FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ON FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ON WALLER - - PDF document

836 Austin Street, Suite 203, Hempstead, Texas 77445 979.826.7700 Facsimile: 979.826.2112

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ON FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ON WALLER COUNTY JAIL BOND WALLER COUNTY JAIL BOND REFERENDUM REFERENDUM

Question: There is no law that requires Waller County to have a jail, so why build one? Answer: That is incorrect. Section 351.001 (Duty to Provide Jails) of the Texas Local Government states: (a) The commissioners court of a county shall provide safe and suitable jails for the county. (b.) The jails must be located at the county seat unless the county has only one jail, in which case the jail may be located anywhere in the county at the discretion of the commissioner’s court.

• Sec. 351.002. Jail Standards. Each county jail must comply with

the minimum standards and the rules and procedures of the Commission on Jail Standards.

836 Austin Street, Suite 203, Hempstead, Texas 77445 979.826.7700 Facsimile: 979.826.2112

Question: How close has Waller County come in the past to having its jail closed by the Texas Jail Commission (TJC) or will the TJC close the jail if a new facility is not built? Answer: The Texas Jail Commission has expressed doubts as early as 2007 during annual inspections that they did not feel that the Waller County Jail facility would last much longer. In September of 2014, the Texas Jail Commission Prepared a Facility Needs Analysis for Waller Count to evaluate the capacity and need for a new facility. On May 11, 2017, Waller County Judge Trey Duhon received a letter from Brandon Wood, Executive Director of the Texas Jail Commission, which stated: “I was further encouraged by the fact the county appears to finally be moving toward replacing the existing Waller County Jail. Some of what you are dealing with is outside of your control. The linear design itself was becoming obsolete when the jail was

• constructed. Further compounding the challenges

you face now is that 30 years ago, it was decided to utilize steel plate rather than block for large portions

• f the facility. Whether it was a cost‐saving measure

in materials or construction time, the preventative maintenance required to ensure that the facility meets minimum standards has been a concern for some time. As far back as the 2007 annual inspection, there were doubts that the facility would last much longer. Jails are not wine, and they do not improve with age.

836 Austin Street, Suite 203, Hempstead, Texas 77445 979.826.7700 Facsimile: 979.826.2112

Please keep me informed on the status of your continuing efforts. I know that the focus has been on

• peration and management of the jail, but do not

neglect the physical plant. As I stated at the meeting, you are classified “at‐risk” and subject to special inspections… Failure to meet minimum standards, for any reason, will result in my recommendation to begin remedial action.” A copy of this letter is available for review on the Bond Information web page. Question: What is the current cost per year to operate the current Jail? Answer: See below from WC Auditing Department on the costs to operate the current jail: 2015 ‐ $1,821,073 2016 ‐ $1,941,576 2017 ‐ $2,082,568 2018 ‐ $2,233,565 (Projected in Budget) Budget is increasing at about 7% a year. Which is roughly the same as the construction cost escalation per year of 6%.

836 Austin Street, Suite 203, Hempstead, Texas 77445 979.826.7700 Facsimile: 979.826.2112

Question: If a new jail is built, what will be the expected

• perating cost per year?

Answer: We estimate that the cost to operate the New Jail in 2020 would be very close to the same as today. With a more efficient floor plan (pod vs linear), there may be savings on reduced staff. The County will realize cost savings by cutting ninety percent (90%) of current building maintenance costs, resulting in a savings of approximately $130,000 a year. We would estimate the New Jail Operating cost to be approximately $2,100,000 to operate in 2020. Question: What would the cost of operating the Jail be in the event of a Jail shut down? Answer: The costs to operate would not be reduced by much. In fact, some expenses will increase. The savings that will be realized from a jail shut down: $150,000 no longer needed for building maintenance $160,000 no longer needed for food $35,000 on furniture and equipment Resulting in a total savings of approximately $345,000. However, the County will still have to budget and spend approximately $1,900,000 in relation to jail operations in the event of a shutdown. The Sheriff’s Office is still located inside

• f the Waller County Jail and will have to continue operation.

