Madison, WI – Today, during a meeting of the State Building Commission, Governor Tony Evers promised to include all relevant stakeholders in future discussions regarding the realignment of the Department of Corrections (DOC).
DOC is plagued with problems, including overcrowding, misalignment between inmate security needs and beds available, and recent deaths of inmates and a youth counselor. Until now, the governor has not accepted input from the Legislature.
During the State Building Commission meeting, Senator Mary Felzkowski (R-Tomahawk) said, “There are a lot of us that care about this… on both sides of the aisle. So, we have your word today, Governor, that we’re going to be included on how we go about moving forward on this… So, you’re going to include us in the design… before this comes back to the Building Commission and you just say, ‘here’s the proposal?’”
Governor Evers replied, “Yes.”
Following the meeting, Senator Felzkowski released the following statement:
I am cautiously optimistic following today’s meeting. Reform at the Department of Corrections must come from bipartisan, ongoing conversations. Governor Evers publicly agreeing to that is a step in the right direction. I hope the Governor keeps his word and I look forward to having productive conversations to move Wisconsin’s corrections system in the right direction.
