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Kokua Line June Watanabe |
Few inmates are available
for regular road cleanupsQuestion: Why does the state have to contract out the maintenance of our highways in cleaning the grass and weeds (Kokua Line, May 25)? Why can't the state use the good-faith prisoners of the state? Hire and train individuals looking for jobs to help supervise the workers. The work crew will then rotate the work from district to district on a regular schedule and the overgrowth will not get that bad.
Answer: The state Department of Transportation does use prisoners when they're available, and they've supplemented work crews in the Wahiawa, Windward and Honolulu areas.
"When we do get them, we use them to get ahead of our in-house cycle of maintenance work or to help catch up," said transportation spokesman Scott Ishikawa.
The problem is that they're not always available, he said.
Not only is there a relatively small number who qualify for the "work line" program, but there's also a demand for their services by other agencies and community organizations.
"While it may seem that there are a lot of prisoners, there are not a lot that qualify for this program," Ishikawa said. "As a result, we cannot rely on the prison line to give us the consistent service that a fully staffed in-house crew or landscape contractor could provide."
There also may be a shortage of personnel to guard the prisoners on the line, he said, a fact confirmed by Frank Lopez, deputy director of the state Department of Public Safety.
So availability of supervisors is also a factor in getting inmate labor.
We asked Lopez to explain how the work line program works.
Prison labor generally is provided to government agencies or nonprofit organizations.
"We get a fair share" of requests, Lopez said, "and we can't provide for everyone. We do have to turn some down."
The Departments of Transportation and Accounting and General Services, which handles the maintenance work for many other state agencies, are regular users.
A recent request from DAGS involved preparations and cleanup for Memorial Day celebrations.
Among nongovernmental groups, "We get a lot of requests from the Kailua area to clean parks," Lopez said. "There is a strong community" that regularly taps help from the Women's Community Correctional Center, located in Kailua.
Those whose requests can be accommodated are required to provide transportation (for some work lines) and lunch.
An inmate's eligibility is based on his/her security custody classification, Lopez said. A "community" classification is required.
On Oahu, the work lines usually come from the Oahu Community Correctional Center and the Women's Community Correctional Center.
"These are the sentenced felon population that's near the end of their sentence or close to their parole dates," Lopez said.
The community correctional centers on the Big Island, Maui and Kauai also may have work lines that go out from time to time. But Lopez noted that the Kauai facility doesn't have a furlough program or "a good strong re-entry program," so the work line programs there are very limited.
Typically, a work line will involve seven to 10 inmates. At times, but rarely, work lines may be combined for a big job.
While the Department of Public Safety has "a work force that can be utilized, there are other issues that need to be taken into consideration, such as the liability issue," Lopez explained.
In fact, liability is a big factor, he said. Inmates have gotten hurt in the past, and the state is liable for their injuries.
Asked about escapes, Lopez said inmates have walked away from job sites, but "that doesn't happen very often, because they're close to their furloughs."
Q: Do members of the University of Hawaii Board of Regents get paid? I was just curious.
A: No, they are not paid, but are reimbursed for traveling expenses within the state when attending board meetings or when "actually engaged" in board business (Hawaii Revised Statutes, Section 304-3).
The board is required to meet at least 10 times a year, and "may from time to time meet in each of the counties of Hawaii, Maui, and Kauai."
Meanwhile, Section 26-11 of the law provides that there be 12 regents, no more than six being of the same political party; at least "part of the membership" representing geographical subdivisions of the state; and at least one member being a UH student at the time of the initial appointment.
The board is given the power to formulate policy and to exercise control over the university through its executive officer, which is the university president. The board also is given "exclusive jurisdiction over the internal organization and management of the university."
It appoints and may remove the UH president, as it did last week when it fired Evan Dobelle.
By the same token, under Section 304-3, it says the regents "shall be appointed by and may be removed by the governor."
Their terms are for four years, except for the student regent, whose term is for two years.
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