By CRAIG FREILICH

The state Senate Wednesday approved a bill that would require underused state prisons to house inmates overcrowding local jails, such as the St. Lawrence County Correctional Facility.

St. Lawrence County Sheriff Kevin Wells said that “that is definitely a good option” for county jails around the state, but he said any overcrowding in St. Lawrence County “now is not males but females,” which presents challenges that might not be met by the bill, sponsored by Sen. Patty Ritchie (R-Heuvelton).

Ritchie said the bill would save local taxpayers around the state millions of dollars a year that are spent now by local corrections agencies to ease overcrowding at their jails, which are sending some inmates to neighboring county jails, for a cost.

Further exacerbating the problem for counties is the fact that many of the “surplus” prisoners they’re holding have been waiting for transfer to state prisons.

But Ritchie’s bill would not help the current overcrowding issue in St. Lawrence County, since the nearest state female prisons are “too far away,” in Western New York, Wells said, unless some space in state facilities that are closer is found.

“The only time we’ve had overcrowding here is just females.” With 24 cells for females and some doubling up the Canton jail can house as many as 30 women, Wells said, but beyond that, transport to a neighboring county to board them there is what is called for. Wells said the number boarded elsewhere has not exceeded about 10.

The Senate bill (S.2394) directs state corrections officials to hammer out agreements with local communities so that they can use available space at nearby prisons, instead of having to transport them to other jails that are much further away.

“While the number of inmates being held in state prisons has declined over the past 10 years, county jails are bursting at the seams, and county taxpayers are footing the bill to move prisoners to available cells that can be hundreds of miles away,” Ritchie said.

In addition, the press release from Ritchie said, county jails in New York were teeming with almost 1,000 “state-ready” inmates, meaning prisoners who have been sentenced and are awaiting orders to report to state prison, as well as those who are being held on state parole violations.

Sheriff Wells said parolees held on violations will often make up a significant proportion of inmates his facility is responsible for while they wait for transfer to state prisons.

Local counties are paying as much as $130 each day to board prisoners at local jails in other regions.

“This something the state Sheriff’s Association has been working for,” Wells said, “and we’re grateful to Sen. Ritchie for taking the responsibility to get the situation changed.”

Ritchie’s bill was sent to the Assembly for action there.