Lawmakers say prison plan will continue despite cost jump
Donaldson Correctional Facility is a maximum security prison in Jefferson County, Alabama. It's one of the prisons affected by overcrowding and understaffing, issues that officials hope new mega-prisons will alleviate.
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Alabama legislative leaders said Thursday they will proceed with plans to build two super-size prisons, despite the cost estimate for the first one mushrooming to nearly $1 billion.
The Alabama Corrections Institution Finance Authority on Wednesday increased the spending cap for the 4,000-bed prison in Elmore County, from $623 million to $975 million. Alabama Finance Director Bill Poole said the change was needed after inflation and design alterations caused the projected cost to rise.
“I wish it wasn’t there, but as all of you know, inflation has hit us pretty hard over the last few months and that’s certainly a reflection of that,” House Speaker Nathaniel Ledbetter told reporters.
Asked if the state will be able to build both prisons, Ledbetter said he thinks the state will go forward with the plan.
“I mean, there might be some adjustments along the way, but as all of you know we’ve got to do something,” Ledbetter said in reference to the state’s ongoing prison crisis.
Republican Rep. Rex Reynolds, the chairman of the House general fund committee, said he had been warned recently that the increase would be needed.
“That’s tough. We didn’t see that coming when we first voted on the bond money,” Reynolds said.
Still, the move drew criticism from some Democrats.
“Actual prison construction hasn’t even started yet but we are already up to a billion dollars. We haven’t even started talking about paying for the second prison yet. Add this to the billion dollars we are spending on a prison healthcare contract. This is not sustainable,” Democratic Rep. Chris England wrote in a tweet.
Alabama lawmakers in 2021 approved a $1.3 billion prison construction plan that tapped $400 million from the state’s share of federal pandemic relief dollars to help build two super-size prisons, including the one in Elmore County and a second one in Escambia County.
The U.S. Department of Justice has an ongoing lawsuit against Alabama, accusing the state of violating the constitutional rights of male prisoners in a system “riddled with prisoner-on-prisoner and guard-on-prisoner violence.” The Justice Department noted in an earlier report that dilapidated facilities were a contributing factor to the unconstitutional conditions but wrote “new facilities alone will not resolve” the matter because of problems with management deficiencies, corruption, violence and other issues.
At the Supreme Court, the case of the candidate who sued, even though he won
At issue was a suit by Rep. Michael Bost, R-Ill., challenging an Illinois regulation that allows ballots mailed in by Election Day to be counted for up to 14 days after polls close.
Israel and Hamas agree on the ‘first phase’ of Gaza ceasefire deal
The deal raises the possibility that the war may now be over, ending the bloodiest fighting ever between Israelis and Palestinians.
After Spain’s blackout, critics blamed renewable energy. It’s part of a bigger attack
When millions lost power in Spain and Portugal this spring, some were quick to blame too much solar and wind power. That wasn't the cause, but the misinformation had an impact.
‘Fairyland’ recalls a girl’s life with her poet father in pre-AIDS San Francisco
Alysia Abbott's memoir about growing up in 1970s San Francisco with her gay, single father, has been adapted into a film directed by Andrew Durham and produced by Sofia Coppola.
Los Angeles: Spaghetti Cumbia, a band born from cultural fusion
Photographers and storytellers Karla Gachet and Ivan Kashinsky document cumbia music in Colombia, Mexico, Ecuador, Peru, Argentina and the United States.
What are your holiday shopping plans? NPR wants to hear from you
Is this the season of cutbacks or splurges? As we prepare to cover holiday shopping and deals, NPR wants to hear from you, whatever your plans may be.
