Ivey’s Prison Construction Plan Meets Financial Roadblock
A hallway inside Kilby Correctional Facility, the state's intake center.
Gov. Kay Ivey said she will look at other options to finance new prison construction after the state missed a key deadline this week.
Earlier this year, Ivey signed two leases with the private prison company CoreCivic, which agreed to build two new men’s prisons that the Alabama Department of Corrections would lease and operate. The state was negotiating with another group, Alabama Prison Transformation Partners, to build a third prison.
Developers were supposed to secure funding for the project by Tuesday, but several investors pulled out of the deal in recent months.
In a statement Wednesday, Ivey said she will soon meet with legislative leaders to discuss “additional/alternative options to fund the construction and maintenance of new prison facilities.”
“It is unfortunate that the comprehensive efforts underway to resolve this issue have proven so challenging and time-consuming,” Ivey said. “However, my commitment to improving prison conditions is unwavering.”
The state faces mounting pressure to improve its overcrowded prison system, which is being sued by the U.S. Department of Justice for unconstitutional levels of violence and sexual assault.
Alabama lawmakers have turned down previous proposals to fund prison construction and many criticized the build-lease plan, which did not require legislative approval. They point to an estimated cost of $3 billion over 30 years.
Chairman of the House General Fund Budget Committee, Rep. Steve Clouse, R-Ozark, said it would be “better for taxpayers” for the state to fund new prisons. He said lawmakers could approve a bond issue to finance the project.
“I think the vast majority of the legislature realizes now that we’ve got to have new facilities,” Clouse said.
In an interview Wednesday announcing her bid for reelection, Ivey said a bond issue is “very likely.” She said she will only consider calling a special session if there’s an “agreed-upon plan.”
Melinda French Gates on what billionaires with ‘absurd’ wealth owe back to society
In a new memoir, French Gates writes about the end of her marriage to Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, and her ongoing philanthropic work, directing funds and attention to women's health initiatives.
Trump plans order to cut funding for NPR and PBS
President Trump and GOP members of Congress have accused the public broadcasters of biased and "woke" programming. The president plans a rescission, which would give Congress 45 days to approve the directive or allow funding to be restored.
Sudan’s war is 2 years in and shows no signs of slowing, as talks take place
As "pathway to peace talks" are held in London - minus the main protagonists - Sudan tips into a third year of catastrophic civil war, as violence surges in the Darfur region of the west of the country and activists warn of an unfolding genocide.
Bill would give give non-violent, aging prisoners a chance at freedom
Should the Second Chance Act be enacted, judges could review certain cases where an individual was sentenced to life without parole under the Habitual Offenders Act for potential resentencing.
States push Medicaid work rules, but few programs help enrollees find jobs
Some lawmakers are pushing to require that Medicaid recipients work in order to get or keep coverage, and some states already try to help them find jobs. But the effects of those efforts are unclear.
5 notable new books that are all over the map (in a good way)
These books confront readers with the recent past and distant future, bring them to southeastern Africa and an alternative Japan, and bedeck their pages with subversive cartoons and lush landscapes.
