Council 31 Proposals Shape Legislative Debate

Illinois Council 31 will help shape the debate on corrections in the upcoming spring session of the state legislature through a report released last August.

The report, a detailed and comprehensive package of recommendations for prison reform, was a response to growing problems of overcrowding, gangs and drugs in the state's prison system. It came in the wake of the Illinois General Assembly's public hearings on the prisons earlier in the summer, which resulted in banner headlines but few solutions.

"Prison reform is in the interests of taxpayers, public officials, prison staff and the communities where the prisons are located. We cannot afford to wait until tragedy occurs," said Council 31 Exec. Director Henry Bayer at the Aug. 20 news conference where the report was released. Bayer is also an AFSCME International vice president.

The proposed reforms address issues of security, staffing and gangs, internal policies, crime reduction and inmate programs. They have generated favorable interest among both legislators and an independent commission on the state's prisons.

Front-line employees were the primary contributors to the report. Council 31 also drew upon academic experts and the experiences of other states.

Council 31's report, "A Secure System: A Sensible Approach to Reform of the Illinois Department of Corrections," includes recommendations to:

• Build a new maximum security prison and single-cell all adult maximum security inmates now in the system.
  Reverse the trend toward higher staff-to-inmate ratios.
• Update and strictly enforce all internal policies and procedures relating to inmate programs, services, rules of conduct, visitors and security operations.
• Ensure an appropriate mix of work, education, counseling, drug treatment and programs in order to minimize inmate idleness, instill solid work skills and habits, and reduce the rate of recidivism.
• Reduce the flow of inmates into the system.
• Expand alternative supervision programs for older and terminally ill inmates to open up space at state correctional facilities.
• Eliminate gang influence in Illinois prisons.

Each recommendation is supported by a specific set of proposals. For example, the call to reduce the flow of inmates into the system is followed by proposals to expand drug treatment programs, modify sentencing laws, evaluate prison boot camps, and hire additional parole agents.

For a copy of the report, write or call Christine Thornton at AFSCME Field Services Department, 1625 L Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20036-5687, (202) 429-1266.