836 Austin Street, Suite 203, Hempstead, Texas 77445 979.826.7700 Facsimile: 979.826.2112

Jail staff will still be required for transportation of inmates and guarding inmates in neighboring county jails in some instances. All other customary inmate items, such as uniforms, disinfectant, soap, supplies and bedding will have to be provided, even if the inmates are housed elsewhere. A shut down could also create the need for additional transportation

• fficers and vehicles, depending on where inmates have to be

relocated to and whether we have to divide inmates amongst multiple counties. Then there is the added cost of a jail shut down to ship the inmates out of Waller County. Using today’s rate charged by Ft. Bend County to house out‐of‐county inmates, at 80 inmates at a cost of $55 a day, the additional calculated cost in addition to additional transportation costs, at minimum, is an additional $2,406,180 per year. Any increase in the number of inmates or the cost per day would cause this number to increase. Therefore, the total cost to operate the Jail in 2018, in the event of a jail shut down, is conservatively estimated to be in excess of $4,300,000. Thus, after deducting cost savings, the net increase to operate the jail in the event of a shutdown will be $1,855,000 above and beyond what we are currently spending, without any equity or assets to show for this expenditure. Question: If the bond is approved, what is the time schedule to design, build, and begin operating a new Jail?

836 Austin Street, Suite 203, Hempstead, Texas 77445 979.826.7700 Facsimile: 979.826.2112

Answer: Building Design – November 2017 to April/May 2018 Sub and Vendor Bidding – May/June 2018 Break Ground – June 2018 Construction – 18 – 20 Months to January/March of 2020 Operational – March/April 2020 Total Time: Approximately Two and a half years (2 1/2 years or 30 Months) Question: What would the cost be to repair the existing Jail? What would it cost to demolish it? Answer: The existing Jail was built in 1987 and is a complex of Modular Buildings made up almost entirely of metal. Rusting metal cannot be stopped or reversed. It must be removed making repair costs difficult to estimate. Most of the structural and security elements of the Jail are metal that is enclosed in walls and under metal plate flooring. We know that these elements are rusting, but to what extend is difficult to determine without destructive testing. The existing Jail is close to capacity, and sits on one City Block leaving no room for

• expansion. The Jail would not be able to house inmates during a

major repair, for 9‐12 Months. Any major renovation or repair would require bringing up the existing Jail to Handicapped Accessibility, Energy Code, Fire Code, and modern Texas Jail

• Standards. The current Jail floor plan and construction type

makes complying with all of these standards extremely cost

836 Austin Street, Suite 203, Hempstead, Texas 77445 979.826.7700 Facsimile: 979.826.2112

prohibitive, if not impossible. To demolish the existing Jail and Sheriff’s Department would cost approximately $150,000 ‐ $200,000. Question: If the bond is not approved, and construction of a new jail does not start in 2018, what is the increased cost of building in the future? Answer: Construction costs are escalating at approximately six percent (6%) per year. Six percent of $39,500,000 is $2,370.000 in cost increase in 2019. Based on estimated escalation, below are the costs of building a jail, sheriff’s office, and courtroom in years to follow: 2019 $41,870,000 2020 $44,382,200 2021 $47,045,132 2022 $49,867,839 For the 2 ½ years of anticipated construction duration, 6% escalation has already been accounted for in the $39,500,000 construction cost estimate of this bond amount. Question: In addition to the cost of housing inmates in other counties, is there is a cost of transportation to and from court hearings and trial dates?

836 Austin Street, Suite 203, Hempstead, Texas 77445 979.826.7700 Facsimile: 979.826.2112

Answer: Please see the reference material on this subject in the PowerPoint presentation – Costs of a Jail Shut Down – for

• estimates. The cost to pay another county to house Waller

County inmates is about 2/3’s of these costs. Transportation of inmates and staff is the other 1/3 of the cost, which would be at least $800,000 on an annual basis. Additional cost impacts could include: 1) The direct cost to county residents and family members of inmates to personally visit an inmate out‐of‐county is estimated to be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars per year. 2) Additional impact to all county law enforcement agencies:

• a. The travel time to book an arrest out of county will

increase to 4‐5 hours due to increased travel distance and booking time.

