Barbed wire seen behind a fence at an Alabama prison. A Senate committee Wednesday approved authorizing $500 million in additional borrowing for prison construction, raising the total borrowing for the project to $1.28 billion. (Brian Lyman/Alabama Reflector)
An Alabama Senate committee on Tuesday approved a bill that would authorize an additional $500 million in borrowing for state prison construction.
The Senate Finance and Taxation General Fund committee unanimously approved the legislation, which increases the state’s borrowing authority for prison projects to approximately $1.28 billion. The bill’s sponsor, Sen. Greg Albritton, R-Atmore, said the measure is necessary to complete the construction of two new state prisons amid escalating costs and increasing inmate populations.
“It is likely that we will not have to borrow that full $500 million, but it will give us that opportunity so that we can move smoothly and as quickly as construction will allow to build and have both those facilities up and operational,” Albritton said.
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Lawmakers in 2021 approved $1.3 billion to build two 4,000-bed men’s prisons in Elmore and Escambia counties, hoping to alleviate prison overcrowding; create safer environments for inmates and staff and increase space for rehabilitative programs. But cost overruns have raised the price tag of the Elmore facility alone to over $1 billion.
Some lawmakers expressed concerns over the state’s growing debt obligations.
“I guess my question about taking on additional debt is, what are the plans to repay it?” said Sen. Larry Stutts, R-Tuscumbia.
Albritton said that the state has already paid off previous debts and has the borrowing capacity to keep paying the additional costs.
“We’re doing the same thing, and so we are comfortable, and particularly with where we are budget-wise and also indebtedness-wise, that we can handle this issue,” Albritton said after the meeting.
The Alabama Department of Corrections has been under scrutiny for prison conditions, staffing shortages and rising inmate populations. The U.S. Department of Justice sued Alabama in 2020, alleging unconstitutional conditions in state prisons.
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