Prison plan unveiled in Legislature hearing

Thursday, April 29, 1999 | 9:06 a.m.

Chief of Staff Pete Ernaut and chief attorney Scott Scherer detailed the changes to a legislative budget committee on Wednesday.

The governor is dropping plans now for expanding the privately run women's prison in North Las Vegas because new forecasts show fewer female inmates than previously predicted.

Instead, the prison conservation camp at Jean will be converted from male to female in the year 2000.

Guinn still intends to close the main Jean prison but would reopen it in 2004, as a minimum security facility, as opposed to its present medium security rating.

And there would be a speed-up of construction for a second phase of the Cold Springs prison north of Las Vegas. The first phase is already being built.

If approved by the Legislature, both phases would open in September next year. Scherer said that would mean an additional 1,008 beds and allow the state to keep up with the growth of the number of male inmates.

Ernaut reaffirmed the governor's intention to go forward with having a private company handle medical care for the full prison system. He said the savings over two years could be $6 million, which is higher than the $4.5 million that was previously estimated.

Two firms have submitted bids to provide medical care for the nearly 10,000 inmates. In 1997-98, medical costs hit $28 million. Correctional Medical Services, which now has the state contract for medical services at the maximum security prison in Ely, has bid on taking over the whole system.

Negotiations are under way on signing a contract.

There has been opposition in the Legislature to the privatization plan and the closure of Jean. Several hundred employees could lose their jobs. But Scherer said most of the medical personnel could be hired by the private contractor. And the prison staff could be transferred to Cold Springs.

He told the budget committee that the governor is willing to work out a severance package for the workers who lose their jobs and to develop plans for the re-employment rights for the displaced workers.

The committee did not take any action on the proposal.