Corrections Department could see $30 million in new funding

The Corrections Department could receive an additional $30 million of funding in fiscal year 2015 to help with an inmate increase and avoid staff layoffs.

The appropriation is part of the omnibus supplemental budget bill approved Wednesday evening by the House Public Safety Finance and Policy Committee. It is scheduled to be before the House Ways and Means Committee Friday.

Sponsored by Rep. Michael Paymar (DFL-St. Paul), the committee chair, HF3273 contains $49.7 million worth of additional spending in fiscal year 2015 with some policy provisions mixed in. Of the funding, $36.48 million would be from the General Fund and the remainder from special revenue funds. (See the spreadsheet.)

The bill includes an $18.95 million increase for critical operations staff at the Department of Corrections. Current law did not include funding for bargained salary increases, and this funding would maintain current staffing levels.

It also contains $11.1 million to deal with a projected shortfall due to a larger than expected prison population bump. Because of an 8 percent jump in new court commitments between fiscal years 2012 and 2013, the male offender population grew by 319 offenders in 2013, the largest increase in five years. The money would help pay for beds the department rents at county jails to house offenders.

Both Corrections Department funding requests are in the governor’s supplemental budget bill.

Nearly $12 million from the state government revenue fund for 911 emergency telecommunications services — $5.06 million in fiscal year 2014 and $6.87 million in fiscal year 2015 — would be used for emergency communications network funding. Funding comes from a fee assessed on each customer’s wireless or wire-line telephone. Legislative approval is needed to spend the money.

The other special revenue fund transfer is $1.3 million from the fire safety account in fiscal year 2014 for fire safety purposes, such as training. The account is funded by a fire safety surcharge on homeowner’s insurance policies and, it too, must be legislatively authorized. This provision comes from HF2972, sponsored by Rep. Shannon Savick (DFL-Wells).

The bill would also provide nearly $5.66 million to help local units of government respond quicker in the event of a disaster emergency. Based on HF2701, sponsored by Rep. Gene Pelowski Jr. (DFL-Winona), the provision would allow the state to declare a state of emergency without first having to call a special session. It would create a fund for disaster relief costs not covered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and would create a new disaster relief grant program for local units of government that are not eligible for FEMA assistance.

Other funding in the omnibus bill includes $300,000 for sexual assault prevention, as proposed by Paymar in the original HF3273. The bill also would provide $300,000 “for grants to fund emergency shelter, housing, or advocacy services targeted to culturally specific programming for newer immigrant populations.”

Other policy/funding provisions in the bill include:

• HF2142, sponsored by Rep. Barb Yarusso (DFL-Shoreview), for which a $125,000 appropriation would be used to provide enhanced notification to victims of domestic violence of the offender’s zip code upon release from custody;
• HF2478, sponsored by Rep. Tim O'Driscoll (R-Sartell), that would see $50,000 for de-escalation training grants for dealing with veterans returning from active military service in combat zones; and
• HF1851, sponsored by Rep. Andrea Kieffer (R-Woodbury), that would expand the felony 5th degree criminal sexual conduct so that a person who engages in such unlawful activity could receive up to 10 years in prison if the person has a qualifying prior offense, such as criminal sexual conduct. This is not expected to have any cost in fiscal year 2015, but a projected $49,000 expense in the 2016-17 biennium.