INDIANAPOLIS (AP): Proposals for Indiana's new state budget are directing tens of millions of dollars toward county-level criminal justice programs that could see several thousand low-level offenders who previously would've been sent to prisons.
Budget plans from both the state Senate and House dedicate at least $80 million in additional funding over the next two years to pay for local probation, work-release or addiction-treatment programs. That follows a major overhaul of Indiana's criminal sentencing laws that took effect in July with the aim of keeping many non-violent offenders out of prison.
The House and Senate proposals both leave out Gov. Mike Pence's $51 million request for expansions at two state prisons. County officials have been worried about receiving the additional funding and say the $80 million is a good start.
