LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan would cut spending at all but one of its 30 prisons under a compromise hashed out by lawmakers but without involvement from Gov. Rick Snyder’s administration.
A Republican-led legislative conference committee approved a nearly $2 billion corrections budget Wednesday. It includes a $10 million reduction across all correctional facilities except the state’s women’s prison.
The Snyder administration had vehemently opposed a $41.6 million cut to the $1 billion facilities budget proposed by the Senate, warning it would lead to hundreds of officer layoffs and create unsafe staffing levels. Corrections Department spokesman Chris Gautz says it is too early to say what the $10 million reduction would mean.
GOP lawmakers have excluded Snyder from major budget decisions due to his opposition to closing the pension system to newly hired teachers.
