Corrections Compromise Plan
April 7, 2008
Prepared by the Department of Corrections, Maine
Sheriffs Association, Maine County Commissioners Association, Maine
Municipal Association
Goals:
- Reduce burden on property tax.
- Manage the growth in corrections
costs.
- Avoid future costs of new construction.
- Create efficiencies.
- Improve offender outcomes.
This proposal has the support of the Governor,
Commissioner of Corrections, Sheriffs Association, County Commissioners
Association, and the Maine Municipal Association.
1. State Board of Corrections
A State Board of Corrections is
created.
Composition:
- The Board consists of 9 members.
- One representative will be a sheriff selected from a list of
3 nominations submitted to the Governor by a statewide organization
representing Sheriffs.
- One representative will be a county commissioner selected from
a list of 3 nominations submitted to the Governor by a statewide
organization representing county commissioners.
- One representative will be a municipal official selected from
a list of three nominations submitted to the Governor by a statewide
organization representing elected and appointed municipal officers
and officials.
- Two representatives will be representatives of the executive
branch.
- Four representatives will be public members. Of the public
members, one member shall be selected from a list of 3 nominations
submitted to the Governor by a statewide organization representing
county commissioners
- All representatives will be appointed by the Governor and,
with the exception of the state representatives, will be subject
to review by the Joint Standing Committee on Criminal Justice
and Public Safety and confirmation by the full Senate.
Duties:
The Board will have the following
duties:
- Determine individual facility use (including location of Mental
Health specialty unit(s), women’s units, etc.) and appropriate
staffing levels at each facility.
- Set yearly growth limitation for the correctional services
expenditures in each county and approve any budget requests to
exceed set limit.
- Create uniform policy and procedures for consistent system-wide
pre-trial, revocation and re-entry practices.
- Establish a “Certificate of Need” process for any
future correctional capital construction projects.
- Implement—where appropriate—bulk purchasing of
commodities and services.
- Work to achieve systemic cost savings through downsizing or
other efficiencies. Any cost savings achieved will be re-invested
in the system or placed into a reserve for future capital needs.
- Focus on re-investment strategies in system to achieve better
outcomes for offenders and reduce the rate of incarceration.
- Set a fixed boarding rate for the system with a goal of eventually
eliminating boarding costs.
- Report at least annually to the Joint Standing Committee on
Criminal Justice and Public Safety.
2. Corrections Working Group
A working group consisting of representatives
of the Department of Corrections, Sheriffs and County Commissioners
will be established. The group will meet regularly to engage in
information sharing and to discuss and resolve any issues or problems
experienced in daily operation of the corrections system.
3. Department of Corrections
Under this plan, the Department
of Corrections is responsible for:
- Managing offender bed space throughout the system. Counties
will report available bed space daily to the DOC.
- Recommending a downsizing plan and re-investment strategies
to the Board of Corrections.
- Recommending uniform policies and procedures for pre-trial,
revocation and re-entry services to the Board of Corrections.
- Inspecting and investigating county facilities consistent with
current practice.
- Approving of Mental Health placements.
- Providing administrative support to the Board of Corrections.
4. Counties
Under this plan, the counties are responsible
for:
- Day to day operation of the county jails.
- Collecting tax assessments from municipalities for the provision
of correctional services (capped at FY08 level) and for retiring
the county jail debt in existence as of July 1, 2008.
- Submitting county’s annual correctional services budget
to the State Board.
- Recommending a downsizing plan and re-investment strategies
to the Board of Corrections.
- Recommending uniform policies and procedures for pre-trial,
revocation and re-entry services to the Board of Corrections.
5. Financing
- The State will freeze counties’ property tax assessments
for correctional services at the 2008 budgeted jail costs not
including debt service.
- The baseline for Somerset County property tax assessment is
the operational and maintenance costs of the new facility when
opened and operating at a level sufficient to sustain the average
daily number of inmates from Somerset County.
- The state will assume the cost for future growth to the corrections
system.
- The State will restore $5.6 million of the subsidy to the counties
for FY09.
- The counties will provide 100 beds to the State for a year
at the county’s “marginal cost” effective July
1, 2008.
- When the system can accommodate federal boarders, a county
will maintain any revenue it receives for the boarders. Such
revenue must be used to offset any costs to the state for that
county’s growth.
- The counties’ current debt service of $10.25 million
will be paid by the county that issued the debt and is not included
in the county’s frozen property tax assessment. The BOC
will propose to the Governor a biennial budget which will include
an appropriation to the Corrections Investment Fund of an amount
equal to the difference between FY08 debt and the current year’s
debt.
- The State Board of Corrections will administer the State Board
of Corrections Investment Fund which will include: any savings
achieved where facilities or services have been closed or downsized;
any savings achieved as a result of Board directives; funds formerly
appropriated to the County Jail Prisoner Support and Community
Corrections Fund; and, money from other designated sources.
