By Sheena McFarland
The Salt Lake Tribune
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah — Even with a slightly rosier budget picture, the Department of Corrections is bracing to release at least 384 prisoners early and cut about 75 employees.
Legislators have released a budget plan that restored many of the previously proposed budget cuts, but Corrections is still facing a $6.9 million budget cut.
“I’m optimistic that we’ll be able to get that cut restored, and have Corrections held whole, but that’s how tight the budget really is,” said Rep. Eric Hutchings, R-Kearns, chairman of the budget committee that oversees the department. “But we’re trying to keep rural courthouses open that have been around since statehood. We’ve had to balance some pretty tough decisions.”
The prison directors would be in charge of identifying which prisoners would be released early. They likely would follow the criteria that the prisoners already had a parole date and have completed rehabilitation programs.
The Department of Corrections would then forward its list to the Board of Pardons and Parole, which would ultimately decide who gets released.
“We’re just looking at moving forward the release dates of those offenders deemed the least serious and least likely to reoffend,” said Jim Hatch, spokesman for the Board of Pardons and Parole.
The last time prisoners were released early due to budget concerns was about eight years ago, Hatch said. He hopes the board would be able to release prisoners in a trickle rather than a flood, but that will depend on what the Legislature mandates.
However, even with a mass early release of prisoners, the prison would be operating at maximum capacity. That means corrections officers would be unable to house members of rival gangs in different areas as easily and won’t have the flexibility to move prisoners after a fight or other issue presents itself.
“Those issues are much more difficult to deal with when we’re at maximum capacity,” said Steve Gehrke, department spokesman.
Corrections leaders are hoping that a bill run by Rep. Mike Noel, R-Kanab, that would provide more money for county jails that house state prisoners passes. The bill would increase not only how much a county jail is reimbursed per prisoner, but also increase the number of prisoners jails can take. HB153 sailed through the House, and was introduced into the Senate on Thursday morning.
“We’re talking about citizens and where their crimes have been committed,” said Sen. John Valentine, R-Orem, who is cosponsoring the bill. “One of the advantages of prisoner placement in jails is for the person being recovered. Being closer to family really is a benefit and gives a better chance of having a nonrepeat offender.”
Hutchings calls the ability for county jails to take state prisoners “our saving grace.”
“We’re hoping we can keep that relationship strong,” Hutchings said. “The only way to manage that going forward is to have that partnership in place.”
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