection report or may voluntarily close the facility or the objectionable portion thereof.

If the governing body of the juvenile detention facility, criminal detention facility, or staff secure juvenile facility fails to initiate corrective action within six months after the receipt of such inspection report, fails to correct the disclosed conditions, or fails to close the criminal detention facility, juvenile detention facility, or staff secure juvenile facility or the objectionable portion thereof, the Jail Standards Board may petition the district court within the judicial district in which such facility is located to close the facility. Such petition shall include the inspection report regarding such facility. The local governing body shall then have thirty days to respond to such petition and shall serve a copy of the response on the Jail Standards Board by certified mail, return receipt requested. Thereafter, a hearing shall be held on the petition before the district court, and an order shall be rendered by such court which either:

(1) Dismisses the petition of the Jail Standards Board;

(2) Directs that corrective action be initiated in some form by the local governing body of the facility in question; or

(3) Directs that the facility be closed. An appeal from the decision of the district court may be taken to the Court of Appeals.

Sections 83-4,124 to 83-4,134.01 shall be implemented upon completion of the development of minimum standards by the Jail Standards Board. Thereafter, inspections shall begin, but no criminal detention facility, juvenile detention facility, or staff secure juvenile facility shall be closed within one year of the date of first filing of the minimum standards in the office of the Secretary of State. After one year from the date of first filing of the minimum standards, a facility may be closed for any violation of the minimum standards. Those standards relating to the construction of the facility itself and its plumbing, heating, and wiring systems shall not be enforced so as to require the closing of any facility for a period of two years from the date of the first filing of the minimum standards unless such violations are of immediate danger to the safety of the persons confined in the facility or facility personnel, in which case such period shall be one year.

(1) It is the intent of the Legislature to establish a system of investigation and performance review in order to provide increased accountability and oversight regarding the use of room confinement for juveniles in a juvenile facility.

(2) The following shall apply regarding placement in room confinement of a juvenile in a juvenile facility:

(a) Room confinement of a juvenile for longer than one hour during a twenty-four-hour period shall be documented and approved in writing by a supervisor in the juvenile facility. Documentation of the room confinement shall include the date of the occurrence; the race, ethnicity, age, and gender of the juvenile; the reason for placement of the juvenile in room confinement; an explanation of why less restrictive means were unsuccessful; the ultimate duration of the placement in room confinement; facility staffing levels at the time of confinement; and any incidents of self-harm or suicide committed by the juvenile while he or she was isolated;

(b) If any physical or mental health clinical evaluation was performed during the time the juvenile was in room confinement for longer than one hour, the results of such evaluation shall be considered in any decision to place a juvenile in room confinement or to continue room confinement;

(c) The juvenile facility shall submit a report quarterly to the Legislature on the juveniles placed in room confinement; the length of time each juvenile was in room confinement; the race, ethnicity, age, and gender of each juvenile placed in room confinement; facility staffing levels at the time of confinement; and the reason each juvenile was placed in room confinement. The report shall specifically address each instance of room confinement of a juvenile for more than four hours, including all reasons why attempts to return the juvenile to the general population of the juvenile facility were unsuccessful. The report shall also detail all corrective measures taken in response to noncompliance with this section. The report shall redact all personal identifying information but shall provide individual, not aggregate, data. The report shall be delivered electronically to the Legislature. The initial quarterly report shall be submitted within two weeks after the quarter ending on September 30, 2016. Subsequent reports shall be submitted for the ensuing quarters within two weeks after the end of each quarter; and

(d) The Inspector General of Nebraska Child Welfare shall review all data collected pursuant to this section in order to assess the use of room confinement for juveniles in each juvenile facility and prepare an annual report of his or her findings, including, but not limited to, identifying changes in policy and practice which may lead to decreased use of such confinement as well as model evidence-based criteria to be used to determine when a juvenile should be placed in room confinement. The report shall be delivered electronically to the Legislature on an annual basis.

(3) The use of consecutive periods of room confinement to avoid the intent or purpose of this section is prohibited.

(4) Any juvenile facility which is not a residential child-caring agency which fails to comply with the requirements of this section is subject to disciplinary action as provided in section 83-4,134. Any juvenile facility which is a residential child-caring agency which fails to comply with the requirements of this section is subject to disciplinary action as provided in section 71-1940.

(1) This section applies to placement of a juvenile in room confinement in the following facilities: A juvenile detention facility, staff secure juvenile facility, facility operated by the Department of Correctional Services, or youth rehabilitation and treatment center operated by the Department of Health and Human Services.

(2) A juvenile shall not be placed in room confinement for any of the following reasons:

(a) As a punishment or a disciplinary sanction;

(b) As a response to a staffing shortage; or

(c) As retaliation against the juvenile by staff.

(3) A juvenile shall not be placed in room confinement unless all other less-restrictive alternatives have been exhausted and the juvenile poses an immediate and substantial risk of harm to self or others.

(4) A juvenile may only be held in room confinement according to the following conditions:

(a) A juvenile shall not be held in room confinement longer than the minimum time required to eliminate the substantial and immediate risk of harm to self or others and shall be released from room confinement as soon as the substantial and immediate risk of harm to self or others is resolved; and

(b) A juvenile shall only be held in room confinement for a period that does not compromise or harm the mental or physical health of the juvenile.

(5) Any juvenile placed in room confinement shall be released immediately upon regaining sufficient control so as to no longer engage in behavior that threatens substantial and immediate risk of harm to self or others.

(6) Not later than one business day after the date on which a facility places a juvenile in room confinement, the facility shall provide notice of the placement in room confinement to the juvenile's parent or guardian and the attorney of record for the juvenile.

(7) All rooms used for room confinement shall have adequate and operating lighting, heating and cooling, and ventilation for the comfort of the juvenile. Rooms shall be clean and resistant to suicide and self-harm. Juveniles in room confinement shall have access to drinking water, toilet facilities, hygiene supplies, and reading materials approved by a licensed mental health professional.

(8) Juveniles in room confinement shall have the same access as provided to juveniles in the general population of the facility to meals, contact with parents or legal guardians, legal assistance, and access to educational programming.

(9) Juveniles in room confinement shall have access to appropriate medical and mental health services. Mental health staff shall promptly provide mental health services as needed.

(10) Juveniles in room confinement shall be continuously monitored by staff of the facility. Continuous monitoring may be accomplished through regular in-person visits to the confined juvenile which may also be supplemented by electronic video monitoring.

(11) The use of consecutive periods of room confinement to avoid the intent and purpose of this section is prohibited.

(12) Nothing in this section shall be construed to authorize or require the construction or erection of fencing or similar structures at any facility, nor the imposition of nonrehabilitative approaches to behavior management within any facility.

An inmate shall have the right to file a grievance on any subject except disciplinary actions and matters over which the Department of Correctional Services has no control. Grievance procedures shall provide for the review of grievances by a person or persons other than the person or persons directly responsible for the conditions or actions against which the grievance is filed.

