Questions Raised About Budget Cuts In Maine
As reported by WCSH6-TV :
Proposed budget cuts and program changes for the Maine department of Corrections drew some hard questions from Legislators in Augusta on Wednesday. The proposed two-year budget for the department is actually a 3% increase, but Deputy commissioner Denise Lord says the department still needs to make major changes in staffing and programs to stay within that amount. The Baldacci Administration is proposing to close prisoner housing units at four locations: the Charleston correctional center in Charleston, the Downeast Correctional Facility in Machiasport, the Maine Correctional Center in Windham and the Bolduc Minimum Security Unit in Warren. Corrections Commissioner Marty Magnusson told the Legislature’s Appropriations and criminal Justice committees he also plans to transfer several dozen more inmates to county jails, and transfer more than 100 long-term inmates to a private prison facility in Minnesota. All these changes will result in the layoff of 39 more staff members.