Georgia — The Florida-Times Union reported that the Georgia Senate unanimously passed a bill that will raise the daily reimbursement rate for county jails holding inmates awaiting transfer to state prison. Senate Bill 360 raises the daily reimbursement provided by the state to local jails from at least $7.50 to at least $30. Though the county jails had been receiving $20 per day, county sheriffs said the amount was not sufficient.

According to the bill’s sponsor, Sen. Johnny Grant, R-Milledgeville, the legislation was introduced after county officials and sheriffs complained about the high costs of housing prisoners and the number of days they are obligated to hold them. According to Sgt. Tommy Tillman, spokesman for the Chatham County Sheriff’s Office, “It’s not so bad if the state can pick them up in a timely manner.” That usually does not happen, though, because overcrowding in state prisons prevents quick transfers. The cost for housing one inmate for a day is about $50, Tillman said.

Kansas — The Kansas City Star published an article about a drop in prison recidivism rates for inmates on supervised release. The rate was reduced from 5 percent in 2002 to 2.2 percent in 2007. Corrections Secretary Roger Werholtz said the reduction is the result of increased funding for alcohol and drug treatment and programs that supervise inmates upon release. Because fewer offenders are returning to Kansas prisons, the number of inmates has decreased from 9,153 in 2004 to 8,854 in 2007. Assuming no new laws are passed calling for longer sentences, “[t]here is sufficient [prison] capacity to meet our needs for the next 10 years,” Werholtz said.

However, there are two bills currently under consideration that could increase the prison population. One mandates prison time for anyone convicted of multiple drunken driving charges. The second bill requires mandatory sentences for those convicted of several felony crimes. If the bills are passed, the DOC is prepared to build two new units at the state prison in El Dorado that could house an additional 512 inmates, Werholtz said. Last year the department was issued $39 million in bonds for future prison construction.

Michigan — Inmates at Saginaw Correctional Facility in Tittabawassee Township are building nine rustic cabins to be used by vacationers staying in the Waterloo and Pinckney state recreation areas. According to The Associated Press, the two-bedroom cabins are being built for the state Department of Natural Resources (DNR) at the correctional facility and shipped to the parks.

Inmates took classes for six months in woodworking, math and tool identification to prepare for the cabin-building project. The cabins cost $11,000 each — a good bargain according to facility spokesman Edward G. Rosek. “The DNR gets the cabins at a price they couldn’t get otherwise; the prisoners get the educational experience; and the citizens get the cabins at a reduced rate.”

New York — Gov. Eliot Spitzer signed a new law that will limit mentally ill inmates’ placement in segregated confinement, reported The Citizen. Inmates with serious mental illness will instead be housed in residential mental health treatment units run by the Department of Correctional Services and the Office of Mental Health. Inmates will receive out-of-cell therapeutic programming and mental health treatment in the units. Those not removed from segregated confinement will receive better care as well, including out-of-cell treatment and periodic mental health assessments. In addition, the law gives authority to the Commission on Quality of Care and Advocacy for Persons with Disabilities to monitor the quality of care inmates receive.

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