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Council adopts ordinance letting safety officials set jail per‑diem based on actual costs
Summary
Parma City Council adopted Ordinance 192‑25 to remove a fixed booking fee and direct the police chief and safety director to set inmate reimbursement rates using a per‑diem calculation of direct detention costs; council advanced the ordinance through committee and adopted it on Nov. 5 under emergency rules.
Parma City Council voted Nov. 5 to adopt Ordinance 192‑25, which replaces a fixed booking fee with a variable per‑diem reimbursement for other governmental entities that use Parma’s detention center.
Council and administration framed the change as a move to align fees with the "inmate daily average cost of confinement," a formula the safety director said includes direct costs such as correction officers' salaries, food and health care. Safety Director Mr. Corey told council the ordinance removes an outdated $25 booking fee and authorizes the police chief in consultation with the safety director to review and adjust the per‑diem, with a required review at least every two years.
Councillors raised concerns about whether jail costs are largely fixed and how those fixed costs should be allocated across inmate days. Councilman Early questioned whether a per‑day charge appropriately captures fixed facility costs, saying a facility can cost the same to operate whether one person or 10 are housed. Mr. Corey responded that the per‑diem follows standard practice: sum direct costs over a fixed period (typically a year) and divide by total inmate days to calculate an average daily cost.
Council members also discussed contracts with partner municipalities. Counsel said the administration had notified seven partner cities in advance of a proposed per‑diem increase to $225 so they could budget for fiscal year 2026, and that those contracts will still come before council for approval. The safety director acknowledged the $225 figure does not fully cover per‑diem costs and described the change as an incremental step following prior increases from $80 to $150.
The Public Safety Committee voted to advance Ordinance 192‑25 to third reading in committee and it was placed on the full council agenda. Later in the evening council adopted the ordinance by roll call under emergency declaration; recorded votes were unanimous among members present.
Next steps: the safety director and police chief will calculate the inmate daily average cost of confinement using the methodology described and provide contract terms reflecting the updated per‑diem in forthcoming agreements for partner municipalities. Council will see individual contracts and may revisit rates in future meetings.
