State Funding For Tuolumne County Jail Unlikely

Tuolumne County Jail officials have said they believe state-funding for a new jail complex will not be granted. On Jan. 3 the county submitted an application to the state Department of Corrections (DOC) requesting the maximum grant funding of $33 million to be used toward construction cost of a new facility.  According to a document prepared by the County Board of Supervisors, the current Tuolumne County Jail  has an “effective capacity of 140 beds, and there is currently a need for 208 beds”.  By 2018, they said, that need would expand from 208 to 240.  In addition, they believe the current structure is inefficiently laid out, making it “staff-intensive” to operate safely.

“The choppy, linear design of the jail makes it difficult to cost-effectively staff,” they wrote.  “The level of difficulty they have in maintaining constant, direct supervision of inmates creates a safety issue for both jail staff and inmates.”

A Tuolumne Sheriff’s Department spokesperson has also indicated that the current jail lacks adequate space to not only house inmates according to classification, but to best serve the inmates based on lacking dedicated program space.  Dedicated programs include medical treatment, classrooms for education and recreation space, among others.

Other counties, however, including Sutter, Shasta, Madera, San Benito, Siskiyou and Kings currently rank ahead of Tulare when it comes to need.  Each of those counties also submitted bids requesting grant funding for corrections programs and construction projects. A final determination will be made by the DOC in March.

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