Sen. Steve Lathrop of Omaha kept the spotlight focused on what he argues is the urgent need for prison, programming and sentencing reform as the Legislature labored Wednesday through a full day of debate on a budget bill that includes setting aside funding for a new state prison.Â
Mushrooming inmate numbers and Gov. Pete Ricketts' proposal to build a new $270 million state prison to replace the aging State Penitentiary in Lincoln have placed the issue squarely before state senators this year.
Lathrop, chairman of the Legislature's Judiciary Committee, argued that current prison overpopulation has reached a crisis stage and reforms recommended by a Crime and Justice Institute study are needed now to prevent ongoing growth in prison population and accompanying costs.
"The can has been kicked down the road," he said. "We have a crisis now."
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Nebraska's prison population has reached 152% of designed capacity; the Legislature's Appropriations Committee has recommended setting aside $170 million in a cash account awaiting future decision on whether to proceed with construction of a new prison; and recommendations for prison reform will come before the Legislature later in the form of LB920.
A number of senators argued that the state cannot build itself out of the prison population challenge without justice reforms.
"We need a plan," Sen. Wendy DeBoer of Bennington said. "Otherwise, we add 200 beds a year … for, I guess, forever."
Sen. Terrell McKinney of Omaha said the Legislature needs to adopt "a strategic and thoughtful approach to the challenge" which he earlier suggested should include investing in his North Omaha community.
Sen. Justin Wayne of Omaha said the "rural-urban divide" in the Legislature is demonstrated by recommended funding in the budget for trails and water projects compared to "significantly less investment in urban areas."
McKinney, Wayne and Sen. Tony Vargas of Omaha are supporting a $250 million allocation of federal pandemic recovery funds to address housing and other needs in North Omaha and South Omaha.Â
Sen. Mark Kolterman of Seward, a member of the Appropriations Committee, said the state has added 808 prison beds since he's been in the Legislature and "we haven't moved the needle" in terms of addressing the prison population challenge.
Sentencing reform and adequate programming are "the two key issues" in resolving the problem, Sen. Patty Pansing Brooks of Lincoln said.Â
Sen. Adam Morfeld of Lincoln told his colleagues that there needs to be "more access to mental health services" in the prison system.
LB920, the criminal justice reform bill, was advanced to the floor by the Judiciary Committee on a 6-2 vote.