LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) - A state lawmaker concerned about overcrowding in Nebraska prisons plans to propose building a new 300-bed work release facility in Omaha.
State Sen. Steve Lathrop tells the Omaha World-Herald he’ll introduce a bill calling on the state to begin planning a new community corrections facility. Building the new facility could cost more than $40 million, but Lathrop’s bill would only require the state to plan for the new work release facility.
Nebraska’s prisons currently hold 2,006 more inmates than their design capacity of 3,535 inmates. The state’s prison system is at 157% of its design capacity.
Lathrop says the state is facing a prison overcrowding crisis and needs to address the issue.
A consultant recommended expanding Omaha’s community corrections prison in 2014, but the project was never done. Lathrop says work-release facilities can help better prepare inmates to return to society.
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