The Lincoln County Commissioners met in an emergency session May 9 to discuss lingering legislative concerns over Two Bridges Jail. The meeting, which included comments from Lincoln County Sheriff Todd Brackett, featured discussion of a May 6 public hearing in Augusta on LD 1419, “An Act To Improve the Coordination of State and County Correctional Services.”
The Commissioners took exception to amendments made by District 117 Rep. Anne Haskell (D-Portland), which struck significant portions of language from LD 1419.
The amendments were classified as “11th hour” by the Commissioners and set up a crucial few days for the future of how the county contributes to the financing of the jail, beginning on May 11 with a board of corrections meeting.
“After all these years we’re suddenly crunched into three days,” said Lincoln County Administrator John O’Connell.
In response, Brackett said, “welcome to the legislative process.”
“They’ve been fighting this for years and all of a sudden they’ll just make a decision,” said Commissioner Lynn Orne.
Of special concern was the contingent account, which was written as “each county’s correctional facility shall establish a contingent account in an amount not to exceed the greater of 1.5 percent of the annual county correctional services budget or $100,000.
“The contingent fund may be used for county correctional services at the discretion of the county commissioners for emergency purposes only.”
Brackett also expressed concern over Section 6 which reads the “state will enter into contracts as appropriate regarding the provision of county correctional services.”
“This is very different language,” said Brackett. “It may be with the right intention but what does this mean? Does this mean they can contract with CCA [Corrections Corporation of America] to run the Two Bridges Regional Jail?” said Brackett.
O’Connell, summing up the collective frustration in the room, said the late changes to the bill were akin to “putting a rock on a railroad track.”
In response, the commissioners made a motion to support the previous version of LD 1419 before it was amended. The previous version was supported by Gov. Paul LePage’s office.
The Lincoln County Commissioners will next meet on May 17 at 9 a.m.
