Prison officials unveil list of projects

State prison officials unveiled a 10-year list of projects to help cope with the ever-growing population of inmates in Utah's prison system.

Currently the state's maximum prison capacity is at 6,411, which the Department of Corrections hit last December.

As of April, the prison population had dropped slightly to 6,272, but it is expected to grow by more than 1,970 inmates by 2014, said Scott Carver, executive director.

To handle the projected growth, corrections officials have detailed a series of expansion projects — mostly at the Central Utah Correctional Facility in Gunnison — that will add more than 2,100 secure beds by 2015.

The plan was presented to members of the Legislature's Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Interim Committee on Wednesday.

In all, the expansion projects could cost an estimated $150 million. While the costs may appear prohibitive, Carver said Utah is nowhere near other states that are experiencing explosive inmate growth.

Utah has the lowest prison growth rate in the entire western United States and is ranked 8th lowest in the nation, Carver said.

Among anticipated projects is a privately operated parole center that could house 300 inmates by July 2008.

But while the state's prison population has not reached a crisis, a traditional emergency valve — county jails — is all but tapped out. County jails have contracted out a certain number of their beds to accommodate certain state prison inmates. Carver told lawmakers those beds are full.

Relief is expected as early as November, when a 200-bed expansion at the Beaver County Jail is scheduled to be operational. Also by January 2007, a 288-bed expansion in Gunnison is expected to be open and operational.

The big project plan includes a third prison facility by 2014. A site has not been chosen. Last winter, prison officials conducted a study to move the state prison in Draper to another location. That study showed the state would lose millions of dollars in the move.

Some lawmakers expressed concern that prison population growth of the past four years demonstrates an "endless" need for more facilities. Carver agreed.

Crime experts have estimated the vast majority of criminals have a drug addiction. Carver said one key to reducing Utah's prison population would be if the Legislature focused more on drug treatment programs.

A pilot project is being conducted to determine the effectiveness of the Drug Offender Rehabilitation Act, which ultimately proposes to create a statewide program that would treat non-violent offenders for their addiction and allow them a chance to be productive citizens. The Legislature has provided just enough funding for a pilot project in Salt Lake County.

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