HB 2525 Summary

• Establishes the Arizona Sentencing Commission to collect data, evaluate sentencing practices, and make recommendations to the legislature regarding criminal justice policies and alternative sentencing programs.

• Commission membership includes 24 members: ex officio members (Chief Justice, corrections director, probation services director, juvenile corrections director), legislators, prosecutors, defense attorneys, judges, and university faculty with expertise in law and criminology.

• Commission duties include collecting recidivism data from probation departments, courts, jails, and corrections facilities; evaluating sentencing practices in other states; reviewing Arizona's sentencing laws and policies; and submitting annual reports to judiciary committees.

• Commission members serve three-year terms and receive no compensation but may be reimbursed for expenses; the commission must meet at least quarterly and hold all meetings open to the public.

• The Arizona Sentencing Commission terminates on July 1, 2022, and Title 41, Chapter 51 is repealed on January 1, 2023.