Commission to vote on Logan Correctional tomorrow morning

[November 09, 2011]  The Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability has scheduled a meeting for 8 a.m. Thursday in Room 400 of the Capitol Building in Springfield. The meeting will be to vote on the governor's order to close Logan Correctional Center, Jacksonville Developmental Center and Tinley Park Mental Health Center.

In all, Gov. Quinn had said he would close seven state facilities to save money. The commission has already voted to keep open Singer Mental Health Center in Rockford, Chester Mental Health Center in Chester, Mabley Developmental Center in Dixon and Illinois Youth Center in Murphysboro. In those cases, the panel said the governor has not looked into other budget-cutting options. In addition, Quinn was criticized for not presenting a more comprehensive plan for various state services before moving forward with his planned closures.

Although the commission's recommendation is nonbinding, no Illinois governor has gone against the recommendation of the panel on other matters. Quinn's office, however, has said that without money to keep the facilities open, the recommendations might be the first to not be accepted.

Quinn spokesman Kelly Kraft said the governor would take the panel's recommendations, pro or con, under advisement.

Logan Correctional is scheduled to be closed Dec. 31, but budget negotiations and an arbitrator's ruling that Quinn made an agreement with AFSCME to not lay anyone off till June 2012  could extend that. The prison houses 1,900 inmates and employs 357 workers.

Illinois Department of Corrections Director Salvador Godinez is also expected to attend the meeting and be available to answer any questions the commission has before the vote.

Two weeks ago, during almost four hours of testimony in Lincoln, the commission heard from dozens of community members in the presence of more than 1,000 concerned citizens.

[Text from the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability; LDN]