Grievance review procedures shall provide that a record of grievances and any decision made with respect to such grievances shall be preserved for a period of one year.

Grievance review procedures shall allow inmates to communicate grievances directly to the Director of Correctional Services, the office of the Public Counsel, or any other appropriate person outside the Department of Correctional Services.

All inmates shall be informed of the grievance procedures established by the department and copies of such procedures shall be available to all inmates.

Discipline shall not be imposed because of use of the grievance procedure.

The Department of Correctional Services shall develop and implement an incarceration work camp for placement of felony offenders as a transitional phase prior to release on parole or as assigned by the Director of Correctional Services pursuant to subsection (2) of section 83-176. As part of the incarceration work camp, an intensive residential drug treatment program may be developed and implemented for felony offenders.

It is the intent of the Legislature that the incarceration work camp serve to reduce prison overcrowding and to make prison bed space available for violent offenders. It is the further intent of the Legislature that the incarceration work camp serve the interests of society by addressing the criminogenic needs of certain designated offenders and by deterring such offenders from engaging in further criminal activity. To accomplish these goals, the incarceration work camp shall provide regimented, structured, disciplined programming, including all of the following: Work programs; vocational training; behavior management and modification; money management; substance abuse awareness, counseling, and treatment; and education, programming needs, and aftercare planning, which will increase the offender's abilities to lead a law-abiding, productive, and fulfilling life as a contributing member of a free society.

(1) It is the intent of the Legislature that the Board of Parole may recommend placement of felony offenders at the incarceration work camp. The offenders recommended by the board shall be offenders currently housed at other Department of Correctional Services adult correctional facilities and shall complete the incarceration work camp programming prior to release on parole.

(2) When the Board of Parole is of the opinion that a felony offender currently incarcerated in a Department of Correctional Services adult correctional facility may benefit from a brief and intensive period of regimented, structured, and disciplined programming immediately prior to release on parole, the board may direct placement of such an offender in an incarceration work camp for a period not to exceed one hundred eighty days as a condition of release on parole. The board may consider such placement if the felony offender (a) is medically and mentally fit to participate, with allowances given for reasonable accommodation as determined by medical and mental health professionals, and (b) has not previously been incarcerated for a violent felony crime. Offenders convicted of a crime under sections 28-319 to 28-322.05 or of any capital crime are not eligible to be placed in an incarceration work camp.

(3) The Director of Correctional Services may assign a felony offender to an incarceration work camp if he or she believes it is in the best interests of the felony offender and of society, except that offenders convicted of a crime under sections 28-319 to 28-322.05 or of any capital crime are not eligible to be assigned to an incarceration work camp pursuant to this subsection.

An offender placed in an incarceration work camp pursuant to a recommendation of the Board of Parole shall be released on parole upon successful completion, as determined by the board, of the incarceration work camp program.

An offender placed at the incarceration work camp pursuant to a recommendation of the Board of Parole who fails to successfully complete the incarceration work camp program shall be returned to the board for a rescission hearing. Credit shall be given for time actually served in the incarceration work camp program.

All costs incurred during the period the offender is committed to an incarceration work camp shall be the responsibility of the state, including the cost of transporting the offender to the incarceration work camp and for returning the offender to the appropriate Department of Correctional Services adult correctional facility if the offender is discharged for unsatisfactory performance from the incarceration work camp.

An annual progress report shall be provided electronically to the Legislature ensuring that all programmatic objectives are being met. The report shall include an evaluation of the impact of the multi-treatment programs, including program costs, educational achievement, inmate disciplinary activity, probation release decisionmaking, and community reintegration on November 1 of the year following implementation.

Sections 83-4,153 to 83-4,165 shall be known and may be cited as the Nebraska Correctional Health Care Services Act.

For purposes of the Nebraska Correctional Health Care Services Act:

(1) Community standard of health care means medical care of the type, quality, and amount that any individual residing within the community in question could expect to receive in that community;

(2) Department means the Department of Correctional Services;

(3) Health care services means all medical care provided by or on behalf of the department to inmates and includes the practice of medicine and surgery, the practice of pharmacy, nursing care, dental care, optometric care, audiological care, physical therapy, mental health care, and substance abuse counseling and treatment;

(4) Inmate means an individual in the custody of the department; and

(5) Medical doctor means a person licensed to practice medicine and surgery in this state.

In administering health care services, the department shall provide a community standard of health care to all inmates.

The Director of Correctional Services shall appoint a medical director for the department who shall be a medical doctor. The medical director shall be a person familiar with principles of quality assurance and internal credentialing procedures and shall be under the sole immediate supervision of the Director of Correctional Services.

The medical director shall:

(1) Coordinate all clinical services;

(2) Participate in the selection and supervision of all clinical staff employed by or under contract with the department, including medical doctors, physician assistants, pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, registered nurses, licensed practical nurses, advanced practice registered nurses practicing under and in accordance with their respective certification acts, mental health practitioners, alcohol and drug counselors, laboratory technicians, physical therapists, optometrists, audiologists, dentists, dental assistants, and dental hygienists;

(3) Maintain and preserve the medical records of health care services;

(4) Approve the purchasing of all necessary medical supplies and medical equipment for the department;

(5) Recommend all necessary programs for the preservice, inservice, and continuing medical training and education of the health care staff and other relevant staff of the department, including training specifically designed to promote prompt and effective responses by all staff of the department to medical emergencies;

(6) Develop and implement condition-specific medical treatment protocols that ensure compatibility with a community standard of health care, including protocols addressing the: (a) Treatment of gastrointestinal bleeds; (b) detection and treatment of all communicable diseases; (c) treatment of gender-specific problems; (d) treatment of diabetes; (e) treatment of hypertension; (f) treatment of headaches; (g) utilization of surgical procedures; (h) control of infection; (i) provision of dental care; (j) provision of age-specific and gender-specific routine health maintenance; (k) means by which inmates obtain access to health care services; (l) use of prescribed drugs, devices, or biologicals for the purpose of pain management; (m) referral of patients to medical specialists not in the employ of the department; and (n) initiation, observance, and termination of do not resuscitate orders initiated pursuant to the Rights of the Terminally Ill Act;

(7) Develop and implement a system of general discharge planning for the health care services to be received by inmates who are soon to be released from the custody of the department and who have chronic health care problems, including establishment of a protocol to determine whether or not an inmate soon to be released should be prescribed and dispensed a medication-assisted treatment that could assist in reducing or eliminating the inmate’s use of opiates;

(8) Develop and implement a comprehensive health care services plan;

(9) Develop and implement an internal credentialing program for the employment and retention of the health care staff of the department based on a community standard of health care; and

(10) Develop and implement an internal peer review and quality assurance program based upon a community standard of health care.

