AUGUSTA, Maine - A legislative committee has unanimously approved a measure to provide $2.4 million for Maine's county jail system, likely averting a looming funding crisis.
The Appropriations Committee also agreed to do away with the idea of appointing a receiver to oversee the funds. The plan approved today would instead assign that task to the Department of Corrections commissioner.
The jail crisis arose after Gov. Paul LePage refused to appoint new members to fill vacant seats on the Board of Corrections, which was created to oversee the county jail system. Without a quorum, the board was unable to function.
The governor objected to the board's repeated requests for supplemental budget allocations, claiming the requests were evidence that the system was "broken." LePage endorsed a plan to appoint a "receiver" to oversee the jail system, but the Appropriations Committee rejected that idea.
"I would like to thank the Appropriations and Financial Affairs Committee for taking this important step that will ensure our county jails have the resources they need through the end of the fiscal year," says Maine Senate President Michael Thibodeau, in a statement.
The full Legislature must still act on the measure, which Thibodeau acknowledges is temporary. He called for lawmakers to come up with a long-term solution.
