State prison in Charleston gets benefits from budget

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- The Southeast Correctional Center at Charleston would open its final wing and hire additional workers starting in July under the state budget Gov. Bob Holden proposed Wednesday.

The opening of the 288-bed wing, which has already been built, would bring the prison up to its designed capacity of 1,596 and allow the facility to be upgraded to maximum-security status.

The prison opened in October 2001 and was originally intended to be fully operational sometime during the current fiscal year, which ends June 30. However, tight state finances prevented that from happening, and the facility at present houses only minimum- and medium-security inmates. As of Jan. 3, 1,214 prisoners were incarcerated.

Holden's spending proposal for fiscal year 2004, which begins July 1, would bump the Charleston prison's budget to $11.9 million, an increase of about $1 million.

The governor's plan still has to undergo legislative review. The General Assembly will send the completed budget back to Holden in May.

The extra funding would allow the prison to be fully staffed with 446 workers, which includes guards and support personnel. Department of Corrections spokesman Tim Kniest said the FY 2003 budget authorized 424 employees at Charleston but that because of the budget problems all those workers haven't been hired.

Kniest was unsure how many workers the prison employed as of Thursday, but in July the facility had a staff of 322.

Good feelings

Betty Hearnes, president of the Mississippi County Industrial Development Authority, said it is difficult to gauge the economic impact the prison has had on Charleston to date and that benefits will be long-term. However, Hearnes said the governor's commitment to fully opening the facility next year was welcome news.

"It is a place to go and find a job," Hearnes said. "I can't measure what that means in dollars and cents, but I can measure it in the way it makes people feel."

Charleston is still reeling from Wal-Mart's decision to close its store there last year, costing the town 80 jobs. Hearnes said the commerce prison employees and visitors have brought to the city has eased the blow but hasn't negated the impact of Wal-Mart's loss.

Part of the problem, she said, is that at present Charleston lacks sufficient housing for the prison's workers and as a result many choose to live -- and shop and pay taxes -- in Sikeston or other area communities.

"There are some things we have to do in Charleston and Mississippi County to make the most of the prison," Hearnes said. "But anytime you have more jobs coming in, that helps."

In his budget message, Holden said tough criminal sentencing laws adopted in the last decade have made Missouri safer but put a greater strain on the prison system.

Over the last eight years, the prison population has grown by 11,272 prisoners. The total number of Missouri inmates stood at 29,871 as of Jan. 3 and is expected to jump to nearly 31,500 during FY 2004. That figure would exceed the system's current capacity.

Holden also proposed $22.7 million to continue opening the Eastern Reception and Diagnostic Center at Bonne Terre, Mo. That facility consists of an 820-bed intake unit for offenders who will be transferred to other prisons on the eastern side of the state plus 1,768 beds for permanent inmates.

Because of budget cuts, the Bonne Terre prison stood idle for a year after it was built until funds became available to gradually open it last year.

mpowers@semissourian.com

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