Wednesday, 20 January 2010 11:31 | Written by Amanda Ewing |
On Friday, January 15th, OCP Executive Director, Amanda Ewing, attended the Board of Corrections meeting at LARC, where the budget was the topic in the forefront of everyone’s minds. The DOC financial situation has become dire, as agency-wide furloughs are just weeks away. Director Jones spoke candidly with the Board and the public, explaining that the FY’10 cuts will be the largest twelve-month reduction of funding in the history of the agency. In comparison with other states, Oklahoma is the only state sustaining this level of cuts while still enduring a significant net growth in offenders. Without legislative intervention early in session, DOC employees will suffer a cut in pay, on average, of 13% during the four months of furloughs.
DOC Staffing Levels Too Low, State Putting Public Safety At Risk
Tuesday, 05 January 2010 10:15 | Written by Amanda Ewing |
In a meeting at DOC Headquarters, Director Jones explained to OCP board members and the executive director that the discrepancy between the number of offenders and staff continues to grow larger. The agency provided the chart below, which shows that in fiscal year 2000, the agency had well over 5000 employees with just over 15,000 offenders in custody. Today, with just over 4,500 filled positions, DOC is responsible for over 18,000 offenders.
OCP Executive Director, Amanda Ewing, visited Charles E. “Bill” Johnson Correctional Center in Alva, on Wednesday, December 16th. Ewing spoke with employees at the facility throughout the day regarding the upcoming legislative session and the work OCP is doing to minimize the possibility of agency furloughs. Employees at the facility spoke candidly with Ewing about issues of importance to them, some of which included obtaining full insurance benefits for retirees, implementing a discounted dues structure when multiple members of a family join OCP, and modeling other states that charge inmates for utilities as a possible source of new revenue. Many members stated how important it is to them that OCP’s future priorities reflect a balanced focus on issues relating to uniform and non-uniform staff. OCP’s Board shares that outlook and just as every effort has been made to ensure that the Board of Directors reflects that balance, so too will OCP’s actions.
OCP thanks the employees at BJCC for maintaining the highest rate of membership enrollment in the state, at 94 percent!
Last Updated (Sunday, 20 December 2009 16:34)
OCP Meets with Director Jones, Introduces new Executive Director
Tuesday, 15 December 2009 00:26 |
On December 11th, Oklahoma Corrections Professionals Board Members David Ramsey, William Weldon, and Glen Coleman met with DOC Director Justin Jones to introduce OCP’s new Executive Director, Amanda Ewing. In the hour-long meeting
Saturday, 12 December 2009 17:54 | Written by glen coleman |
On Wednesday, December 9th, legislators from the House and Senate Public Safety Appropriations Committees visited Joseph Harp Correctional Center in Lexington where they held the Department of Corrections and Pardon and Parole Board budget hearings. OCP Board President David Ramsey, along with Board Members Glen Coleman and William Weldon, Executive Director Amanda Ewing, and Political Liaison Bob Zapffe accompanied the legislators on a tour of JHCC. Ramsey and Coleman, along with leadership from JHCC, led the group around the facility and answered questions of the members as they toured OCI and several units.
Oklahoma Correctional Professionals would like to add it's voice to Representative Randy Terrill's plan for additional VBO's and deferred payment as opposed to furlough days for state employees. In the Department of Corrections we understand budget constraints and cuts better than most and we know that sometimes very little can be done.
