Facing an increasing prison population, Kansas lawmakers weighed possible solutions Monday when experts appeared before first the Senate and the the House Judiciary Committees.

Dr. Tony Fabelo, a national criminal justice expert from the Council of State Governments Justice Center and Dr. Fred Osher, Director of Health System and Service Policy at the Justice Center discussed possible evidence-based policy alternatives to help alleviate the pressures currently placed on the state prison sentence.

Kansas Sentencing Commission projections predict the prison population to increase 26 percent over the next nine years, which is predicted to cost the state a possible $500 million in new prison construction and operating costs.

Each year, approximately 5,800 Kansas prisoner are released and half are back behind bars within a year.

New policies seek to curb the recidivism rates to reduce population.