§ 34-A §1208-B — Standards, policies and procedures applicable to jails

1.
Establishment.
The commissioner shall establish mandatory standards, policies and procedures for jails. The standards, policies and procedures must be established by rule and must be evidence-based, must take into consideration cost impact and must reflect best practices for the administration and operation of jails. The rules must include policies and procedures for assisting jails to achieve compliance and for imposing penalties for noncompliance.
2.
Rulemaking.
Rules adopted pursuant to this section are routine technical rules as defined by Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2‑A.
3.
Gender affirmation.
The standards, policies and procedures established pursuant to this section for the county jails and regional jail must require the jails to respect and acknowledge an incarcerated person's consistently held gender identity irrespective of anatomy or physique. Housing placements and search practices must be consistent with the person's consistently held gender identity except when such placement or search would present significant management or security problems to the jail or threaten the health and safety of the person. A person must have access to commissary items, clothing, personal property, programming and educational materials that are consistent with the person's consistently held gender identity. County and regional jail staff shall address a person in a manner that is consistent with the person's consistently held gender identity.
4.
Requirements; rulemaking by commissioner.
The jails shall operate in accordance with best practices applicable to facilities of their type and size, including the mandatory standards, policies and procedures established by rules adopted by the commissioner under subsection 1 and standards adopted under section 1208, and with the following requirements as set forth in rules adopted by the commissioner. In adopting rules and standards for the jails, the commissioner shall consider the advisory input of the County Corrections Professional Standards Council established pursuant to Title 5, section 12004‑G, subsection 6‑D.
5.
Requirements; rulemaking by the council.
The jails shall operate in accordance with rules adopted pursuant to this subsection. The County Corrections Professional Standards Council, established pursuant to Title 5, section 12004‑G, subsection 6‑D, shall adopt rules governing the collection and reporting of data by jails as necessary to implement this section. The rules may consider the cost impacts of policy decisions by jails and the State, best practices for the operation of jails, the cost-effective delivery of services by jails, program participation, categories of inmates and reasons for detention or incarceration. In adopting data collection rules, the council shall at minimum require jails to report the following data:

Legislative History

PL 2015, c. 335, §22 (NEW). PL 2017, c. 407, Pt. A, §152 (AMD). RR 2019, c. 2, Pt. A, §32 (COR). PL 2021, c. 171, §2 (AMD). PL 2021, c. 263, §§1, 2 (AMD). PL 2021, c. 732, Pt. C, §§1, 2 (AMD). PL 2021, c. 732, Pt. D, §3 (AMD). PL 2021, c. 732, Pt. D, §7 (AFF). PL 2023, c. 135, §3 (AMD).