By Dan Conti
Frankfort, KY – The Kentucky House Judiciary Committee in the has put its stamp of approval on a bill intended to reduce prison overcrowding and modernize the state's drug laws. The panel okayed the bi-partisan measure last night after a state task force spent six months studying the issues involved. State Representative John Tilley of Hopkinsville chairs the Judiciary Committee. He says Kentucky's prison population has grown 45 percent since 1999 and that can't continue.
"Even with a compromise changes we've made in the bill we still expect and we still think a valid number is 442 million savings over the course of a decade, that's 42 million per year. We look to reinvest about half of that, but at the end of the day that's a 42 million dollar gross savings."
Tilley says the bill is not soft on crime It allows for alternative sentences for non-violent offenders convicted of possessing illegal drugs. The Democrat says tough penalties for dealers remain in place.