• b. Additional Safety impact to Inmates and Law

Enforcement Officers: Increase travel distance and time also increases the odds of vehicular accidents and the liability that comes with traffic accidents. 3) Additional impact to Public Safety: Arresting officers will

• ut of county for hours during booking and not patrolling

local streets and be readily available or on‐call for emergencies. 4) Additional impact to legal costs: Impact of increased time and travel for Attorney’s and Bonding Companies have not

836 Austin Street, Suite 203, Hempstead, Texas 77445 979.826.7700 Facsimile: 979.826.2112

been calculated. The costs to county for court‐appointed attorneys would be expected to increase. Question: Will a representative be able to provide the research

• n what jail population has been during the past few years,

how they arrived at future population projections, even with lower incarceration rates? Answer: During the summer of 2017 and the last few months, the jail population has been between 90‐100, which is pretty much full capacity. The Jail has 110 beds but because certain beds must be kept open for certain types of inmates on a daily basis, 100 is considered a full Jail. Some inmates are “blue warrant” inmates who have been convicted of a felony, but have not been transported to the State penitentiary due to lack

• f space. In 2015 there were 2,200 arrests County Wide, 2016 –

1,800, and 2017 is currently tracking at 2,100 arrests per year. According to the Texas Jail Commission as of September 1, 2017, Waller County’s incarceration rate is one of the lowest when compared to the statewide rate. Waller County’s incarceration rate is 1.55 per 1,000 in population, ranking Waller County No. 222 out of 254 counties in incarceration

• rate. Reference

http://www.tcjs.state.tx.us/docs/IncarcerationRateRptCurrent. pdf State wide incarcerations rates have been going down the last several years. However, Waller County’s overall jail population has increased due to the increased population growth in the County.

836 Austin Street, Suite 203, Hempstead, Texas 77445 979.826.7700 Facsimile: 979.826.2112

Question: Are there substantive plans for these facilities already or is it just a budget plan? Are those plans sharable before the bond election? Answer: Brinkley Sargent Wiginton Architects has completed Schematic Drawings for the Jail, Sheriff’s Office, and Court Room that were used by Sedalco Construction to estimate the cost of the project. These plans are available for viewing at all the town halls and online. Question: Where is the site plan for the Jail located? Is the property owned by the County? Answer: The proposed location is 60 acres behind the Road and Bridge building on Business 290 in Hempstead, across from Dilorio’s Farmers Market, which is currently owned by the

• County. The site will be shared with the County Road and

Bridge Department. Question: Is there available a summary of the letter from the State that Indicates closure of the current Jail? Answer: The County Judge received a letter from the Executive Director of Texas Jail Commission that specifically stated they were glad to see the County moving forward with a referendum because the “facility design” was outdated at the time of the

836 Austin Street, Suite 203, Hempstead, Texas 77445 979.826.7700 Facsimile: 979.826.2112

• construction. The letter stated that the County is classified “at‐

risk” and subject to special inspections. Failure to meet minimum standards for any reason, will result in my recommendation to begin remedial action. This letter is available for viewing on the Bond Information page on the county website. Question: Will the current courthouse remain the same? Answer: The County Courthouse is not part of this bond. The County will have to address the Courthouse, its condition, and a potential renovation in the near future. The mechanical systems in the Courthouse are in bad shape, with water leaks

• throughout. In addition, the county has outgrown the current

courthouse, with multiple county departments now being housed in multiple buildings in Hempstead. Consolidation of those departments is needed. Question: Why can’t we just house our inmates in tents? Answer: Several federal court cases addressing jail conditions and standards of care have made tent cities a thing of the past when it comes to modern jail facilities. Waller County is not looking into using tents, since it is unlikely that any such facility would be approved by the Texas Jail Commission.