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| NY Facing Tough DOC Budget Calls |
| By auburnpub.com |
| Published: 02/03/2011 |
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Like governors before him, Andrew Cuomo is taking aim at empty beds in the New York state correctional system. In the 2011 budget proposal unveiled Tuesday, Cuomo called for the establishment of a task force to “reduce excess capacity in prisons, youth detention and mental hygiene facilities.” Since 1999, the state’s prison population has fallen from 71,600 to 56,300, with the result that there are now about 3,500 empty spaces at minimum- and medium-security prisons, according to the budget briefing book. “We are not talking about releasing prisoners,” Cuomo said Tuesday. “We are talking about consolidating prisons and unused space.” Cuomo’s committee has clear marching orders. According to the briefing book, it if fails to recommend “rightsizing,” Department of Correctional Services Commissioner Brian Fischer will be “empowered to implement facility closures.” Most of the state’s 67 correctional facilities are in rural upstate, where they provide thousands of jobs. Upstate Republicans have been vocal in their opposition to prison consolidation. Read More. |
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