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Lawmakers reject request to appropriate $330 million for new 3,000‑bed prison
Summary
The Joint Budget Committee declined to approve a $330 million appropriation tied to a proposed 3,000‑bed prison in Franklin County, with members citing unknown total cost, infrastructure and staffing concerns. The motion to adopt the Department of Corrections portion of the governor's capital request failed after a roll call.
The Joint Budget Committee on Feb. 26 rejected a request to appropriate $330,000,000 from a restricted reserve to start a proposed new 3,000‑bed prison project for the Arkansas Department of Corrections.
The appropriation vote — to adopt the portion of the governor’s letter requesting the $330,000,000 for corrections — failed after a division and roll call; lawmakers said the committee received 14 affirmative votes when 15 were required for the appropriation to pass. The committee earlier confirmed $75,000,000 had already been appropriated for corrections work; approval of the $330,000,000 would have increased available appropriations to $405,000,000.
Committee members pressed corrections leaders and state finance officials for details on what the $330,000,000 would…
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