Governor Branstad officially unveiled the first of two new state prisons, Monday.
This $85-million upgrade to the Iowa Correctional Facility for Women in Mitchellville is designed to be a more open and a more hi-tech prison.
The governor says the improvements will require fewer staff members.
Former Governor Chet Culver used the I-JOBS bonding plan to help pay for the prison.
While Governor Branstad thinks the new prison is a good facility, he thinks it was wrong to take on debt the way Culver did.
“Unfortunately, we’re using that to pay back over 25-years, $55-million a year over 25-years and I think most Iowans think that this kind of debt doesn’t make a lot of sense,” Branstad said.
Governor Branstad will hold a ribbon-cutting for the new $132-million Iowa State Penitentiary In Fort Madison, Wednesday.
Lorne Wazny
So what should the State borrow money for??? What a Partisan statement. Isn’t it like borrowing to replace your house?
Mario Lanza
Your comment makes no sense. Try again.
KRJBOLEJ
Your comment is the only one that does make sense, so far. YEESH ..
Russell J Tharp Jr.
Funny how Iowa doesn’t have money for schools and teachers but we can burn money like a drunken sailor for prisons. America has this insane obsession with locking people up and throwing away the key – and someone explain why the rest of the industrialized world locks up a much lower percent of it’s people, locks them up for shorter times when they do lock people up, AND has less crime and less violent crime.
Carmel
So the governor is upset about the financing, I get that, but he also said it would require fewer staff members. Guess those out of a job don’t worry him. Find that interesting.