The internal credentialing program shall include for each health care staff member being considered for employment or retention (1) an investigation of the history of the health care staff member using (a) when possible, the national practitioner data bank under the federal Health Care Quality Improvement Act of 1986, 42 U.S.C. 11101 et seq., as such act existed on September 1, 2001, and (b) contacts with prior employers of the health care staff member and (2) confirmation of all professional permits, licenses, or other authorizations to practice of the health care staff member. The medical director shall maintain a credentialing file for all health care staff members employed by the department. The medical director shall ensure the recredentialing of each health care staff member employed by the department every two years.

(1) In assigning health care staff to the correctional facilities under the control of the department, the medical director shall ensure that each facility has at least one designated medical doctor on call at all times and that each facility housing more than five hundred inmates has at least one full-time medical doctor assigned to that facility as his or her primary employment location.

(2) The medical director shall establish an acute care clinic in each of the correctional facilities and ensure that each clinic is staffed by at least one medical doctor, physician assistant, or advanced practice registered nurse practicing under and in accordance with his or her respective certification act.

(3) The medical director shall establish chronic care clinics to provide health care services to inmates with chronic disease conditions, including diabetes and hypertension.

(4) The medical director shall establish a human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome chronic care clinic which shall provide for the relevant treatment, counseling, and education of inmates who are known to be infected with the human immunodeficiency virus.

All medical treatment protocols developed, approved, and implemented by the department shall be based upon a community standard of health care. When applicable, these medical treatment protocols shall emphasize the need to maintain the continuity of any previously prescribed drugs, devices, or biologicals and treatment regimens that inmates are subject to when they enter the custody of the department. The medical director shall establish a mechanism for the periodic systematic review of all existing medical treatment protocols. All deviations from the approved medical treatment protocols shall be thoroughly documented by the department's health care staff and shall be systematically reviewed by the department's peer review and quality assurance panel.

In developing medical treatment protocols for the clinics, the medical director shall define the circumstances under which chronically ill inmates should return to the chronic care clinics for check-ups and when appointments should be made for chronically ill inmates to next be examined by health care staff. In developing and implementing medical treatment protocols for clinics for the detection and treatment of communicable diseases, the medical director shall ensure that the medical treatment protocols include:

(1) Provisions allowing for the routine immunization against communicable diseases of all inmates upon entering the custody of the department;

(2) Provisions requiring each inmate to be screened for communicable diseases, including (a) human immunodeficiency virus, (b) hepatitis A virus, (c) hepatitis B virus, (d) hepatitis C virus, (e) tuberculosis, and (f) sexually transmitted diseases, when the inmate enters into the custody of the department;

(3) Provisions requiring each inmate to be screened for (a) human immunodeficiency virus, unless previously tested positive, (b) hepatitis B virus, unless previously tested positive, (c) hepatitis C virus, unless previously tested positive, (d) tuberculosis, unless tested within the immediately preceding year or previously tested positive, and (e) sexually transmitted diseases, when the inmate leaves the custody of the department. No such screening shall be conducted without inmate consent;

(4) Provisions requiring any inmate in the custody of the department found to be infected with any of the diseases referenced in subdivision (2) of this section, when medically indicated, to be immediately referred to an infectious disease specialist for appropriate treatment;

(5) Provisions describing in detail those circumstances when it is medically desirable, because of risk to other noninfected inmates, to segregate, on an individual basis, any inmate found to be infected with the human immunodeficiency virus and also describing those circumstances when there is no longer a perceived medical need to continue the segregation of such an inmate;

(6) Provisions requiring that all health care staff who provide health care services be screened for communicable diseases, including (a) human immunodeficiency virus, (b) hepatitis A virus, (c) hepatitis B virus, and (d) hepatitis C virus, upon their entry into the employment of the department, and that all health care staff also be screened annually for tuberculosis; and

(7) Provisions allowing for employees of the department who come into immediate personal contact with the inmates to be immunized for hepatitis B virus.

The medical director shall develop and implement medical treatment protocols regarding the use of drugs, devices, or biologicals for the treatment of inmates and shall ensure that those protocols are consistent with a community standard of health care. In developing these protocols, the medical director shall ensure that the medical treatment protocols include:

(1) Provisions requiring that only the relevant health care staff is involved in determining the number and dosages of the drugs, devices, or biologicals to be received by inmates under their care;

(2) Provisions establishing a system for monitoring the administration of drugs, devices, or biologicals to ensure that all prescribed drugs, devices, or biologicals are made available to the inmates; and

(3) Provisions establishing a system for monitoring and removing expired drugs, devices, or biologicals within the department's medication inventory which conforms with the requirements of section 71-2413.

The medical director shall develop and implement medical treatment protocols for common surgical procedures. In developing these protocols, the medical director shall ensure that the medical treatment protocols include:

(1) Provisions defining procedures that are considered to be major surgery;

(2) Provisions requiring that all inmates needing major surgery are referred to appropriate specialists and facilities outside of the department for that surgery;

(3) Provisions requiring the implementation of pain management measures within an appropriate time after the completion of surgical procedures;

(4) Provisions requiring that all decisions by the health care staff regarding whether or not surgery should be performed are based on a community standard of health care; and

(5) Provisions requiring the health care staff to carefully document the rationale for each of their decisions to resort to surgery or to refrain from surgery as a treatment option.

The peer review and quality assurance program developed and implemented by the medical director shall provide for the ongoing review of the quality of health care services. This peer review and quality assurance program shall be carried out by a peer review and quality assurance panel comprised of medical doctors providing health care services and such other health care staff as the department designates. The peer review and quality assurance program shall be conducted through regular periodic meetings of the peer review and quality assurance panel for the purpose of examining issues pertaining to the quality of health care services. The peer review and quality assurance panel shall also conduct a regular review of selected cases arising in order to identify, critique, and correct errors in the practices and procedures of the health care staff. The peer review and quality assurance panel shall also review (1) all cases in which there has been a death of an inmate and (2) all cases in which there have been deviations from the approved medical treatment protocols of the department. The medical director shall develop and implement a procedure for the direct feedback to the peer review and quality assurance panel of inmate complaints and other information from inmates pertaining to health care services. A permanent record of the meetings and deliberations of the peer review and quality assurance panel shall be maintained, but the records and all other evidence pertaining directly to the deliberations of the peer review and quality assurance panel are not subject to discovery in any civil action arising out of the health care services provided by or on behalf of the department.

The department shall seek accreditation of its medical program by the American Correctional Association Commission on Accreditation for Corrections.

