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DOC construction update highlights vocational training and 720 medical/mental‑health beds; lawmakers press for outside oversight
Summary
The Department of Corrections reported the Governor Kay Ivey Correctional Complex is roughly 75% complete, will house 4,000 beds with about 720 medical/mental‑health beds and a 45,000‑sq‑ft vocational building. Lawmakers pressed the commissioner about staff misconduct, autopsies and independent investigations.
Commissioner Hamm updated the Joint Interim Committees on the state’s correctional construction program, describing progress at the Governor Kay Ivey Correctional Complex (reported as about 75% complete as of September 2025) and expanded on design and programing features intended to support education and medical care.
Hamm said the campus includes a roughly 45,000‑square‑foot vocational building built in partnership with the community college system to offer trades training (welding, plumbing, electrical, industrial maintenance and HVAC) and that certifications will pair classroom instruction with on‑the‑job correctional‑industries experience. He said the project will serve roughly 4,000 individuals with a dedicated medical/mental‑health area of about 720 beds and onsite diagnostics and dialysis (32 machines) to reduce off‑site transports.
The commissioner described logistics for feeding and staffing a large campus — noting the need to serve about 12,000 meals per day — and outlined hiring improvements after a March 2023 pay increase that raised security staffing from about 1,774 to 2,368 and increased academy class sizes.
Several legislators used the construction update to press on institutional culture and accountability. One member, citing a documentary and long‑running litigation, alleged a pattern of excessive use of force by specific staff and urged removal of those individuals, stronger outside oversight and an independent mechanism for protecting whistleblowers. "Any system that perpetuates that ... and allows people to die is irretrievably broken and needs to be fixed," the legislator said.
Hamm acknowledged cultural problems and pointed to recent investigative activity: the DOC has made multiple civilian arrests for contraband deliveries and has arrested staff in some cases, which he said demonstrates enforcement will continue. Committee members also pressed for routine autopsies and transparent reporting when people die in DOC custody; Hamm said Department of Forensic Science rules limit in‑state autopsies to suspected criminal cases and discussed pursuing out‑of‑state options if necessary.
The exchange ended with members instructing staff to continue exploring independent oversight models and to follow up on staffing and autopsy protocols. No formal vote occurred at the session.
