Nevada subcommittee approves corrections budget adjustments, new training academy and staffing to curb overtime

Carson City — The joint Senate Committee on Finance and Assembly Ways and Means subcommittee on Public Safety, Natural Resources and Transportation voted unanimously on a series of budget actions for the Nevada Department of Corrections (NDOC) that the panel and staff said are intended to address rising offender-driven costs and large overtime expenditures.

Nancy Morris of the Fiscal Analysis Division told the panel, “Today, the subcommittee will be considering a total of 28 budget accounts for the Department of Corrections,” and outlined four department‑wide closing issues that staff recommended for approval, including updated offender population projections, grievance-process staffing, funding for utility inflation, and an additional staff request to reduce overtime.

Why it matters: Lawmakers said NDOC has incurred tens of millions of dollars in overtime because authorized staffing and post charts no longer matched operational needs. The subcommittee approved a mix of one-time and ongoing general fund appropriations and directed follow-up reporting so the legislature can track whether the changes reduce overtime and stabilize departmental budgets.

Major approvals and context

- Offender population projections and related funding: The subcommittee accepted updated offender population forecasts provided by the department and approved staff-recommended adjustments to the M200 decision unit to reflect the higher population counts. Staff described the updated projections as increasing projected average offenders modestly above the governor’s recommendation and recommended corresponding general fund increases to match those counts; the motion to approve was adopted without recorded opposition.

- Grievance-process positions: The subcommittee approved the governor’s recommendation to add six positions to address grievance caseloads (one program officer and one correctional casework specialist at each of three facilities) and associated general fund costs for fiscal years 2026–27. The agency told the panel that many grievances currently do not get exhausted and later become civil litigation because of insufficient staff to follow up.

- Utilities inflation: The committee approved $2.9 million in general fund appropriations in each year of the 2025–27 biennium to cover inflationary utility costs that were not included in the governor’s recommended budget.

- Large staffing package to reduce overtime; new training academy: After extended discussion of NDOC’s roughly $52 million overtime expense in FY2025 and a 2023 appropriation for a staffing study expected in July 2025, the subcommittee approved a combined staff proposal intended to reduce overtime over time. As approved, the package included (summary of staff motion approved by the subcommittee): - 47 positions for the Central Transportation Unit funded with approximately $13.6 million in general fund appropriations over the biennium; - 10 positions for Lovelock Correctional Center (technical adjustment to start dates; about $2.5 million over the biennium); - 10 positions for Ely State Prison (about $2.5 million over the biennium); - Creation of a separate NDOC Training Academy budget account that would include 23 training staff positions funded with about $6.5 million over the biennium; - 90 correctional officer trainee placeholder positions funded with about $18.8 million over the biennium while recruits attend the 10‑week academy; trainee seats are intended to transition to facility position control numbers after training. The subcommittee also directed staff to issue a letter of intent requiring quarterly NDOC reports to the interim finance committee on actual overtime expenses, reason codes, actions taken, and plans to manage future overtime, with the first report due Oct. 31, 2025.

- Prison medical care and related transfers: The subcommittee approved staff adjustments to medical inflation and population-driven medical decision units (M101, M200) to align with the updated population projections and accepted a budget amendment removing a previously proposed female health exam augmentation that the agency said it could absorb in existing resources. The panel also approved continuing transfers from the inmate welfare account to the prison medical care budget (budget amendment A251923706) instead of substituting general fund appropriations for those transfers; fiscal staff said the transfers represent medical expense reimbursements under state law rather than co‑pays.

- Offender Store Fund, Prison Industry and Prison Ranch solvency steps: The panel took several actions to address solvency across commissary/store, prison industry and prison ranch accounts. Actions included: rejecting a permanent transfer of retained earnings from the offender store fund to prison industry/prison ranch and instead approving one‑time general fund replacements where appropriate; approving a budget amendment to restore transfers from the offender store fund to the inmate welfare account ($2.3 million each year, as aligned with the prison medical decision); and approving one‑time transfers and position eliminations in prison industry and prison ranch to avoid insolvency. One motion restoring transfers to inmate welfare recorded several opposing members (see vote details below).

- SCAP grant revenue (State Criminal Alien Assistance Program): The subcommittee approved adding SCAP grant revenue to the director’s office budget account and set the revenue amount at $2.0 million per year (staff recommended $1.5 million; the committee chose $2.0 million). The panel approved using the SCAP grant revenue as a general‑fund offset rather than placing the funds in a separate special‑use category.

Votes at a glance (selected, representative actions)

- Approve updated offender population projections and related M200 funding — outcome: approved (motion: “recommend approval as read by staff”; mover: Chair Watts; second: Senator Wynne).

- Add six grievance-process positions (Northern Nevada CC, Southern Desert CC, Ely State Prison) — outcome: approved (mover: Chair Watts; second: Senator Wynne).

- Approve $2.9 million per year for utilities inflation decision units — outcome: approved (mover: Chair Watts; second: Senator Wynne).

- Approve staffing package and create separate Training Academy budget (47 CTU positions + 10 Lovelock + 10 Ely + 23 training staff + 90 trainees; letters of intent for quarterly overtime reporting) — outcome: approved unanimously (mover: Chair Watts; second: Senator Wynne).

- Approve medical decision unit adjustments (M101, M200) and eliminate the separate female exam augmentation (E270) — outcome: approved (mover: Chair Watts; second: Senator Wynne).

- Continue transfers from the offender store fund to the inmate welfare account (budget amendment A251923706) rather than replace with general fund — outcome: approved unanimously (mover: Chair Watts; second: Senator Wynne).

- Offender store fund: replace a proposed retained‑earnings transfer to prison industry/prison ranch with one‑time general fund replacement and approve budget amendment A252013708 to increase transfers to inmate welfare by $2.3M/year — outcome: motion passed; recorded opposition: Senator Titus, Assemblymember Hibbetts, Assemblymember Dickman.

- Approve prison industry one‑time transfer of $250,000 (FY26) and elimination of 4 vacant positions; issue letter of intent for semi‑annual solvency reporting and evaluation of potential efficiencies with prison ranch — outcome: approved unanimously (mover: Chair Watts; second: Senator Wynne).

- Approve prison ranch one‑time transfer of $350,000 (FY26) and recommended expense reductions — outcome: approved unanimously (mover: Chair Watts; second: Senator Wynne).

- Approve transfer of positions and closure‑related technical adjustments at Wells, Tonopah and Humboldt conservation camps and related facility budget alignments — outcome: approved unanimously (motions varied; mover: Chair Watts; seconds recorded).

Procedure, follow-ups and staff direction

The subcommittee repeatedly authorized fiscal staff to make technical adjustments needed to correct position control numbers and start dates. The panel also authorized written follow-up: a letter of intent requiring quarterly NDOC overtime reporting to the interim finance committee (first report due Oct. 31, 2025) and, for prison industry, semi‑annual solvency reports with an evaluation of potential efficiencies from combining prison industry and prison ranch accounts.

What the subcommittee did not change

The panel did not approve certain governor amendments that fiscal staff recommended against (for example, staff recommended not approving a governor amendment that would have shifted offender‑driven costs improperly to High Desert State Prison after updated population forecasts corrected earlier projections).

Ending

After completing the 28 NDOC budget accounts and related actions, the subcommittee opened public comment; none were received on the line or in either location. Chair Taylor adjourned the meeting.

The subcommittee's actions will be reflected in the Legislature's final budget recommendations and, where directed, fiscal staff will return reports to interim committees as specified by the motions.