1. Except as otherwise provided in this section, if a correctional program has been established by the Director in the county in which an offender or parolee may be paroled, the Chair of the Board may, after consulting with the Division, refer a prisoner who is being considered for parole or a parolee who has violated a term or condition of his or her parole to the Director if the Chair believes that the person:

(a) Would participate successfully in and benefit from a correctional program; and

(b) Has demonstrated a willingness to:

(1) Engage in employment or participate in vocational rehabilitation or job skills training; and

(2) Meet any existing obligation for restitution to any victim of his or her crime.

2. Except as otherwise provided in this section, if the Chair is notified by the Director pursuant to NRS 209.4887 that a person is suitable to participate in a correctional program, the Board may, in accordance with the provisions of this section:

(a) If the person is an offender who is being considered for parole, upon the granting of parole to the offender, require as a condition of parole that the offender participate in and complete the correctional program; or

(b) If the person is a parolee who has violated a term or condition of his or her parole, order the parolee to participate in and complete the correctional program as a condition of the continuation of his or her parole and in lieu of revoking his or her parole and returning the parolee to confinement.

3. If an offender who has been assigned to the custody of the Division to participate in a correctional program pursuant to NRS 209.4888 is being considered for parole, the Board shall, if the Board grants parole to the offender, require as a condition of parole that the offender continue to participate in and complete the correctional program.

4. In determining whether to order a person to participate in and complete a correctional program pursuant to this section, the Board shall consider:

(a) The criminal history of the person; and

(b) The safety of the public.

5. The Board shall adopt regulations requiring persons who are ordered to participate in and complete a correctional program pursuant to this section to reimburse the Department of Corrections and the Division for the cost of their participation in a correctional program, to the extent of their ability to pay.

6. The Board shall not order a person to participate in a correctional program if the time required to complete the correctional program is longer than the unexpired maximum term or the unexpired maximum aggregate term, as applicable, of the person’s original sentence.

(Added to NRS by 2003, 2581; A 2013, 234)