Alabama lawmakers could soon give final approval to a $1.3 billion prison construction plan that would be partly funded with COVID-19 pandemic relief money.
Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey on Friday signed into law a package of bills Friday that paves the way for the state to use COVID-19 pandemic relief funds to help pay for a $1.3 billion prison construction plan.
Updated: 12:06 PM CDT Jun 2, 2021 WVTM 13 Digital Alabama Governor Kay Ivey said Wednesday she is committed to addressing the state s troubled correctional system after the unraveling of her $3 billion plan to build and lease new private prisons. This comes after a June 1 deadline for investors to opt into the prison lease plan came and went without any takers. Ivey has said new prisons are a crucial step to overhauling the state s troubled and aging prison system. The governor said she plans to meet with legislators in the coming days to discuss options that remain on the table. In February, she signed 30-year lease agreements for two new mega prisons for men, but the deal fell apart as investment banks underwriting the financing began backing out one by one.Critics have said the plan is unnecessarily expensive and doesn t address critical issues of training, violence and understaffing. State Auditor Jim Zeigler said, The prison lease plan is dead, as it