A private watchdog group opposed to the privatization of prisons is asking Gov. Mike Leavitt to delay formalizing a contract that would eventually put a 500-bed prison in Grantsville.
The bid was won in June by Cornell Corrections out of California to build the state's first fully privatized secure facility.The Department of Corrections had said it needed another maximum-security facility because of an anticipated surge in its inmate population. However, population figures this year show the department isn't experiencing the kind of growth it feared, and now some feel there should be no hurry to build another prison.
Although the prison has seen its numbers steadily grow over the past several years, by the end of 1998 the population dropped, falling from from 5,154 in October to 5,049 in December.
In 1999 numbers have fluctuated more than usual, climbing to 5,138 and then falling to 5,106.
"We believe there is no compelling state interest in rushing into this contract," wrote W.R. Jensen, board chairman of the Utah Citizens Education Project, "and that the full Legislature should be given the opportunity to debate and decide upon this matter."
The letter was also signed by Carol Gnade, director of the ACLU of Utah, and Patty Collins, president of the American Federation of State, City and Municipal Employees.
Utah Citizens has long been opposed to privatizing prisons, accusing the state of shirking its duty and accusing the for-profit companies that build these prisons of putting dollars above prisoners.
Steve Erickson, a spokesman with the group, said he wants the existing legislation that allows the state to go forward with privatization to be tweaked.
"We want it reassessed it again. There are some holes in the existing legislation that need to be plugged before we go further down this road. We don't want to go down this road at all, but if they are hell bent on doing it, there are some issues that need to be addressed."
Corrections executive director Pete Haun was expected to update Utah lawmakers on the issue Wednesday afternoon during a meeting of the Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Interim Committee.