The Getting Home Safe Act.

Existing law authorizes a county sheriff to discharge a person from a county jail at any time on the last day that the person may be confined that the sheriff considers to be in the best interests of that person. Existing law additionally authorizes a sheriff to offer a voluntary program to a person, upon completion of a sentence served or a release ordered by the court to be effected the same day, that would allow the person to stay in jail for up to 16 additional hours or until normal business hours, whichever is shorter, in order to offer the person the ability to be discharged to a treatment center or during daytime hours, as specified. Existing law authorizes the person to revoke consent and be discharged as soon as possible and practicable. Existing law requires a sheriff offering this program to, whenever possible, allow the person to make a telephone call to arrange for transportation or to notify a bail agent, as specified. This bill would make these provisions inoperative on June 1, 2020, and would repeal it as of January 1, 2021. The bill, beginning June 1, 2020, would instead require the sheriff to make the release standards, release processes, and release schedules of a county jail available to incarcerated persons, as specified. The bill would also require a person scheduled to be released from jail between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. or sundown, whichever is later, to be released during that time. The bill would require the sheriff to offer a person scheduled to be released from jail between the hours of 5 p.m. or sundown, whichever is later, and 8 a.m. the option to voluntarily stay in jail for up to 16 additional hours or until normal business hours, as specified. The bill would require a sheriff to provide a person who declines that option with a safe place to wait to be picked up with adequate and sufficient ability to charge a personal cell phone and access to a free public telephone. The bill would also require the county jail to track the number of people released during those hours and to make that information available, as specified. Because this bill would impose new duties on sheriffs and county jails, it would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.