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Sheriff seeks more medical staff as federal inmate housing rises; warns revenue estimates vary
Summary
Sheriff’s office reported growing federal inmate housing revenue and asked for additional medical staff and nursing hours in the jail budget after saying medical needs and transports have risen; staff also warned that state DOC reimbursements are delayed and the county’s jail revenue estimates should be monitored.
Sheriff’s office leaders told the council the county is housing dozens of federal inmates, generating substantial revenue, and that the jail’s medical workload has increased enough to justify additional medical staff.
Sheriff staff said the county was housing roughly 48–56 federal inmates at a time earlier in the year and reported 55 federal inmates on the day of the budget review. Federal incarceration has become an important revenue source for the jail; the sheriff said the county had budgeted a conservative $1,000,000 for 2026 but now expects revenue to be in the $1.3–1.6 million range based on year‑to‑date collections and operational trends.
At the same time, sheriff staff highlighted growth in medical workload and costs inside the jail: because of higher inmate counts and heavier individual medical needs, the jail’s contractor (Quality Correctional Care) asked the county to add 124 nursing hours per week and one site administrator. The sheriff said those additional hours would add about $189,110 to the medical budget line. Staff argued the extra coverage would reduce the jail’s legal risk and overtime costs tied to nurses working excessive hours and to deputy escorts for off‑site medical appointments.
Sheriff staff also emphasized that some revenue streams remain uncertain: state Department of Corrections payments for housing state inmates remain unreliable and several DOC payments from earlier periods remain unpaid; the sheriff noted the county has not received some DOC checks since March 2024. Staff recommended the council review both federal housing revenue and outstanding state reimbursements before finalizing assumptions for 2026.
Ending: The council accepted the sheriff’s presentation and discussed moving a requested correctional officer hire into the jail levy (lit) budget for further review; sheriff staff will provide updated revenue figures and the county will evaluate adding nursing hours or other medical staff as revenue projections are finalized.
