When Florida Governor Rick Scott announced that he was privatizing 30 prisons in 18 counties as a cost-cutting measure, the sounds of outrage could be heard all over the state. Particularly upset were members of the Florida Police Benevolent Society whose workforce would be finding themselves without a job. (See Reentry Central News July 25, 2011.) The Governor, however, said that the move to privatize was necessary, and that the private vendor under contract will be required to operate the prisons for seven percent less than when the facilities were run by the state. The controversial decision has divided Floridians, with legislators on both sides of the aisle, correctional officers and taxpayers all weighing in on the issue.
Now a glitch in the decision has come to light. Taxpayers are faced with a $25 million payout to former correctional workers. Although members of the Florida Legislature knew that 4,000 Department of Corrections workers would have to be compensated for accumulated vacation time, sick leave, and compensatory time for working on holidays, the topic was not publicly addressed, according to the Herald/Times. An email obtained by the Florida PBA confirms that the “payout may just cripple the (DOC) for the next …year.” The email was sent by Dan Ronay, the second -in-command at the DOC, who also stated that the Legislature failed to consider the huge amount of the payout when voting for privatization.
The Florida PBA has filed a lawsuit in an effort to stop the privatization of prisons, which is scheduled to go into effect on January 1, 2011. Senator Michael Fasano, R-New Port Richey, who is the chairman of a budget panel which oversees prison spending has stated that he will hold hearings on the $25 million payout during the next few months, the Herald/Times reports.
Source: Times/Herald
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