The Interstate Compact on Mental Health is hereby enacted into law and entered into by this state with all other states legally joining therein, in the form substantially as follows:

INTERSTATE COMPACT ON MENTAL HEALTH

Article I

The party states find that the proper and expeditious treatment of the mentally ill and mentally deficient can be facilitated by cooperative action, to the benefit of the patients, their families, and society as a whole. Further, the party states find that the necessity of and desirability for furnishing such care and treatment bears no primary relation to the residence or citizenship of the patient but that, on the contrary, the controlling factors of community safety and humanitarianism require that facilities and services be made available for all who are in need of them. Consequently, it is the purpose of this compact and of the party states to provide the necessary legal basis for the institutionalization or other appropriate care and treatment of the mentally ill and mentally deficient under a system that recognizes the paramount importance of patient welfare and to establish the responsibilities of the party states in terms of such welfare.

Article II

As used in this compact:

(a) "Sending state" shall mean a party state from which a patient is transported pursuant to the provisions of the compact or from which it is contemplated that a patient may be so sent.

(b) "Receiving state" shall mean a party state to which a patient is transported pursuant to the provisions of the compact or to which it is contemplated that a patient may be so sent.

(c) "Institution" shall mean any hospital or other facility maintained by a party state or political subdivision thereof for the care and treatment of mental illness or mental deficiency.

(d) "Patient" shall mean any person subject to or eligible as determined by the laws of the sending state, for institutionalization or other care, treatment, or supervision pursuant to the provisions of this compact.

(e) "After-care" shall mean care, treatment and services provided a patient, as defined herein, on convalescent status or conditional release.

(f) "Mental illness" shall mean mental disease to such extent that a person so afflicted requires care and treatment for his own welfare, or the welfare of others, or of the community.

(g) "Mental deficiency" shall mean mental deficiency as defined by appropriate clinical authorities to such extent that a person so afflicted is incapable of managing himself and his affairs, but shall not include mental illness as defined herein.

(h) "State" shall mean any state, territory or possession of the United States, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.

Article III

(a) Whenever a person physically present in any party state shall be in need of institutionalization by reason of mental illness or mental deficiency, he shall be eligible for care and treatment in an institution in that state irrespective of his residence, settlement or citizenship qualifications.

(b) The provisions of paragraph (a) of this article to the contrary notwithstanding, any patient may be transferred to an institution in another state whenever there are factors based upon clinical determinations indicating that the care and treatment of said patient would be facilitated or improved thereby. Any such institutionalization may be for the entire period of care and treatment or for any portion or portions thereof. The factors referred to in this paragraph shall include the patient's full record with due regard for the location of the patient's family, character of the illness and probable duration thereof, and such other factors as shall be considered appropriate.

(c) No state shall be obliged to receive any patient pursuant to the provisions of paragraph (b) of this article unless the sending state has given advance notice of its intention to send the patient; furnished all available medical and other pertinent records concerning the patient; given the qualified medical or other appropriate clinical authorities of the receiving state an opportunity to examine the patient if said authorities so wish; and unless the receiving state shall agree to accept the patient.

(d) In the event that the laws of the receiving state establish a system of priorities for the admission of patients, an interstate patient under this compact shall receive the same priority as a local patient and shall be taken in the same order and at the same time that he would be taken if he were a local patient.

(e) Pursuant to this compact, the determination as to the suitable place of institutionalization for a patient may be reviewed at any time and such further transfer of the patient may be made as seems likely to be in the best interest of the patient.

Article IV

(a) Whenever, pursuant to the laws of the state in which a patient is physically present, it shall be determined that the patient should receive after-care or supervision, such care or supervision may be provided in a receiving state. If the medical or other appropriate clinical authorities having responsibility for the care and treatment of the patient in the sending state shall have reason to believe that after-care in another state would be in the best interest of the patient and would not jeopardize the public safety, they shall request the appropriate authorities in the receiving state to investigate the desirability of affording the patient such after-care in said receiving state, and such investigation shall be made with all reasonable speed. The request for investigation shall be accompanied by complete information concerning the patient's intended place of residence and the identity of the person in whose charge it is proposed to place the patient, the complete medical history of the patient, and such other documents as may be pertinent.

(b) If the medical or other appropriate clinical authorities having responsibility for the care and treatment of the patient in the sending state and the appropriate authorities in the receiving state find that the best interest of the patient would be served thereby, and if the public safety would not be jeopardized thereby, the patient may receive after-care or supervision in the receiving state.

(c) In supervising, treating, or caring for a patient on after-care pursuant to the terms of this article, a receiving state shall employ the same standards of visitation, examination, care, and treatment that it employs for similar local patients.

Article V

Whenever a dangerous or potentially dangerous patient escapes from an institution in any party state, that state shall promptly notify all appropriate authorities within and without the jurisdiction of the escape in a manner reasonably calculated to facilitate the speedy apprehension of the escapee. Immediately upon the apprehension and identification of any such dangerous or potentially dangerous patient, he shall be detained in the state where found pending disposition in accordance with law.

Article VI

The duly accredited officers of any state party to this compact, upon the establishment of their authority and the identity of the patient, shall be permitted to transport any patient being moved pursuant to this compact through any and all states party to this compact, without interference.

Article VII

(a) No person shall be deemed a patient of more than one institution at any given time. Completion of transfer of any patient to an institution in a receiving state shall have the effect of making the person a patient of the institution in the receiving state.

(b) The sending state shall pay all costs of and incidental to the transportation of any patient pursuant to this compact, but any two or more party states may, by making a specific agreement for that purpose, arrange for a different allocation of costs as among themselves.

(c) No provision of this compact shall be construed to alter or affect any internal relationships among the departments, agencies and officers of and in the government of a party state, or between a party state and its subdivisions, as to the payment of costs, or responsibilities therefor.

(d) Nothing in this compact shall be construed to prevent any party state or subdivision thereof from asserting any right against any person, agency or other entity in regard to costs for which such party state or subdivision thereof may be responsible pursuant to any provision of this compact.

(e) Nothing in this compact shall be construed to invalidate any reciprocal agreement between a party state and a non-party state relating to institutionalization, care or treatment of the mentally ill or mentally deficient, or any statutory authority pursuant to which such agreements may be made.

Article VIII

(a) Nothing in this compact shall be construed to abridge, diminish, or in any way impair the rights, duties, and responsibilities of any patient's guardian on his own behalf or in respect of any patient for whom he may serve, except that where the transfer of any patient to another jurisdiction makes advisable the appointment of a supplemental or substitute guardian, any court of competent jurisdiction in the receiving state may make such supplemental or substitute appointment and the court which appointed the previous guardian shall upon being duly advised of the new appointment, and upon the satisfactory completion of such accounting and other acts as such court may by law require, relieve the previous guardian of power and responsibility to whatever extent shall be appropriate in the circumstances; provided, however, that in the case of any patient having settlement in the sending state, the court of competent jurisdiction in the sending state shall have the sole discretion to relieve a guardian appointed by it or continue his power and responsibility, whichever it shall deem advisable. The court in the receiving state may, in its discretion, confirm or reappoint the person or persons previously serving as guardian in the sending state in lieu of making a supplemental or substitute appointment.

