Union leaders in the dark: Many wonder what this means for overcrowded state prison

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THOMSON – The local prison union was left reeling over the news that Thomson Correctional Center could be sold to the federal government and house Guantanamo Bay detainees.

Rumors that Thomson could become the new Gitmo have been flying over the last several months, said Lori Laidlaw, president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 2359, which represents Thomson prison workers.

The Illinois Department of Corrections did not prepare AFSCME for the news, though, she said.

“We are not happy about it, and the members at Thomson are all up in arms,” Laidlaw said Saturday. “The Department of Corrections is not sharing any information and has not involved the union in anything.”

Sunday, Gov. Pat Quinn held news conferences at airports in Milan, Chicago and Rockford, announcing that Thomson is in the running to become a super-maximum facility with a unit  that would house the suspected terrorists.

The news has raised a lot of questions, such as how the prison will be run and what kind of staffing will be needed, Laidlaw said. 

“We would hope that it would mean more jobs for the people in the community, but how do you find people that have the training to work this detail?” she said. “At this point, we don’t even know what their plan is, or even if they have a plan.”

The state spent $145 million to build the 1,600-bed, maximum-security prison in Thomson, a town of a little more than 500. Construction was completed in 2001; 8 years later, the prison holds fewer than 200 inmates.

Laidlaw said she doesn’t think the village is equipped to handle a federal prison that houses dangerous anti-American terrorists.

“We just don’t have the law enforcement in that area,” she said. “It’s a very quiet community, and we are in no way ready.”

Another issue that has Laidlaw on edge, she said, is the problem of overcrowding at prisons statewide, where many maximum-security facilities are at 170 percent capacity.

In a written statement Saturday, Henry Bayer, executive director of AFSCME Council 31, echoed Laidlaw’s comments, and noted the proposal to close the maximum-security Stateville Correctional Center near Joliet.

“Apparently, Gov. Quinn is not aware of the fact that his own prison system right here in Illinois is severely overcrowded – and turning Thomson over to the federal government will actually make that overcrowding even worse,” Bayer wrote.

“The population is not going to decrease,” Laidlaw said. “Two years down the road, we’re going to have to build another one.

“[The government] has to think outside the box and have to think past today about what they are going to do.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

How this came about

Thomson Village President Jerry Hebeler sent a letter to Gov. Pat Quinn, expressing the village’s willingness to consider “any and all alternatives” to open the prison and bring economic vitality back to the region.

In it, he suggested asking whether the federal government would be interested in using the facility.

Quinn briefly discussed the possibility with President Barack Obama during a recent trip to Washington, D.C.

Afterward, on Nov. 12, Quinn sent a letter to Secretary of Defense Robert Gates and U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, highlighting Thomson’s modern safety features and stating the prison could be part of plans being formulated by the U.S. government “to move federal prisoners and to locate a limited number of detainees in the United States.”  

View the letters at www.illinois.gov/PressReleases/ShowPressRelease.cfm?SubjectID=2&RecNum=8020 online.

Excerpts from the federal economic impact analysis

According to a news release Sunday from Gov. Pat Quinn, he and U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin asked the Obama administration for “a preliminary economic impact analysis of the federal government’s potential acquisition and activation of the state correctional facility in Thomson.”

These were the report’s findings that the two proponents released:

Thousands of new jobs:

The analysis estimates that federal operation of the facility would generate between 2,340 and 3,250 ongoing jobs. These would include both direct, well-paying federal jobs at the facility, as well as indirect jobs in the surrounding region.

These indirect jobs would result from the support services needed to operate the facility, as well as the increase in earnings for the local population.

The analysis estimates that about half of these jobs would be filled locally, while the other half would go to personnel moving into the area.

Significant reduction in unemployment:

The analysis predicts that unemployment would drop significantly. For example, the unemployment rate in Carroll County, where the facility is located, could be cut in half from its September 2009 level of 10.5 percent.

Unemployment also would decline in surrounding counties, including Whiteside, Jo Daviess, Lee, and Rock Island counties in Illinois, as well as Clinton and Jackson counties in Iowa.

Overall, the earnings of area residents could increase by as much as $223 million a year on an ongoing basis.

Direct and indirect economic boost:

The analysis predicts a large and immediate impact on the local economies surrounding the facility. For example, the operation of the facility would rely on local utilities, transportation and food services.

A large share of the salaries from new employees would go toward the purchase of locally provided goods and services, such as housing, retail goods, and health care. These indirect waves of economic activity would amplify the direct impacts of the facility.

Regional economic stimulus:

The analysis estimates that the overall injection of funds into the local economy would be between $790 million and $1.09 billion over the first 4 years. This would result from the operation of the facility, construction expenditures, salaries, and visitors to the area.

The economic impact is expected to be divided generally as follows: Carroll County, 40 percent; Whiteside, Jo Daviess, Lee and Rock Island counties, 40 percent; and Clinton and Jackson counties in Iowa, 20 percent.

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