By Dave Bollard
Oswego, NY – Corrections officers are fighting plans to close four state prisons, including two in Central and Northern N.Y.
Those prisons are in Ogdensburg and Red Creek.
The state is cutting every budget to try to fill a $9 billion shortage.
Officials argue that crime is dropping and the state does not need as many prison cells.
The union representing corrections officers said that is not true. They said if the state would end the practice of putting two inmates in one cell, nearly every cell would be filled.
"We don't want to say anyone is being a hypocrite here " said Al Mothersell, Vice President of the union's regional office for Western N.Y., " in the condition that the state is in and the condition the country is in, [we're] trying to create jobs and create stimulus, you're looking at taking jobs away."
Mothersell said the state should cut the department's bureaucrats before they cut anything else.
In testimony given to state legislators, correctional services commissioner Brian Fischer said that the number of inmates are falling and will continue to fall. He said most of the decline is due to a sharp fall in the number of minimum security prisoners. Fischer said closing the four prisons will save $45 million a year.