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HB86 ENROLLED
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HB86
L5N3JAY-3
By Representative England
RFD: Public Safety and Homeland Security
First Read: 13-Jan-26
PFD: 17-Dec-25
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PFD: 17-Dec-25
Enrolled, An Act,
Relating to parole; to amend Section 15-22-26, Code of
Alabama 1975, to further provide for parole consideration.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:
Section 1. Section 15-22-26, Code of Alabama 1975, is
amended to read as follows:
"§15-22-26
(a) No prisoner inmate shall be released on parole
merely as a reward for good conduct or efficient performance
of duties assigned in prison, but only if the Board of Pardons
and Paroles is of the opinion that the prisoner inmate meets
criteria and guidelines established by the board to determine
a prisoner's an inmate's fitness for parole and to ensure
public safety. The guidelines shall serve as an aid in the
parole process and shall promote the use of prison space for
the most violent and greatest risk offenders, while
recognizing that the board's paramount duty is to protect
public safety. The guidelines shall be structured, actuarially
based, reviewed every three years by the board, after a
specified open comment period determined by the board, and
posted on the website of the board and include, but not be
limited to, the following:
(1) The prisoner's inmate's risk to reoffend, based
upon a validated risk and needs assessment , as defined in
Section 12-25-32.
(2) Progress by the prisoner and inmate in complying
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(2) Progress by the prisoner and inmate in complying
with the Alabama Department of Corrections to Corrections'
plan for reentry.
(3) Input from the victim or victims, the family of the
victim or victims, prosecutors, and law enforcement entities.
(4) Participation in risk-reduction programs while
incarcerated.
(5) Institutional behavior of the prisoner inmate while
incarcerated.
(6) Severity of the underlying offense for which the
prisoner inmate was sentenced to incarceration.
(7) The inmate's employment while incarcerated.
(8) Any education the inmate gained while incarcerated.
(b)(1) The Board of Pardons and Paroles must give
consideration to:
a. The inmate's employment while incarcerated, as set
forth in subsection (a)(7); and
b. The education completed by the inmate while
incarcerated, as set forth in subsection (a)(8).
(2) The Board of Pardons and Paroles may give
consideration to the inmate's low risk to reoffend, as
established through the validated risk and needs assessment
set forth in subsection (a) (1), and any other factors
contained in the guidelines.
(b)(c) Except as provided in Section 15-22-37, if the
board grants a prisoner an inmate parole, the prisoner inmate
shall be released from prison upon the terms and conditions
set by the board, and while released on parole, shall remain
in the legal custody of the warden of the prison from which he
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in the legal custody of the warden of the prison from which he
or she is paroled until the expiration of the maximum term
specified in his or her sentence or until he or she is fully
pardoned.
(c)(d) The board shall clearly articulate its reasons
for approval or denial of parole for each prisoner inmate ,
based on its established guidelines, and shall provide the
reasons for approval or denial to the prisoner inmate , the
victim or victims , the Department of Corrections, or any other
interested party upon written request submitted to the board.
The use of established guidelines for parole consideration
shall not create a right or expectation by a prisoner an
inmate to parole release. Additionally, the articulated
reasons for denial of parole release shall not create a right
or expectation for parole release. The guidelines shall serve
as an aid in the parole decisionmaking process, and the
decision concerning parole release shall be at the complete
discretion of the board."
Section 2. This act shall become effective on October
1, 2026.
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1, 2026.
________________________________________________
Speaker of the House of Representatives
________________________________________________
President and Presiding Officer of the Senate
House of Representatives
I hereby certify that the within Act originated in and
was passed by the House 24-Feb-26, as amended.
John Treadwell
Clerk
Senate 01-Apr-26 Passed
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