By Kevin Hassler
Enid News & Eagle
McALESTER, Okla. — Even as it receives growing interest for job openings, Oklahoma Department of Corrections said Thursday it can no longer afford to fill a plethora of positions, including prison guards, teachers and psychiatrists.
The department is implementing an across-the-board hiring freeze for all but the most critical positions, said spokesman Terri Watkins.
Prison officials aren’t sure how long the freeze will last, saying they’ll have to see how the Legislature handles a budget shortfall when it convenes in February.
The prisons are adjusting their books to address an $11 million budget cut, which state leaders ordered as part of a round of reductions meant to balance the state’s checkbook for the current budget year.
Declining fortunes in the energy sector have hit the state especially hard.
Watkins said the freeze should not affect safety in the prisons. Current employees will continue to work overtime.
Complicating the crunch is the continued rise of Oklahomans being sent to prison. The state averages about 1,200 new inmates a year, Watkins said.
Mike Roach, a member of the state corrections board, said news of the mandated budget cuts was “absolutely unbelievable.” The prison population — nearly 28,000 offenders are in custody — is already 118 percent over capacity, he noted.
“We simply were backed into a corner,” he said. “It’s getting tough. It’s getting very tough, and I don’t know how much longer we can do that.”
Corrections Board Chairman Kevin Gross said he is frustrated by the need for a hiring freeze, especially given the department’s investment in stirring up applications for corrections officers jobs.
About 73 percent of the correctional officer positions in the prison system are filled, Watkins said. Interest in those jobs was starting to rise, likely because of downturns in the energy sector.
Corrections officers now enrolled in seven training academies will be the last hires for now, Watkins said.
In addition, the department is cutting all out-of-state travel, curtailing in-state travel, seeking ways to consolidate, and cutting down on leased office space.
The corrections board on Thursday also tapped an interim director to lead the effort.
Joe Allbaugh, 62, of Austin, Texas, will succeed Robert Patton, who abruptly announced his resignation last month. Allbaugh will make $165,000 a year.
Gross cited Allbaugh’s extensive political experience, and his national and international security experience, as qualifications for the job. He was also the only person who expressed an interest, Gross said.
Allbaugh worked as chief of staff for Texas Gov. George W. Bush, then coordinated the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s response to the 9/11 attacks, Gross said.
Allbaugh owns land near Blackwell and plans to relocate to Oklahoma City while the board searches for a full-time successor, he added.
Gross said he expects the search for a full-time director to take at least eight months.
“I think it’s going to a little difficult,” he said, noting that 10 or so states, including California, are looking for corrections directors.
Copyright 2016 the Enid News & Eagle