(b) The term "guardian" as used in paragraph (a) of this article shall include any guardian, trustee, legal committee, conservator, or other person or agency however denominated who is charged by law with power to act for or responsibility for the person or property of a patient.

Article IX

(a) No provision of this compact except Article V shall apply to any person institutionalized while under sentence in a penal or correctional institution or while subject to trial on a criminal charge, or whose institutionalization is due to the commission of an offense for which, in the absence of mental illness or mental deficiency, said person would be subject to incarceration in a penal or correctional institution.

(b) To every extent possible, it shall be the policy of states party to this compact that no patient shall be placed or detained in any prison, jail or lockup, but such patient shall, with all expedition, be taken to a suitable institutional facility for mental illness or mental deficiency.

Article X

(a) Each party state shall appoint a "compact administrator" who, on behalf of his state, shall act as general coordinator of activities under the compact in his state and who shall receive copies of all reports, correspondence, and other documents relating to any patient processed under the compact by his state either in the capacity of sending or receiving state. The compact administrator or his duly designated representative shall be the official with whom other party states shall deal in any matter relating to the compact or any patient processed thereunder.

(b) The compact administrators of the respective party states shall have power to promulgate reasonable rules and regulations to carry out more effectively the terms and provisions of this compact.

Article XI

The duly constituted administrative authorities of any two or more party states may enter into supplementary agreements for the provision of any service or facility or for the maintenance of any institution on a joint or cooperative basis whenever the states concerned shall find that such agreements will improve services, facilities, or institutional care and treatment in the fields of mental illness or mental deficiency. No such supplementary agreement shall be construed so as to relieve any party state of any obligation which it otherwise would have under other provisions of this compact.

Article XII

This compact shall enter into full force and effect as to any state when enacted by it into law and such state shall thereafter be a party thereto with any and all states legally joining therein.

Article XIII

(a) A state party to this compact may withdraw therefrom by enacting a statute repealing the same. Such withdrawal shall take effect one year after notice thereof has been communicated officially and in writing to the governors and compact administrators of all other party states. However, the withdrawal of any state shall not change the status of any patient who has been sent to said state or sent out of said state pursuant to the provisions of the compact.

(b) Withdrawal from any agreement permitted by Article VII (b) as to costs or from any supplementary agreement made pursuant to Article XI shall be in accordance with the terms of such agreement.

Article XIV

This compact shall be liberally construed so as to effectuate the purposes thereof. The provisions of this compact shall be severable and if any phrase, clause, sentence or provision of this compact is declared to be contrary to the constitution of any party state or of the United States or the applicability thereof to any government, agency, person or circumstance is held invalid, the validity of the remainder of this compact and the applicability thereof to any government, agency, person or circumstance shall not be affected thereby. If this compact shall be held contrary to the constitution of any state party thereto, the compact shall remain in full force and effect as to the remaining states and in full force and effect as to the state affected as to all severable matters.

Pursuant to the compact as provided in section 83-801, the chief executive officer of the Department of Health and Human Services or such person as the chief executive officer may designate shall be the compact administrator and shall have the power to promulgate rules and regulations to carry out more effectively the terms of the compact. The compact administrator is hereby authorized, empowered, and directed to cooperate with all departments, agencies, and officers of and in the government of this state and its subdivisions in facilitating the proper administration of the compact or of any supplementary agreement or agreements entered into by this state thereunder.

The compact administrator is hereby authorized and empowered to enter into supplementary agreements with appropriate officials of other states pursuant to Articles VII and XI of the compact. In the event that such supplementary agreements shall require or contemplate the use of any institution or facility of this state or require or contemplate the provision of any service by this state, no such agreement shall have force or effect until approved by the head of the department or agency under whose jurisdiction said institution or facility is operated or whose department or agency will be charged with the rendering of such service.

The compact administrator, with the approval of the state budget officer and the Governor, may make or arrange for any payments necessary to discharge any financial obligations imposed upon this state by the compact or by any supplementary agreement entered into thereunder.

The compact administrator is hereby directed to consult with the immediate family of any proposed transferee and, in the case of a proposed transferee from an institution in this state to an institution in another party state, to take no final action without the approval of the court of commitment if the proposed transferee is in a state institution or facility pursuant to an order of a court.

Duly authorized copies of sections 83-801 to 83-806 shall, upon their approval be transmitted by the Secretary of State to the Governor of each state, the Attorney General and the Administrator of General Services of the United States, and the Council of State Governments.

The purpose of sections 49-617, 68-621, 72-249, 72-1302 to 72-1304, 81-101, 81-102, 81-1021, 83-101.08, 83-107.01, 83-108, 83-112, 83-135, 83-139, 83-140, 83-144, 83-145, 83-147 to 83-150, 83-153 to 83-156, 83-170 to 83-173, 83-186, 83-188, 83-443, and 83-901 to 83-916 is to establish an agency of state government for the custody, study, care, discipline, training, and treatment of persons in the correctional and detention institutions and for the study, training, and treatment of persons under the supervision of other correctional services of the state so that they may be prepared for lawful community living. Correctional services shall be so diversified in program and personnel as to facilitate individualization of treatment.

The Department of Correctional Services shall adopt a seal. Copies of all records or other instruments in the department, when certified by the department as true copies and bearing the seal thereof, shall be received in any court as prima facie evidence of the original records or instruments.

(1) The Department of Correctional Services, in consultation with the Board of Parole, shall develop a reentry program for individuals incarcerated in a department correctional facility, individuals who have been discharged from a department correctional facility within the prior eighteen months, and parolees. The department shall hire a reentry program administrator to develop and oversee the reentry program and additional staff as needed to implement the reentry program.

(2) The purpose of the reentry program is to facilitate a standard systemwide program of reentry for individuals leaving correctional facilities or transitioning off community supervision. The primary objectives of the reentry program are to reduce recidivism, to identify, assess, and provide treatment options for individuals with mental illness, to increase public safety, and to improve the overall transition of the individual from the criminal justice system into the community.

(3) The department shall develop and implement individual, comprehensive reentry plans for parolees. Such plans shall address housing, employment, health care, substance abuse treatment, mental health services, and other essential needs to support successful community reintegration. The department shall provide necessary resources and support to parolees to facilitate their adherence to their reentry plans.

(1) Prior to the discharge of an individual from a facility of the Department of Correctional Services, the department shall provide such individual with an opportunity to obtain a state identification card or renew a motor vehicle operator's license.

(2) The Office of Probation Administration may assist any such individual in obtaining a state identification card or renewing a motor vehicle operator's license. The department shall cooperate with and facilitate the office's involvement in such matter.

(1) The Vocational and Life Skills Program is created within the Department of Correctional Services, in consultation with the Board of Parole. The program shall provide funding to aid in the establishment and provision of community-based vocational training and life skills training for adults who are incarcerated, formerly incarcerated, or serving a period of supervision on either probation or parole.

