Parole: minimum eligible date.

Assembly Member Kalra's parole reform measure mandates full application of constitutional credits toward minimum sentences for California inmates serving life terms, while expanding the scope of evidence considered in parole decisions.

The legislation requires the Secretary of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to apply all constitutionally authorized credits for good behavior and rehabilitative achievements when calculating minimum terms for individuals serving one or more life sentences. Under current law, these credits may be awarded at the Secretary's discretion. The bill also adds probation officer reports to the materials that the Board of Parole Hearings must review alongside existing input from judges, district attorneys, and sheriffs when evaluating parole cases.

The measure maintains core eligibility requirements that inmates serve either seven calendar years or the minimum term specified in their sentence, whichever is greater, before parole consideration. For consecutive life sentences, these minimums continue to apply to each term individually. The bill preserves existing provisions for youth offender and elderly parole hearings, which allow suitable candidates to receive parole regardless of standard release date calculations.