1/23/17
by News Department on 01/23/17Prison outlook...
State Senators are holding a public hearing today in an effort to slow down the closing of two state correctional institutions by the Wolf administration.
According to the Republican Herald, State Corrections Secretary John Wetzel is scheduled to testify at the joint hearing before the Senate Majority and Minority Policy committees and Senate Judiciary Committee.
The hearing comes before Thursday’s deadline set by the corrections department to announce which two of five possible prisons will be closed.
Three of the five — SCI/Frackville in Schuylkill County, SCI/Waymart in Wayne County and SCI/Retreat in Luzerne County — are in Northeast Pennsylvania. The other two on the list are SCI/Mercer and SCI/Pittsburgh in western Pennsylvania.
Agency spokeswoman Amy Worden said the corrections department also plans to release a report, Thursday, looking at the economic impact of closing these prisons. This report also will look at potential reuse of a closed facility.
