Arizona corrections professionals told the Senate Appropriations Committee that staffing shortages, rising assaults and retention challenges are straining operations and public safety inside state prisons.

"Our staff levels, our system is stretched to the breaking point," Barry DeFeo, executive president of the Arizona Correctional Association and a 25‑year corrections professional, told senators. He said assaults on staff rose from 244 in January 2024 to 480 by January 2025 and that the Department of Corrections faces more than 2,000 vacancies — a roughly 20% statewide vacancy rate.

DeFeo asked the Legislature to approve immediate investments aimed at stabilizing the workforce, including "a minimum 20% pay increase for security staff and 10% for non‑security staff." He described current pay as lagging comparable agencies and private‑sector security work, contributing to retention problems.

Senators pressed DeFeo about retirement windows and retention. DeFeo said many staff in a near‑retirement window have told him they will stay if pay increases are enacted, and that retention gains from a 20% pay raise would extend some staff tenures by at least three years because of pension calculations.

Committee members also discussed geographic differences in hiring and retention. DeFeo said rural complexes such as Yuma and Douglas typically hire above capacity because local options for other employment are limited; those facilities then supply staff to other complexes where vacancies are higher. He characterized the statewide vacancy range at facilities as typically 15%–26% depending on complex.

Context and related proposals: Witnesses including advocates and providers later urged investment in reentry and jail‑based diversion programs to reduce incarceration demand. Supporters of coordinated reentry funding told the committee such county‑level programs can reduce recidivism and lower incarceration pressure on state facilities.

No vote or appropriation specific to corrections pay was adopted in the hearing; the corrections testimony was part of the broader appropriations package under consideration.