Meeting Scheduled for Kansas Federal Prison Project

LEAVENWORTH, Kan. — The Federal Bureau of Prisons will hold a public meeting next week in Leavenworth on a proposal to build a new medium-security correctional facility on the grounds of the existing U.S. penitentiary.

The proposed facility would have 1,100 beds and would become part of a 3,600-inmate correctional complex that includes the penitentiary.

Residents will be allowed to voice their concerns and offer input at the meeting before the environmental impact study for the project’s prospective sites begins.

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UNICOR Budget Cuts

WASHINGTON — The Federal Bureau of Prisons is making deep cuts in its prison industry workforce as officials struggle to rein in spending amid the budget reductions of the last several years.
 
FBOP officials scaled back or ceased operations at a number of recycling and manufacturing facilities operated by UNICOR-Federal Prison Industries, as part of an ongoing effort to save about $16 million in annual operating costs.

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Population Report

WASHINGTON — The number of state prison inmates decreased for the first time in almost 40 years, according to a survey of departments of correction throughout the United States.

 
The number of inmates housed under state jurisdiction declined by more than 5,300 to just over 1.4 million during the twelve months since Dec. 31, 2008, according to the survey by the Pew Center on the States.

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FBOP Goes Solar

LITTLETON, Colo. — A minimum-security federal prison outside Denver will soon house a 23,000-square-foot solar field after officials contracted with Johnson Controls Inc. for the installation of a turnkey renewable energy system.
 
The United States division of Abengoa Solar Inc., headquartered in Lakewood, Colo., will design and engineer the system, which will be used to meet the hot water needs at Federal Correctional Institution Englewood.

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