13-3826

13-3826. Community notification guidelines committee; members; duties; definition

A. The community notification guidelines committee is established consisting of the following members:

1. A member of the senate who is appointed by the president of the senate to serve as cochairperson of the committee.

2. A member of the house of representatives who is appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives to serve as cochairperson of the committee.

3. The attorney general or the attorney general's designee.

4. The chairman of the senate judiciary committee or its successor committee, who serves as an advisory member.

5. A member of the minority party in the senate who is appointed by the president of the senate and who serves as an advisory member.

6. The chairman of the house of representatives judiciary committee or its successor committee, who serves as an advisory member.

7. A member of the minority party in the house of representatives who is appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives and who serves as an advisory member.

8. Two sheriffs or their designees who are appointed by the president of the Arizona county attorneys and sheriffs association, one of whom represents a county with a population of more than four hundred thousand persons according to the most recent United States decennial census and one of whom represents a county with a population of four hundred thousand persons or less according to the most recent United States decennial census.

9. Two chiefs of police or their designees who are appointed by the president of the Arizona association of chiefs of police, one of whom represents a city or town in a county with a population of more than four hundred thousand persons according to the most recent United States decennial census and one of whom represents a city or town in a county with a population of four hundred thousand persons or less according to the most recent United States decennial census.

10. Two county attorneys or their designees who are appointed by the chairman of the Arizona prosecuting attorneys' advisory council, one of whom represents a county with a population of more than four hundred thousand persons according to the most recent United States decennial census and one of whom represents a county with a population of four hundred thousand persons or less according to the most recent United States decennial census.

11. Two county adult probation officers or their designees who are appointed by the chief justice of the supreme court, one of whom represents a county with a population of more than four hundred thousand persons according to the most recent United States decennial census and one of whom represents a county with a population of four hundred thousand persons or less according to the most recent United States decennial census.

12. One state adult parole administrator or the administrator's designee who is appointed by the governor.

13. The director of the department of public safety or the director's designee.

14. The director of the department of transportation or the director's designee.

15. One person who is licensed under title 32, chapter 19.1 and who is appointed by the state board of psychologist examiners.

16. One representative of a public defender's office who is recommended by an association of public defenders and who is appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives.

17. One advocate or community restitution provider who is appointed by the president of the senate.

18. Two public members, one of whom is appointed by the president of the senate and one of whom is appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives.

B. Appointed members serve two year terms.

C. The members shall meet at a time and place set by the cochairpersons.

D. Members of the committee are not eligible to receive compensation but are eligible for reimbursement of expenses pursuant to title 38, chapter 4, article 2.

E. The committee shall:

1. Adopt community notification guidelines. The committee shall monitor the implementation of the community notification guidelines that the committee adopts. The guidelines shall provide for levels of notification based on the risk that a particular sex offender poses to the community. The notification requirements are as follows:

(a) For level two and level three offenders, the notification shall be made to the surrounding neighborhood, area schools, appropriate community groups and prospective employers. The notification shall include a flyer with a photograph and exact address of the offender as well as a summary of the offender's status and criminal background. A press release and a level two or level three flyer shall be given to the local electronic and print media to enable information to be placed in a local publication.

(b) For level one offenders, the local law enforcement agency that is responsible for notification shall maintain information about the offender. The local law enforcement agency may disseminate this information to other law enforcement agencies and may give notification to the people with whom the offender resides.

2. Develop and recommend a process for a sex offender to request a notification level review and for the court to determine if a sex offender notification level may be reduced or the offender is no longer required to register. The committee shall submit a report of its recommendation to the governor, the president of the senate and the speaker of the house of representatives on or before December 15, 2004 and shall provide a copy of this report to the secretary of state and the director of the Arizona state library, archives and public records.

3. Study whether there is uniform and consistent application of the community notification guidelines on a statewide basis, including whether offenders who pose similar risks are assigned similar notification levels in different jurisdictions.

F. The committee shall adopt guidelines regarding how community notification pursuant to section 13-3825, subsection K should be conducted, including whether community notification should occur. The guidelines should provide for flexibility based on resources and the availability of records. The committee may adopt procedures that allow offenders required to register to not be classified if necessary records are not reasonably available.

G. For the purposes of this section, "advisory member" means a member who advises other committee members during meetings but who is ineligible to vote and who is not a member for the purposes of determining if a quorum is present.