What Is Good Time?

Good Time is incentive-based corrections management. Positive incentives are used everywhere in society from academic & athletic scholarships in education to bonus payments by employers for job performance to achievement awards and trophies in Hollywood and more ... we all recognize how positive incentives are used to encourage and promote good behavior and desired outcomes. Incentive-based policies are already in use in every one of our 83 county jails as well as in our probation system. It is time we offer these same proven policies in our Michigan prison corrections system.

How Does It Work?

The Michigan Department Of Corrections (MDOC) maintains behavioral records on individuals from the moment they enter custody. For example, these records are used by the parole board when making determinations regarding release. Because MDOC previously had a Good Time policy in force, all behavioral misconduct incidents are tracked and used to calculate an incarcerated individual's Good Time credits ... even though these credits are no longer awarded! 

The MJA proposed Good Time policy would require MDOC to review a person's institutional record and for every month a person had no major misconducts on their record, they would be given a sentence reduction credit of one month. An adjusted parole board hearing date can then be calculated. This calculation can be done with the existing data MDOC keeps on every incarcerated individual. 

Good Time allows someone to earn their way back home and back to being a productive member of society. A demonstrated history of improvement will speak for the changes a person has undergone and allow that person to be seen by the parole board sooner.

What Does It Do?

Saves Money

Michigan is on track to spend over $2B on corrections again this year. By implementing a Good Time policy it is possible to wisely and safely reduce the size of our prison population. This action can result in prudent and judicious closing of select facilities among the 27 prisons currently in operation around the state.

In 2022 Michigan enjoyed a savings of $48.9M by doing just that and more can be done. Many of these facilities have long outlived their projected lifespans. Maintenance and upkeep of aging infrastructure is much more expensive to our state so closing older facilities is good fiscal management. Good Time can save Michigan taxpayers money.

Addresses Racial Disparity

People of color are over-represented in our Michigan prisons as compared to the population of our state. Furthermore, when it comes to violent crimes (an ever-expanding category) people of color are far more likely to be charged and convicted for these crimes. It stands to reason that if these trends continue, the prison population will continue to increase with people of color and people of color will continue to be over-represented in ever larger numbers.

Because the Good Time policy applies only to those serving a numerical sentence (e.g. Good Time does not apply to those serving a life sentence), the policy is applicable to all regardless of the charged crime. This will have a greater impact on the size of the population overall and hence addresses the larger problem of mass incarceration. However, Good Time will also return people of color home in greater numbers as they make up the majority of our prison population and therefore this can return some balance to the disproportionate number of incarcerated people of color as compared to the overall population of our state.

Closes Corrections Officers Staff Shortage

The Michigan Corrections Officers Union is facing shortages hovering close to 1,000+ positions every year. The union has been highlighting this problem as have many news articles and stories in the media. Corrections Officer (COs) are being mandated to work double shifts and are exhausted as a result. Furthermore this violates MDOC policies regarding overtime work hours yet it continues. This represents a critical safety concern and our state legislature and leaders in Lansing are all well aware of this growing crisis. 

The important numbers to pay attention to are related to the how many corrections officers are needed compared to the number of individuals in custody. There is a target ratio of COs to incarcerated citizens and we are not meeting that goal today. Good Time can help by reducing the number of people we incarcerate and allowing the number of COs needed per incarcerated citizen to get closer to the targets. The implementation of a Good Time policy does not need to result in the loss of employment for anyone (The two prison closures in 2022 did not reduce staff) and can help bring more safety into a struggling system close to the breaking point.

Good Time Brings Hope

More than anything, hope can change peoples hearts and lives. This applies not only to those in custody but also for the staff and administration who work closely with these incarcerated individuals. When the population in custody has hope it affects the entire atmosphere. If we truly care about seeing people corrected and restored then hope absolutely needs to be part of the plan and Good Time restores hope to an otherwise hopeless situation.