Governor Tony Evers is proposing significant reforms to Wisconsin’s prison system as part of his budget plan, including the closure of Green Bay Correctional Institution, one of the state’s oldest prisons.
This $500 million initiative also aims to repurpose the Waupun Correctional Institute into a vocational training facility, transforming it into a “vocational village” to equip inmates with job skills prior to their release.
Additionally, the plan includes closing Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake youth prisons, moving those inmates to different facilities around the state, and expanding the earned release program for nonviolent offenders.
These reforms are presented as a comprehensive approach to improve the state’s correctional system, addressing issues such as inmate abuse, overcrowding, and understaffing.
The initiative will require Republican support to pass, and the full budget address will take place on Tuesday, marking the start of the legislative debate.