By Dave Lucas
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wamc/local-wamc-976096.mp3
Albany, NY – New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has ordered the closings of seven state prisons, camps and work release facilities to save money as New York's inmate population keeps declining. Capital District Bureau Chief Dave Lucas reports.
Governor Cuomo's office made the announcement last week. Selected facilities across New York will be shuttered within 60 days, eliminating approximately 3,800 unused prison beds and saving the state $72 million this year and $112 million next year. Remaining inmates will be transferred.
The Governor's decision isn't setting too well with PEF, New York's second largest state worker's union - which issued a statement saying "The closings come at a time when staff reductions and crowded conditions have resulted in an increase in violence at these facilities. " PEF President Ken Brynien: "Inmate-on-inmate assaults, inmate-on-staff assaults, inmate suicides and contraband all increased from 2009 to 2010..."Inmate-on-inmate assaults were up more than 12 percent and inmate suicides doubled."
The list of closures includes four minimum-security facilities for men: Buffalo Work Release in Erie County, Camp Georgetown in Madison County, Summit Shock in Schoharie County and Fulton Work Release in the Bronx. Three medium-security prisons closing are Arthur Kill on Staten Island, Mid-Orange in Orange County and the Oneida Correctional Facility in Oneida County.
Senator Joe Griffo is concerned about the Oneida closure and the impact it will have on Central New York. He issued this statement: "I am disappointed with the decision of the planned closure of the Oneida Correctional Facility; while the facility is not specifically in my Senate district, I care about and have great concern of the impact to the community where I live. We will be requesting information that went into the final determination so that all of us can understand how this achieves the economies of scale identified. A coordinated, collective, hard-fought effort made very telling points regarding the Oneida County facilities to the Governor and his staff. I believe a solid case was made on merit to retain them. The Governor has, and has always had, the authority to make the decision that he has released today. Because the authority to take this action is with the Executive Branch, my commitment now is to work with the Governor, his senior staff, and the Departments of Corrections and Economic Development to do everything possible to keep the jobs that are currently at the Oneida facility within our region and to ensure that our community has all possible support and assistance in developing a re-use plan for the facility and an economic transition plan for the region. There will be a meeting held sometime next week among state and local area officials to discuss and coordinate the next steps."
Soffiyah Elijah is Executive Director of The Correctional Association of New York, which has been a long-time advocate of downsizing state prisons: "While we commend the Governor for his commitment to eliminating excess prison beds, we are concerned that approximately 50% of these beds are located in or near New York City, even though New York City prisons only house 25% of the total state prison population. Therefore, the closures affect downstate prisons at a rate three times greater than prisons upstate. More than 60% of the state's prison population is from New York City and its suburbs."
Officials say no jobs will be lost as a result of the closings. New York's prison population has declined since 1999 from 71,600 to about 56,000. Governor Cuomo's office did not return calls for comment.