Tuolumne County at bottom of list for jail grant funds

Tuolumne County’s chances to get a state grant to help fund a new jail don’t look good, the county’s chief administrative officer said earlier this week.

The county is at the bottom of the state’s priorities list for small counties that applied for funds under the second phase of AB900, a state program to finance jail construction, County Administrator Craig Pedro said. The program is giving out up to $602.9 million statewide, with $102.9 million going to counties with fewer than 200,000 people.

Pedro said state officials have informed the county that Tuolumne is at the bottom of the priority list for that category, coming in behind Kings, Shasta, Sutter, Madera, Imperial, San Benito and Siskiyou counties. The small counties requested more than $188 million in all, which is far beyond the available funds.    

The rankings are based on the number of inmates sent from that county to state prison in 2010.   

“It is not particularly hopeful that we will get funding for this round … assuming all applicants stay in the game and all applications pass muster,” Pedro said on Tuesday.    

The county Board of Supervisors earlier this month authorized the county to apply for up to $33 million through the program for a new jail. The plans submitted to the state propose a 77,991-square-foot facility with 240 beds located at the Law and Justice Center off Old Wards Ferry Road. The estimated cost for that project is about $48.3 million, and Pedro said at the time that the county would have a few options to pay the remaining costs — putting a general obligation bond on the ballot, borrowing against county properties and entering into a private-public partnership.    

The plans scale back a 2008 jail proposal, which called for a 93,334-square-foot facility with estimated costs at $85 million. County leaders have said the current jail is inadequate for multiple reasons. It is often near capacity with 140 beds, its layout is inefficient and potentially poses safety issues. In addition, it lacks the space or facilities to provide many rehabilitative programs or services.    

Pedro said local representatives will go to Sacramento to make the case for Tuolumne County. He also said future jail construction funding has been discussed, but he said he “can’t imagine proceeding at this time” with the jail project without state funding.    

“That’s a big issue for us, and we’re going to have to stay on it,” Pedro said.