The state Association of Counties has recently launched a County Criminal Justice Reform Task Force.

The task force, chaired by Bob Iusi, director of probation in Warren County, is charged with examining the county impact of recent state criminal justice reform legislation.

The 2019-20 state budget includes criminal justice reforms that limit bail, amend the discovery and speedy trial process, change civil asset forfeiture, and improve the community reentry process.

As with many state policies and programs, these reforms will be implemented locally by counties, and several county departments will be involved in putting the new state policies in place. Therefore, task force members will include representatives from each impacted county department, including Sheriffs’ offices, county attorneys, probation departments, district attorneys, and public defenders. These members will come from counties across the state to ensure each region is included.

The NYSAC task force will review the reforms to be implemented at the county level, help determine the full local impact and cost to the criminal justice system, and develop questions, comments, and suggestions for state level policy makers responsible for drafting the final implementation guidelines.

“Counties support the important reforms outlined in the 2019-20 state budget,” said Stephen Acquario, NYSAC executive director. “There are many questions that have surfaced and will need to be answered before counties can execute the new laws. Having experts who are working in the field recommend policy considerations to the state will help both those in need of services and local taxpayers.”