(2)(a) The Vocational and Life Skills Programming Fund is created. The fund shall consist of transfers authorized by the Legislature, funds donated by nonprofit entities, funds from the federal government, and funds from other sources. The fund shall be used to provide grants to community-based organizations, community colleges, federally recognized or state-recognized Indian tribes, or nonprofit organizations that provide vocational and life skills programming and services to adults and juveniles who are incarcerated, who have been incarcerated within the prior eighteen months, or who are serving a period of supervision on either probation or parole.

(b) The department, in awarding grants, shall give priority to programs, services, or training that results in meaningful employment or that provides reentry or transitional housing, wrap-around services, family support, or restorative justice programming.

(c) Any funds not distributed to community-based organizations, community colleges, federally recognized or state-recognized Indian tribes, or nonprofit organizations shall be retained by the department to be distributed on a competitive basis under the Vocational and Life Skills Program. Such funds shall not be expended by the department for any other purpose.

(d) No money in the fund shall be used for capital construction.

(e) Any money in the fund available for investment shall be invested by the state investment officer pursuant to the Nebraska Capital Expansion Act and the Nebraska State Funds Investment Act. Investment earnings from investment of money in the fund shall be credited to the fund.

(f) Beginning July 1, 2022, and each July 1 thereafter until July 1, 2024, the State Treasurer shall transfer five million dollars annually from the Prison Overcrowding Contingency Fund to the Vocational and Life Skills Programming Fund, on such dates as directed by the budget administrator of the budget division of the Department of Administrative Services.

(3) The department, in consultation with the Board of Parole, shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations to carry out the Vocational and Life Skills Program. The rules and regulations shall include, but not be limited to, a plan for evaluating the effectiveness of programs, services, and training that receive funding and a reporting process for aid recipients.

(4) The reentry program administrator shall report quarterly to the Governor and the Clerk of the Legislature beginning October 1, 2014, on the distribution and use of the aid distributed under the Vocational and Life Skills Program, including how many individuals received programming, the types of programming, the cost per individual for each program, service, or training provided, how many individuals successfully completed their programming, and information on any funds that have not been used. The report to the Clerk of the Legislature shall be submitted electronically.

The Department of Correctional Services shall have oversight and general control of all state adult correctional institutions and the secure youth facility. The Secure Youth Confinement Facility is a physically secure, coeducational facility designed to provide secure confinement, education, and treatment only for serious and chronic juvenile offenders who have been committed to the Department of Correctional Services for secure care.

The Department of Correctional Services shall conduct a department-wide staffing analysis of all positions, including a specific analysis regarding behavioral health staffing, in an effort to make a comprehensive determination of staffing needs. Concurrently, the department shall make short-term recommendations for needed staffing, including, but not limited to, facility administrative and support positions, in order to improve the effectiveness of staffing.

The staffing analysis shall be completed and a report of its findings and subsequent staffing recommendations submitted electronically to the Legislature no later than September 15, 2020. Subsequent updates of the staffing analysis shall be completed and shall be submitted electronically to the Legislature on or before September 15, 2026, and at least every six years thereafter or more frequently at the discretion of the department.

To ensure public safety in the event a correctional system overcrowding emergency is ever declared or determined to exist, the Department of Correctional Services and the Board of Parole shall submit to the Legislature a proposed plan which describes the process of implementing the accelerated parole review process required by section 83-962. The plan shall include, but not be limited to:

(1) The process by which the Director of Correctional Services shall certify that an overcrowding emergency exists;

(2) The process by which the department shall prepare and submit to the board a listing of parole-eligible committed offenders to be considered or reconsidered accelerated for parole;

(3) Any statutory changes required or funding necessary to accommodate such process;

(4) The process by which the board shall examine committed offenders during the accelerated parole review;

(5) A review of the analysis for granting parole pursuant to section 83-1,114 and whether this process and the factors set out in such section are sufficient or adequate for the accelerated parole review process required by section 83-962;

(6) A review of the process of supervising parolees released pursuant to the accelerated review process and the necessary means to ensure public safety; and

(7) Any statutory changes required or resources necessary to accommodate the existence of an overcrowding emergency status and to facilitate the potential requisite gubernatorial declaration of such emergency.

The plan shall be submitted electronically in a report to the Legislature on or before December 1, 2018.

The Department of Correctional Services shall prepare an estimate of the appropriations necessary for the support and needed improvements of the institutions under its charge, and a report of their operation during the preceding year, for the use of the Legislature. The estimate shall be printed, and may include a report of the results of investigation of methods of institution management and of treatment of patients and inmates, with suggestions for the betterment of any or all conditions.

The Department of Correctional Services shall gather demographic information for statistical reporting purposes, shall encourage scientific investigation of the treatment of delinquency and crime, shall provide forms for statistical returns to be made by the institutions in their annual reports, and shall supervise the methods of care, treatment, education, and improvement of the inmates of the institutions under its control.

The Director of Correctional Services may examine any employee of the Department of Correctional Services and make such inquiries as will determine the employee's fitness for his or her respective duties, and the director shall investigate and report to the Governor any abuses or wrongs alleged to exist in the department.

The Director of Correctional Services shall be prepared to give any information desired by the Legislature concerning the institutions under his control, and his administration shall be subject to examination under oath by a legislative committee touching any matter in regard to which the Legislature may desire information concerning the condition of the institutions, their inmates, and the performance of their duties by the director or his employees. The committee may call and examine under oath any other persons as witnesses in such investigation. Such examinations shall be conducted in the manner and subject to the provisions of section 83-114.

Neither the Director of Correctional Services nor any employee of the Department of Correctional Services shall receive from any person, firm, or corporation having dealings with the department, or from any employee or representative of such person, firm, or corporation, any gift or gratuity, either directly or indirectly, for himself or for any other person. The director or any employee who receives such a gift or gratuity shall be deemed guilty of bribery under section 28-917 and shall be removed from office.

All money derived from any source in any institution controlled by the Department of Correctional Services shall be remitted to the State Treasurer by the proper executive officer on the first day of each month. Detailed reports showing the source of all money received shall be made to the department every thirty days.

(1) There is hereby created the Department of Correctional Services Facility Cash Fund.

Except as otherwise provided, all money derived from any source in any facility under the supervision of the Department of Correctional Services shall be remitted to the State Treasurer in accordance with the policies and procedures established by the Director of Correctional Services for credit to the fund. Transfers may be made from the fund to the General Fund at the direction of the Legislature. Any money in the Department of Correctional Services Facility Cash Fund available for investment may be invested pursuant to the Nebraska Capital Expansion Act and the Nebraska State Funds Investment Act.

(2) All disbursements from the fund shall be made by the Director of Administrative Services by warrants drawn on the fund only upon certification of expenses by the chief executive officer of the appropriate facility within the Department of Correctional Services and upon presentation of proper vouchers for such expenses by the Director of Correctional Services or his or her authorized agent.

