PRINCE EDWARD – The Piedmont Regional Jail has faced tough financial sledding in recent months with fewer than expected inmates housed at the facility. Some localities may soon have to start chipping in to support it.

Really soon.

A staff memo in the Prince Edward Board of Supervisors' November packet cited that the jail is still losing money and that at the current rate it was anticipated localities will have to start subsidizing jail operations by December.

The jail board, the memo also cited, met with their auditor and instructed him to conduct a complete review of options regarding revenues and expenses and report to the jail board by the end of November.

“Now since I wrote this,”

County Administrator Wade Bartlett highlighted at the November 15 Board of Supervisors meeting, “(Jail Superintendent) Ernest Toney and representatives of the jail today visited a large community in the state, at their request, who are very interested in sending prisoners to the jail-a considerable number-that's to be worked out.

“It may not solve all of our problems, but it would be a big step towards that,” Bartlett said.

Bartlett did not identify the locality, noting they would have to make the decision to send “more than a hundred to the jail.” The county administrator also highlighted that they had a small contract from a federal prison, but it was only 11 inmates. Still, he noted, “every inmate helps especially from the federal government.”

Bartlett told the board, “I don't know how long it would take to finalize the contract with the locality that we're talking to at this moment. Their council would have to approve a budget amendment, but it appears that they're willing to do that. So it may not be until January, February, or March before those prisoners would start rolling in. So we may just have a small period of time that we would have to subsidize the jail-of which we could probably handle that because we're under-expending considerably in our juvenile detention.”

He cited that the last two to three months have not had any juveniles in the detention facility (and were not required to pay). Bartlett assessed they could “well have enough in our budget now…if the new locality signs on…” He added, “But if not, then this could be a big number for us.”

He noted it could be three quarters of a million dollars for a full year. Bartlett would go on to add that there are things they could do to reduce their inmate population, but that would take coordination with the commonwealth attorney and the judge. If you can keep them out of the jail, he noted it could help lower the cost. Additionally, it was noted, they're going out for a request for proposals for medical services.