commonwealth of pennsylvania - The Pennsylvania General Assembly

LEGISLATIVE JOURNAL-HOUSE
ture of tax money down the road which the long-term
prognostications by the Bureau of Correction and by almost
every agency involved with prison reform show will not be
necessary in this Commonwealth.
Now, there is no doubt that currently we are facing a slight
overcrowding problem. As a matter of fact, there are 73 cells
that have been doubled up, but I would note that nobody has
stayed in one of those cells for longer than 3 weeks. Those
have basically been the diagnostic units where an inmate first
goes when he enters a prison. I think what we have to
remember also is that in the general appropriations budget
which we just passed, we provided for a total of 306 new cells,
which would take care of the current problem anyway.
Mr. Speaker, apart from the cell renovations, there are 80
new community service beds provided by the general appro-
priations budget. There are 40 trailer beds and forestry
camps. That in and of itself should takecareof the short-term
program. I simply do not want us to spend all this money
down the road, which it will take at least 3 years to complete,
and then find ourselves stuck with a huge tau bill for a facility
we do not need. For those reasons and others that I will not
state, I think we need this amendment. I would appreciate
your support.
The SPEAKER. The Chair recognizes the majority leader.
Mr. HAYES. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Obviously there must be consideration given to our penal
system as to its current capacity and, if it is not sufficient,
what to do about that. There is some concern in this House of
Representatives as to whether or not the right site has been
suggested. There are not answers definitively to inquiries
which have been made, and at this time there is a view by
many persons directly affected on this side of the aisle that the
Kukovich amendment should be adopted. That is not to say
that support for the gentleman's amendment today is to he
interpreted as a signal that there is not to be a review of our
penal system with regard to capacity. There are problems and
they must be addressed, but on this day there are many
members on this side of the aisle who have a concern as to the
recommended site. Therefore, we urge support of the
Kukovich amendment.
The SPEAKER. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from
Centre, Mr. Letterman.
Mr. LETTERMAN. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker. I rise to oppose the Kukovich amendment. I
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think they picked the proper site. I do not want them in
central Pennsylvania. Let them stay there.
The SPEAKER. The Chair recognizes the lady from
Montgomery, Mrs. Lewis.
Mrs. LEWIS. Mr. Speaker, I rise to support the Kukovich
amendment. Graterford is in my district, and I fully recognize
the need for some additional beds and so forth. However, $22
million is a lot to appropriate, and our delegation was not
even consulted, nor were the residents of our community, and
they are very much concerned about the security at Graterford
as it presently is being handled now. So I would appreciate
your support of the Kukovich amendment. Thank you.
The SPEAKER. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from
Centre, Mr. Letterman.
Mr. LETTERMAN. I told you why they did not want it
done. All you have to do is read it; it is plain. That is where
most of the crimes are being committed. Let them keep them
there. I do not want them up in central Pennsylvania. Let
them keep them down there.
REMARKS SUBMITTED FOR THE RECORD
The SPEAKER. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from
Philadelphia, Mr. White.
Mr. WHITE. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Along with taking exception to my good colleague's
comments from Centre County, I would like to submit these
comments for the record.
Mr. WHITE submitted the following remarks for the Legis-
lative Journal:
House of Representatives
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
June 23, 1981
MEMO
Subject: House Bill 1645. P.N. 1924 - Capital Budget funds
for building a new state prison
To: Hon. John. White
From: Sam McClea. Judiciary Committee Staff
There are generally different types of solutions proposed
whenever aprison system exceeds capacity.
1. Build more prisons and increase the number of cells.
2. Establish priorities as to which offenders you desire
to incarcerate and provide alternative programs for
the ~~~~ more ~~ minor offenders.
Because the state prison system has exceeded its capacity and has
begun to double cell (146 inmates as of 6/19/81), this becomes a
timely issue in Pennsylvania.
In deciding which of the two directions to go in solving the overcrowding
problem, a series of factors needs to be considered:
1. How many more cells have we provided for in the
1981-82 General Budget?
Answer: 186 cell renovations, 80 community-service
beds,^ trailer beds for forestry camp. Total of 306, plus
the use of trailers at Camp Hill for the drug treatment
program will free up one complete cell block of 125 more
cells. This combined with the 306 cells brings the total to
431 cells.
What are the factors that indicate whether or not
more prison cells are needed and, if so, how many
and for how long?
a) Prison: The Bureau of
Correction's oroiections suaaest they will need
another 500 t6600 cells on topof what provided in
the 1981-82 budget.
b) The projections by the Pennsylvania Commission
on Crime and Delinquency for the next two decades
suggest that the overcrowding should peak between
1985 and 1990 and that new prisons should not be
built, but rather temporary alternatives be developed.
c) General population figures for the crime prone
age group (18-34) in Pennsylvania will be declining
substantially over the next decade.