An Emergency Revolving Fund, not to exceed six thousand dollars for any one institution or the central office of the Department of Correctional Services, upon order of the Director of Correctional Services, shall be drawn from the State Treasurer, to be used by the chief executive officer of each institution or the central office as an emergency cash fund. The fund shall be drawn from the general maintenance appropriation for the director. An accounting of such fund shall be made by each executive officer once each month to the director.

The Department of Correctional Services shall invest any surplus trust funds belonging to inmates in its custody with the state investment officer. The interest accruing from any investments shall be credited to the Inmate Welfare and Club Accounts Fund created under section 83-915.01. The department shall also provide inmates with the option of having an interest-earning savings account and shall notify the inmates of such option and the terms of such account.

The Inmate Welfare and Club Accounts Fund is created. The fund shall consist of revenue from soft drinks sold to inmates in the custody of the Department of Correctional Services, including proceeds from recycling cans or other containers containing such soft drinks, profit from departmental canteens, interest earned by the fund, interest on inmate trust funds pursuant to section 83-915, or other revenue at the department's discretion. The fund shall be used to provide recreational activities and equipment for inmates at all of the department's correctional facilities. The fund shall be administered by the Director of Correctional Services or his or her designee. Any money in the fund available for investment shall be invested by the state investment officer pursuant to the Nebraska Capital Expansion Act and the Nebraska State Funds Investment Act.

(1) The Department of Correctional Services shall have general charge of the erection of new buildings, the repair and improvement of buildings, including fire escapes, and the improvement of grounds.

(2) Buildings and other improvements costing more than fifty thousand dollars, exclusive of equipment not germane to construction and building material made in the institution, shall be (a) constructed under the general charge of the department as provided in subsection (1) of this section and (b) let by contract to the lowest responsible bidder after proper advertisement as set forth in subsection (5) of this section, except that buildings costing more than fifty thousand dollars, such as shops, warehouses, or a cannery, when declared necessary by the department and to be constructed on the grounds of any Department of Correctional Services adult correctional facility, may be constructed by the use of inmate labor. Any construction by inmate labor shall have the approval of the department, the warden, and the chief engineer of the department.

(3) Inmate labor or the labor of state charges shall be employed, whenever the department deems it practicable, in all construction, repairs, and improvements at state institutions.

(4) The successful bidder at the letting referred to in subsection (2) of this section shall enter into a formal contract with the department, prepared as provided for by subsection (5) of this section, and shall furnish a bond for the faithful performance of his or her contract, except that a performance bond shall not be required for any project which has a total cost of one hundred thousand dollars or less unless the department includes a bond requirement in the specifications for the project.

(5) When contracts are to be let by the department as provided for by subsection (2) of this section, advertisements shall be published in accordance with rules and regulations adopted and promulgated by the state building division of the Department of Administrative Services stating that sealed proposals will be received by the Department of Correctional Services at its office on the date therein stated for the furnishing of materials, the construction of buildings, or the making of repairs or improvements and that plans and specifications can be seen at the office of the department. All bids or proposals shall be accompanied by a certified check or bid bond in a sum fixed by the department and payable thereto. All such contracts shall be awarded to the lowest responsible bidder, but the right shall be reserved to reject any and all bids. Whenever any material described in any contract can be obtained from any state institution, the department shall exclude it from such a contract.

The Reentry Cash Fund is created. The fund shall be administered by the Department of Correctional Services. The State Treasurer shall credit funds remitted pursuant to sections 33-157 and 83-184 and donations or contributions from public or private sources to the Reentry Cash Fund. The fund shall be used by the department for tuition, fees, and other costs associated with reentry and reintegration programs offered to offenders that are placed in the incarceration work camp. Any money in the fund available for investment shall be invested by the state investment officer pursuant to the Nebraska Capital Expansion Act and the Nebraska State Funds Investment Act.

(1) For each biennium, the Department of Correctional Services shall, as part of the appropriations request process pursuant to subsection (1) of section 81-132, include a strategic plan that identifies the main purpose or purposes of each program, verifiable and auditable key goals that the department believes are fair measures of its progress in meeting each program's main purpose or purposes, and benchmarks for improving performance on the key goals. The department shall also report whether the benchmarks are being met and, if not, the expected timeframes for meeting them.

(2) On or before September 15 of each year, the Department of Correctional Services shall report electronically to the Judiciary Committee of the Legislature and the Appropriations Committee of the Legislature on the progress towards the key goals identified pursuant to this section that occurred in the previous twelve months. Upon request, the department shall appear at a joint hearing of the Judiciary Committee and Appropriations Committee and present the report.

The Department of Correctional Services shall provide each correctional officer, as part of the standard uniform, with a protective vest designed to protect against edged weapons and stabbings. Each such vest shall be fitted to the officer.

(1) Beginning October 1, 2024, the Department of Correctional Services shall electronically submit a quarterly report to the Judiciary Committee of the Legislature and the Appropriations Committee of the Legislature regarding any reentry service center pilot programs being conducted by the department. The report shall include:

(a) Information regarding residential substance abuse pilot programs, including rates of successful and unsuccessful completion by participants and information on the long-term outcomes of program participants;

(b) Information regarding parolees receiving financial assistance for transitional housing, including how long parolees are receiving such assistance or using such housing, success rates of parolees while in transitional housing, and long-term outcomes for such parolees; and

(c) Information on the number of parolees who submit more than one reentry transition living plan to the board.

(2) The report shall redact all personal identifying information of parolees.

The Department of Correctional Services shall fulfill those functions of state government relating to the custody, study, care, discipline, training, and treatment of persons in correctional and detention institutions. There shall be separate divisions within the department to assist in fulfilling these functions. The divisions shall be the Division of Community-Centered Services, the Division of Administrative Services, and the Division of Adult Services. The Director of Correctional Services shall appoint an assistant director as head of each division and may remove or change the powers and responsibilities of the assistant director of any of the divisions at his or her discretion.

Subject to the supervision and approval of the Director of Correctional Services, each assistant director shall have the following duties, powers, and responsibilities:

(1) To coordinate and direct all programs and facilities under his or her jurisdiction;

(2) To select and manage such staff and supervise the operation of such equipment as he or she may require;

(3) To make such revisions to internal systems in each division as may be necessary to promote economy and facilitate maximum utilization of existing correctional services and facilities;

(4) To cause any existing program and facilities to be utilized by or merged with those of any other division in order to provide for greater efficiency or achieve any economic advantage;

(5) To provide the Legislature and the Governor technical assistance, advice, and information concerning administrative operations within his or her division; and

(6) To exercise all powers and perform all duties necessary and proper in carrying out his or her responsibilities.

