Vermont corrections ask Legislature for $1 million to install facility Wi‑Fi for training, cameras and staff efficiency

The Department of Corrections told the House Energy and Digital Infrastructure committee on March 18 that it is seeking roughly $1 million in state funding to begin installing wireless internet across correctional facilities so staff can use digital records, body‑worn camera systems and remote education programs.

Commissioner Nick Demel, the commissioner of corrections, told the committee: “correctional systems need Wi Fi in order to advance and continue to modernize.” He said the technology is a top priority for the department and the governor because it can help automate routine tasks, reduce staff workload and enable vocational and college courses for incarcerated people.

Demel described current operations as largely paper‑based: staff keep paper logbooks that are not aggregated into searchable databases, and routine inventory and shift checks are recorded by hand. “We have the opportunity right today to switch to digital log books where we're capturing that data,” he…