New county jail won’t open without money for staff

By ROGER AMSDEN, LACONIA DAILY SUN

LACONIA — Belknap County Corrections Superintendent Keith Gray said he will not open the new 18,000-square-foot, 64-bed Community Corrections Center this September unless he has the money to adequately staff it.

"I will not open that building. Without enough staffing, both the staff and inmates will be at risk," said Gray, adding that the county delegation has known for over two years what the staffing needs are but has cut his proposed budget so that he will not be able to hire the staff he needs.

His comments came after the Belknap County Delegation rejected by a 7-5 vote Monday night a motion from Rep. Tim Lang (R-Sanbornton) to restore $95,400 which had been cut from the proposed Corrections Department budget by the delegation when it approved a $27,487,463 county budget Friday night.

Lang said Gray has maintained that he cannot safely open the annex without two additional staffers and moved to restore the $55,400 for the two positions and $40,000 for dietary department at the jail, which Gray had added to his original $3.964 million budget request.

Lang also proposed restoring $126,736 which had been cut from the Sheriff's Department budget, $96,900 for outside agencies and $44,000 for a nursing home activities staffer. He recommended paying for the budget items by using an additional $380,000 from the county's fund balance.

His motion lost 7-5 with Commission Chairman Herb Vadney (R-Meredith) opposed, along with Rep. Ray Howard (R-Alton), Rep. Barbara Comtois (R-Barnstead), Rep. Peter Varney (R-Alton), Rep. Marc Abear (R-Meredith), Rep. Norman Silber (R-Gilford) and Rep. Glenn Aldrich (R-Gilford).

Supporting the motion were Lang, Rep. John Plumer (R-Belmont), Rep. Dennis Fields (R-Sanbornton), Rep. Don Flanders (R-Laconia) and Rep. Dave Huot (D-Laconia).

Commissioner Hunter Taylor (R-Alton) told the delegation Monday night before they voted on Lang's motion that Gray would not recommend opening the facility without at least two additional staffers. He also pointed out that the county delegation knew when it unanimously approved an $8 million bond in November 2015 for the corrections center that additional staffing costs were estimated at $650,183 annually.

The 2017 budget proposed by commissioners included funds for four new corrections officers a well as instructional personnel and was far less than had originally been projected according to Taylor.

During budget discussions earlier this year when Gray was asked by Rep. Peter Spanos (R-Laconia) what the ideal staffing ratio would be, he said that he would like to have at least six more corrections officers and as many as 10 more when the new community corrections facility opens this fall.

But he said at the time he would deal with what was realistic and would "take what I can get," adding that he is grateful for getting two new officers last year and four more this year.

He said he has a staff of of 25 full-time officers and seven part-timers for the 100 or so prisoners which are held at the jail on a daily basis, half of whom are awaiting trial. He sought additional funds for meals for prisoners after the number of prisoners being held at the facility continued to remain higher than normal, which he said appears to reflect the seriousness of the county's opioid crisis.

Commissioner Taylor criticized the delegation's approach to the budget, saying that the the majority of the members were interested only in holding the line on taxes at last year's level and not in meeting the real needs of the county. He pointed out that consultants have said that the county jail is seriously understaffed and that the county raises less revenue per capita to fund county operations than any other county in the state.

He also was critical of the revenue estimates provided by Rep,. Marc Abear (R-Meredith), pointing out that in six instances the higher estimates were made despite declines in those revenue lines from 2015 into 2016. Abear has said that he based his budget proposal on historical averages.

Abear's proposal calls for using $1.6757,853 from the fund balance to reduce taxes, compared to the $2,183.657 proposed by commissioners for their proposed $28 million budget.

Commissioner Glen Waring (R-0Gilmanton) also questioned the $175,000 that Abear had in the budget as a revenue from Gunstock, noting that a proposed memorandum of understanding with Gunstock shows only a $100,000 figure. "You're starting out $75,000 in the hole," he said.

After Commissioner Howard said that negotiations are still ongoing and it is "a game of cat and mouse," Vadney expressed confidence that a new agreement with Gunstock would include at least $175,000 in the first year.

Also questioned was a $290,810 revenue Abear had included in his budget from legislation which has not yet passed on retirement program costs in which the state would pay part of what is now being paid by counties and local governments. Rep. Huot said it should not be shown as a revenue, but as a credit in the retirement line.

After the delegation voted 9-6 to approve the $14.5 million in revenue estimates outlined by Abear, Rep. Plumer proposed a motion to take $100,000 from the fund balance to fund Sheriff's Department and Department of Corrections budgets his motion was ruled out of order by Vadney, who said the budget had been finalized by the delegation's vote and is no longer a work in progress.

The Belknap County Community Corrections Center is scheduled to open in September, but Superintendent Keith Gray says he won't open it without adequate staff. (Adam Drapcho/Laconia Daily Sun)