We did it, Wisconsin! At a time when other states and the federal government are working to reduce their prison population, Wisconsin is projected to reach its highest prison population ever in the next year or two. Unsurprisingly, no one in Wisconsin is actually celebrating.
This is not a story about the horrible effects that prison has on the incarcerated — although there are too many, especially among inmates who spent time in solitary confinement. I have never been to prison and cannot pretend to understand what it does to your mind and soul.
Rather, this is a story about priorities. Specifically, Wisconsin prioritizing incarcerating nonviolent offenders over other needed and underfunded programs. Of the $14 billion that the state collects annually, $1.1 billion or 8% is spent on Corrections. To put that in perspective: the Department of Corrections receives more state money than any other state agency besides the Department of Health Services (more than the UW System!).
Despite Correction’s ever-expanding budget and prison population, there has been no discussion in the Capitol about criminal justice reform. In fact, the only discussion in the Capitol has been whether Wisconsin should build a new state prison. This is true despite talks of another tough upcoming budget cycle that will leave all of us dissatisfied with our level of funding for roads, higher education, healthcare, and the state’s rainy day fund.
The best way to show that Wisconsin incarcerates too many people is to compare Wisconsin’s prison system with Minnesota’s. Wisconsin incarcerates approximately 23,000 people compared to 10,000 people in Minnesota. This drastic difference occurs even though the two states have almost identical population sizes, demographics, and crime rates.
Research on all fifty states has also shown that incarceration rates are not correlated with crime rates. In fact, incarceration rates climbed in most states during the 2000’s while crime rates dropped.
While a complete overhaul of Wisconsin’s criminal justice system is likely needed to get our prison population down to Minnesotan levels. Two simple changes could drastically reduce the prison population and give the state of Wisconsin an additional hundreds of millions of dollars per year.
There are two simple solutions for reducing Wisconsin’s prison population:
1. Legalize possession of marijuana.
Seven states have now legalized marijuana possession for recreational use and restrict it to adults similarly to alcohol. In Wisconsin, first-time possession is still a misdemeanor with a maximum sentence of six months. Subsequent offenses are felonies, with a maximum sentence of three and a half years. For every year that an inmate serves in a Wisconsin prison, it costs the state $32,800. Wisconsin currently imprisons 108 people whose most serious offense was possessing marijuana. Considering the fact that each of these inmates will have to serve a minimum one-year sentence, that translates to over $3.5 million in taxpayer dollars per year.
The Department of Corrections estimates that the state could save $3.7 million annually by legalizing possession of marijuana. The state would have 108 fewer inmates per year and 2,432 fewer offenders on probation or parole. These savings would likely be even greater as the DOC estimate does not include any reduction in the number of people convicted of distributing marijuana. Additionally, Wisconsin could expect to see an increase in tax revenue from marijuana sales similar to the increase that Colorado experienced, which was $129 million in the most recent fiscal year. Therefore, Wisconsin could have an estimated $133 million annually from legalizing marijuana.
2. Reform parole so that nonviolent offenders cannot be returned (revoked) to prison for simply violating a DOC rule of parole while not having committed a new crime.
This concept may seem more complicated than it really is. Currently, inmates on parole not only have to abstain from committing new crimes, but they also have to follow DOC rules regarding parole. If they violate these rules—e.g., by accepting a job without permission, using a cellphone or computer without authorization, or leaving their county of residence—they are sent back to prison without a trial and without being found guilty of new crimes.
In 2014 alone, 3,726 inmates were admitted to prison for revocation-only offenses. In other words, Wisconsin imprisoned 3,726 people for merely violating DOC rules, and not for committing a new crime. With the average sentence lasting approximately 16.7 months, there are an estimated 5,185 inmates in prison who were revoked from parole without committing a new crime. This is approximately 25% of Wisconsin’s the total prison population! If Wisconsin were to change the law so that just non-violent offenders could not be revoked unless they committed a new crime, Wisconsin could reduce its prison population by 1,701 inmates and save $55,780,000 per year.
Wisconsin could save $189 million annually by implementing these two simple changes. If you’re anything like the average Wisconsinite, you may not know what the state could achieve with $189 million annually, or how that additional revenue could impact your life. With $189 million annually, the state can:
◼ Reallocate $378 million to the Department of Transportation, so that it can pay for the Southeast Wisconsin Freeway Megaproject Program, which is expected to cost $500 million. The DOT program includes the reconstruction of the I-94 North-South freeway, the Zoo Interchange, and the I-94 East-West freeway.
◼ Reinstate the $250 million that was taken from the UW System in the last budget.
◼ Give funding to the Department of Health Services to help with the projected $452 million increase for Medicaid coverage of low-income residents.
◼ Reduce taxes or provide a tax credit for every single taxpayer in Wisconsin by $63.43 per year. ($189 million divided by 3 million tax filers in Wisconsin)
These two simple solutions will not solve Wisconsin’s mass incarceration problem, but they are a good start. Not only would they help the state reinvest in roads, higher education, healthcare, and the state’s rainy day fund, but they would also grant nonviolent offenders the opportunity to lead more productive lives outside of the prison system. Whether motivated by criminal justice reform or their pocketbooks, the average Wisconsinite will find it difficult to oppose these common-sense solutions.
