Council committee approves revised jail contract: city to pay $143 per‑day per prisoner starting 2026 amid central‑booking changes

Cleveland — The finance committee approved an amendment to the city’s contract with Cuyahoga County on Aug. 5 that raises the county per‑diem for housing city prisoners from $99 to $143 per prisoner per day starting Jan. 1, 2026, and formalizes central‑booking procedures and faster charging timelines.

The package of changes came after roughly 18 months of negotiation with Cuyahoga County, according to city law officials. City law and safety officials said the city closed its jails in 2018 and transferred responsibility to the county to reduce operating costs; the city now pays a per‑diem to the county rather than operating its own facility.

Mark Griffin, the city’s law director and primary city spokesperson at the committee, outlined the rationale. He said the city previously paid about $14.7 million annually to run its jail; after transferring detainees to the county the city’s net jail budget fell to about $3.9 million. He said the amended rate — $143 — reflects negotiations that also secure central‑booking processes and timelines to protect detainees’ due‑process rights and reduce unnecessary detention days.

Griffin told the committee the amendment includes clearer operational commitments: most felony and misdemeanor charging decisions would be made within 12 hours, except homicides and sexual assaults where a 36‑hour window remains; officers are to remain on site until paperwork is complete for overnight arrests; and the city will place additional prosecutors on extended hours to ensure charging decisions can be made more quickly.

Prosecutor Aquila Jordan noted the prosecutor’s office will expand evening coverage so charging decisions can be taken later into the day; she said two night prosecutors had already been hired and the office is actively recruiting additional evening prosecutors to meet the plan’s needs.

County representatives, including Eric Janus, chief of staff to the county executive, and Sheriff Harold Patel, appeared and emphasized county costs: Janus said suburban municipal customers already pay $173 per day in 2025 and that the county’s all‑in cost for 2026 is estimated about $234 per detainee per day. He described the $143 rate as a negotiated, below‑cost discount for the city given volume and mutual interests.

Council members expressed a mix of concerns and support. Some members said they were initially opposed because “a deal is a deal” and they feared the county would seek higher charges or change service patterns. Others said the city has saved tens of millions of dollars since exiting jail operations and that the county approach avoids huge capital and staffing costs the city would otherwise face.

Several council members pressed for clarity on operational impacts: whether officers would be taken off street patrol to complete booking paperwork; how transport to the county (Garfield Heights) would affect overtime and fuel costs; and whether the county’s decision to move central booking out of the city adds hidden costs. The county said it will negotiate separate contracts with suburban partners and that the city’s negotiated rate includes a 2.5% annual increase provision in the contract; officials noted the county’s 2026 cost estimate is higher than the negotiated city rate.

City officials estimated the financial impact of the amendment on the city’s budget would be modest — roughly $174,000 additional a year — because they expect detention days per detainee to fall under faster charging timelines. City staff emphasized this is an amendment to the intergovernmental arrangement, and that the alternative—re‑establishing city jails—would require tens of millions of dollars in capital and recurring operating costs.

The committee approved ordinance 812‑2025. Members asked staff and county officials to return with clearer contract language on booking, transport costs and the interface between charging timelines and police operations.

What wasn’t decided: Exact operational details and contract language to handle transport costs and contingencies remain to be finalized; county officials and city law staff agreed to clarify the contract and implementation steps.

Provenance: Extensive committee transcript records the presentation by city law director, county representatives, and a lengthy question‑and‑answer period; the committee approved the amendment and advanced ordinance 812‑2025.