See Center for Media and Democracy's quick summary on last page

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D I D Y O U K N O W ? Corporations VOTED to adopt this. Through ALEC, global companies

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“ALEC”
NEWShas long been a
secretive collaboration
between
BigLegislation
Business and
Model
“conservative” politicians.
Civil Justice
Behind closed doors, they
ghostwrite
“model”
bills to
Commerce,
Insurance,
and Economic
be introduced
in state
Development
capitols
across the country.
This agenda--underwritten
Education
by global corporations-Energy,
includes
majorEnvironment,
tax
and Agriculture
loopholes
for big industries
and the
super rich,
Federal Relations
proposals to offshore U.S.
Health
Human
jobs and
gut and
minimum
wage,Services
and efforts to
weaken
public health,
International Relations
safety, and environmental
Public Although
Safety andmany
protections.
Elections
of these
bills have become
law, until now, their origin
Tax and Fiscal Policy
has been largely unknown.
With ALEC
EXPOSED, the
Telecommunications
Centerand
forInformation
Media and
Technology
Democracy
hopes more
Americans will study the
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bills to understand
the
depth and Text-Only
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big corporations are
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changing the
legal
rules
and undermining democracy
across the nation.

ALEC’s’Corporate Board
--in recent past or present

• AT&T Services, Inc.
• centerpoint360
• UPS
• Bayer Corporation
• GlaxoSmithKline
• Energy Future Holdings
• Johnson & Johnson
• Coca-Cola Company
• PhRMA
• Kraft Foods, Inc.
• Coca-Cola Co.
• Pfizer Inc.
• Reed Elsevier, Inc.
• DIAGEO
• Peabody Energy
• Intuit, Inc.
• Koch Industries, Inc.
• ExxonMobil
• Verizon
• Reynolds American Inc.
• Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
• Salt River Project
• Altria Client Services, Inc.
• American Bail Coalition
• State Farm Insurance
For more on these corporations,
search at www.SourceWatch.org.

By the Center for
Media and Democracy
www.prwatch.org

Home

work as “equals” in “unison” with politicians to write laws to govern your life. Big
MODEL LEGISLATION
TASK
ALEC INITIATIVES
PUBLICATIONS
Business
has “a VOICE and
a FORCES
VOTE,” according
to newly exposed
documents. DO YOU?

Model Legislation

Public Safety and Elections

Truth in Sentencing Act
Summary

Did you know the
NRA--the National
Rifle Association-was the corporate
co-chair in 2011?

This Act would require any person convicted of a crime to serve no less than 85 percent
of the sentence imposed. This Act would also require any person convicted of a violent
crime to serve no less than 100 percent of sentence imposed by the court.

Model Legislation
{Title, enacting clause, etc.}
Section 1. {Title.} This Act may be cited as the Truth in Sentencing Act.
Section 2. {Definitions.} As used in this Act:
(A) "Violent crime" means
(1) a felony involving the use of a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument;
(2) a felony involving the intentional or knowing infliction of serious physical injury;
(3) felony sexual assault;
(4) violent or sexual felony offenses committed against minors;
(5) felony offenses which involve using or involving minors in the activities of a criminal
syndicate or street gang;
(6) felony offenses committed by persons or release from another offense, either
pending trial or after conviction;
(7) an offense that has an element the use, attempted use, or threatened use of
physical force against the person or property of another.
(8) any other offense that is a felony and that, by its nature, involves a substantial risk
that physical force against the person or property of another may be used in the course
of committing the offense; and
(9) shall include, but not be limited to murder, arson, burglary, assault, rape,
kidnapping, extortion, and robbery.

Section 3. {Sentencing.}
(A) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a person convicted of a felony crime shall
serve no less than 85% of the sentence imposed by the court before being eligible for
parole, good time credit release, furlough, work-release or any other form of release from
confinement in a secured facility.
(B) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a person convicted of a violent crime
shall not be eligible for parole, work release, furlough, or any other form of early release
in a secured facility, except in cases where executive clemency is granted.
(C) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a life sentence shall mean a sentence of
life without the possibility of parole with the exception being:
(1) The governor of the state may reduce such sentence after a public hearing where
the prisoner's victim(s) and representatives of the public shall have an opportunity to be
heard regarding the proposed reduction of sentence.

Section 4. {Severability clause.}
Section 5. {Repealer clause.}
Section 6. {Effective date.}
ALEC's Sourcebook of American State Legislation 1995

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Center for Media
and Democracy's
quick summary:

This bill would require that all defendants serve at least 85% of their sentence and not be eligible for parole or early
release programs. It is in line with a 1994 federal Truth in Sentencing law (part of a larger crime bill), which makes states
eligible for federal funding if offenders serve at least 85% of their sentence. The federal bill was set into motion by thenAttorney General William P. Barr, who worked with ALEC on these issues (Barr was a proponent of more prisons and
more incarceration). "Truth in Sentencing" laws like this one have been extremely expensive for state taxpayers, as they
increase the time each person is incarcerated, and have had little impact on public safety. Longer prison sentences do,
however, increase the profits of the Corrections Corporation of America, a member of the Executive Committee of ALEC's
Public Safety & Elections Task Force.
When current Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker was a state representative, he was an ALEC member and introduced a
"Truth in Sentencing" bill that passed in 1997. The program inflated prison populations and greatly increased the amount
of taxpayer dollars spent on prisons (in Wisconsin, to an estimated $1.8 billion through 2025). All of this increases profits
for private prison companies like the Corrections Corporation of America.
A former head of Wisconsin's prison system (and current University of Wisconsin Law Professor) Walter Dickey told
American Radio Works that it is "shocking" that lawmakers would write sentencing policy with help from ALEC, a group
that gets funding from-- and supposedly "expertise" from-- a private prison corporation.
"I don't know that they know anything about sentencing," he said. "They know how to build prisons, presumably, since
that's the business they're in. They don't know anything about probation and parole. They don't know about the
development of alternatives. They don't know about how public safety might be created and defended in communities in
this state and other states."
The Wisconsin state legislature apparently recognized the folly of Truth in Sentencing and rolled-back the law between
2001 and 2009. When Scott Walker became governor, however, he reversed this progress and requested legislation
restoring ALEC's corporation-supported Truth in Sentencing, despite the costs to taxpayers and despite claiming
Wisconsin was "broke."