Rutherford backs Thomson

THOMSON – Pontiac’s state senator, who admits he might seem an unlikely proponent for full funding of the Thomson Correctional Center, nonetheless promised Tuesday that he will be its biggest advocate in Springfield.

Republican Dan Rutherford, whose hometown also is home to Pontiac Correctional Center, told about 50 people gathered in front of its de facto rival that Thomson must be made fully operational, which would help the state’s corrections department and enliven both local economies.

The renewed call to expand operations at Thomson comes as the state faces a budget deficit of more than $11 billion, and unemployment has hit 8.6 percent – half a percentage point higher than the national average.

Rutherford blames the plight of the $140 million, 1,600-bed facility on a lack of tactful cooperation – something he hopes to embody when he urges Senate leaders of both parties to re-examine their stance on the prison, he said.

“You need a coalition,” Rutherford said. “You don’t need divisiveness. You need people to work together. You can’t push [opposition] off and say, ‘The heck with them.’”

The high-tech Carroll County prison, built in 2001, has been operating a minimum-security unit on the grounds with 77 employees; its maximum potential work force is 760.

The Department of Corrections recently hired about 300 workers for the prison, but they scattered to other facilities when Gov. Pat Quinn reversed impeached Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s order to close Pontiac and transfer its 1,500 inmates to Thomson.

Rutherford says there’s money to keep both prisons running.

Roughly $60 million in overtime was paid to Illinois Department of Corrections workers last year, most of which was “forced” or unwanted, he said.

About $9 million is budgeted for Thomson next year, and about $34 million for overtime. Between the two, there is a way to come up with the $47 million needed to operate Thomson at full capacity, Rutherford said.

“I believe that if you take part of that overtime money, you’re going to be able to fully fund a perfectly good state facility in the state of Illinois.”

The Pontiac lawmaker said he wants both prisons open to alleviate overcrowding in the state prison system and enrich both communities.