Ohio prison director says prison sale helps avoid cuts
COLUMBUS (AP) — If Ohio officials do not pursue the sale of five state prisons, multiple prisons would likely have to close, inmates would be shipped out of state and thousands of employees would be laid off, the state’s prison director said today.
Gary Mohr told an Ohio House committee that his Department of Rehabilitation and Correction faces “historic budget challenges” in the coming two-year budget, partly because it no longer can count on the $300 million in federal stimulus money it got in the last budget.
Gov. John Kasich wants to sell five prisons to private operators, overhaul sentencing laws and charge inmates for electricity in an effort to save millions of dollars amid an $8 billion budget shortfall.
Selling the prisons could generate $200 million for the state, Mohr said. However, the department’s budget only accounts for $50 million from the sale.
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