SPRING LAKE, MI - Two county commissioners Tuesday called on sheriff's officials to expand opportunities for women jail inmates in a program allowing them to earn time toward their release by taking part in supervised work projects.

Commissioners Jane Ruiter of Spring Lake and Joyce Kortman of Park Township say women who participate in the Sentenced Work Abatement Program, S.W.A.P., are limited to doing laundry in the jail, while men usually work outside the jail on projects that include mowing, cleaning ditches and painting.

"I would encourage (the sheriff's department to find) some way to involve the female inmates outside the jail," Ruiter said. "If they must be inside, (we need to) find some additional activities for those inmates."

Sheriff Gary Rosema said he understands the commissioners' concerns but cites a variety of issues that have limited the type of job assignments for women.

"We're limited by the numbers (of women in the program), plus we're limited by the type of assignment that can be given," Rosema said. "If we can identify types of jobs within our contracting organizations, we could clearly support the idea of females going out."

Rosema also cites safety and security concerns for the female inmates and prefers to keep women and men separated on job assignments.

"We'll continue to explore avenues for female participants," he said.

Founded in 1991 and originally operated by the county's community corrections department, SWAP was taken over by the sheriff's department in 2002. Inmates receive one day off their sentence for every four days of work. Last year, inmates earned a combined 3,640 days off their sentences, according to a report submitted to the county Board of Commissioners.

Thirteen municipalities and nonprofit agencies, including the cities of Holland, Grand Haven, Zeeland and Hudsonville, currently contract for SWAP services, paying the county a little more than $5 per hour per inmate. All of the organizations recently told the county in a survey they felt the program was highly beneficial.

"The SWAP program has not only been a benefit to the participating local units of government and nonprofit agencies, but also to jail administrators who are able to accomplish certain administrative and operational tasks while inmates are working outside of the jail," Planning and Grants Manager Mark Knudsen said.