The Director of Correctional Services shall appoint as assistant director of the Division of Community-Centered Services any person who has an appropriate academic background and adequate training and experience.

The Division of Community-Centered Services shall:

(1) Coordinate all adult parole programs and services in the state and supervise the administration of such programs and services;

(2) Cooperate with the Division of Adult Services in the coordination of volunteer programs in the adult correctional facilities;

(3) Coordinate and supervise community educational programs to increase community awareness and understanding of the community rehabilitative programs of the division; and

(4) Perform all duties necessary to carry out the provisions of this section.

There is hereby established the Adult Diagnostic and Evaluation Services Program within the Division of Adult Services. Subject to the supervision of the assistant director of the division, the program shall:

(1) Establish programs for the observation, testing, and examination, both mental and physical, of adult individuals within the jurisdiction of the Department of Correctional Services;

(2) Recommend treatment for and disposition of adult individuals within the jurisdiction of the department; and

(3) Cooperate with the division to establish and maintain rehabilitation programs for individuals committed or referred to any institution within the division.

The Director of Correctional Services shall appoint as assistant director of the Division of Adult Services any person who shall have an appropriate background in adult institutional correctional programs and adequate training and experience in correctional administrative work.

The Division of Adult Services shall:

(1) Establish, administer, and supervise all correctional facilities designed to house adult offenders;

(2) Establish and maintain the Adult Diagnostic and Evaluation Services Program;

(3) Develop and coordinate with the assistance of the Division of Community-Centered Services, volunteer programs within adult correctional facilities; and

(4) Perform any other duties assigned by the Director of Correctional Services.

The Director of Correctional Services shall appoint as assistant director of the Division of Administrative Services any person who shall have a thorough academic background and practical experience in correctional administrative work.

The Division of Administrative Services shall coordinate and supervise services available to all divisions of the Department of Correctional Services from a centralized location within the department. Such services shall include:

(1) Providing technical assistance on budget preparation, accounting procedures, federal funding administration, procurement, and inventory;

(2) Providing assistance in the total concept of human resource management involving staffing, recruitment, and evaluation and establishing and maintaining inservice training programs for existing programs as well as future programs;

(3) Providing technical assistance in the planning and development of new capital construction projects and supervising maintenance functions for all facilities within the department;

(4) Providing data collection and analysis from Nebraska and other states to assist the director in the formulation of current and future corrections policy and to justify budgetary needs to implement policy decisions, and developing standards for evaluation of corrections programs to better evaluate social worth and budgetary performance;

(5) Design and implementation of a comprehensive data record system for the disposition of the criminal records of adult inmates in the state; and

(6) Performance of other duties assigned by the Director of Correctional Services.

If a treaty in effect between the United States and a foreign country provides for the transfer or exchange of convicted offenders to the country of which they are citizens or nationals, the Governor may, on behalf of the state and subject to the terms of the treaty, authorize the Director of Correctional Services to consent to the transfer or exchange of offenders and take any other action necessary to initiate the participation of this state in the treaty.

The Department of Correctional Services is authorized to develop a central warehouse system for the ordering, purchasing, delivering, and billing for facilities and programs within the Department of Correctional Services of items stocked in the central warehouse system. The central warehouse system shall operate separately and distinctly from other department revolving-funded operations.

There is hereby created the Department of Correctional Services Warehouse Revolving Fund. This fund shall only be used for the purchase of items to be resold at cost to facilities and programs within the Department of Correctional Services. Facilities and programs within the department receiving items from the central warehouse system shall be billed for such goods at the time of delivery. All receipts from the items sold through the central warehouse system shall be deposited in the fund. The fund shall be administered by the Director of Correctional Services. Any money in the fund available for investment shall be invested by the state investment officer pursuant to the Nebraska Capital Expansion Act and the Nebraska State Funds Investment Act.

The budget division of the Department of Administrative Services shall administratively create a separate budget program classification within the Department of Correctional Services to properly account for revenue and disbursements of items stocked and sold by the central warehouse system. The Department of Correctional Services shall track the operating expenses of the central warehouse system within a separate budget subprogram within the central office budget.

Sections 83-960 to 83-963 shall be known and may be cited as the Correctional System Overcrowding Emergency Act.

For purposes of the Correctional System Overcrowding Emergency Act:

(1) Board means the Board of Parole;

(2) Committed offender has the definition found in section 83-170;

(3) Department means the Department of Correctional Services;

(4) Design capacity means the total designed bed space in facilities operated by the department, as certified by the director;

(5) Director means the Director of Correctional Services;

(6) Operational capacity means one hundred twenty-five percent of design capacity;

(7) Population means the actual number of inmates assigned to facilities operated by the department and does not include inmates assigned to county-operated correctional institutions; and

(8) Violent offense means any one or more of the following crimes: Murder in the first degree, murder in the second degree, manslaughter, assault in the first degree, kidnapping, sexual assault in the first degree, or robbery.

(1) A correctional system overcrowding emergency shall exist whenever the director certifies that the department's inmate population is over one hundred forty percent of design capacity. The director shall so certify within thirty days after the date on which the population first exceeds one hundred forty percent of design capacity.

(2) During a correctional system overcrowding emergency, the board shall immediately consider or reconsider committed offenders eligible for parole who have not been released on parole.

(3) Upon such consideration or reconsideration, and for all other consideration of committed offenders eligible for parole while the correctional system overcrowding emergency is in effect, the board shall order the release of each committed offender unless it is of the opinion that such release should be deferred because:

(a) The board has determined that it is more likely than not that the committed offender will not conform to the conditions of parole;

(b) The board has determined that release of the committed offender would have a very significant and quantifiable effect on institutional discipline; or

(c) The board has determined that there is a very substantial risk that the committed offender will commit a violent act against a person.

(4) In making the determination regarding the risk that a committed offender will not conform to the conditions of parole, the board shall take into account the factors set forth in subsection (2) of section 83-1,114 and shall comply with the requirements of subsection (3) of section 83-1,114 and section 83-196.01.

(5) The board shall continue granting parole to offenders under this section until the director certifies that the population is at operational capacity. The director shall so certify within thirty days after the date on which the population first reaches operational capacity.

The department shall prepare an annual report on committed offenders who are paroled or granted controlled release pursuant to the Correctional System Overcrowding Emergency Act. The report shall summarize each such former committed offender's behavior since parole and generally evaluate his or her success or lack of success in becoming a law-abiding member of society. The annual report shall be filed electronically with the Executive Board of the Legislative Council on or before December 31, with the first such report submitted by December 31 of the first year that committed offenders are paroled pursuant to the act. A notice of the filing of the report shall be submitted electronically to each member of the Legislature when the annual report is filed with the Executive Board.

A sentence of death shall be enforced by the intravenous injection of a substance or substances in a quantity sufficient to cause death. The lethal substance or substances shall be administered in compliance with an execution protocol created and maintained by the Department of Correctional Services.