"What the public doesn't always understand is there are times when the Board of Parole and Department of Correctional Services work very hard to get these individuals the programming they need, and things still go south," Cotton said. "There's no one here who's not doing everything they can."

Sen. Bob Krist, of Omaha, said lawmakers imposed the 2020 deadline to hold department officials accountable for the changes that needed to be made and to avoid the prospect that the federal government might intervene. But after three years of waiting and watching, Krist said he doesn't think the department will make the deadline.

"I don't wish that on us, but right now, I think it's inevitable," he said.

Krist, who leaves office in January, said he believes lawmakers need to invest more in probation services and the courts to reduce the influx of new inmates into Nebraska's prisons, but lawmakers haven't done so because of budget shortfalls.

"We're asking the judicial branch to do more with less, and we do it every year," he said.

Sen. Patty Pansing Brooks, of Lincoln, said she's considering legislation next year to help the corrections department prepare for a large number of paroles. Pansing Brooks said she doesn't believe the department is doing enough right now.

"I'm very concerned," she said. "This has to do with the safety of our community and making sure we aren't precipitously releasing people. We have to sit down together as multiple branches (of government) and have a plan."