Vermont tries to cut costs of rented beds

Vermont issued a request for proposal for 300 out-of-state beds in a bid to reduce costs.

Vermont has contracted for about 500 beds a year in Virginia since 1998, but has opened the bidding to private prison operators in an attempt to find a less expensive provider.

The legislature in

Vermont officials said the Virginia Corrections Department agreed to extend the contract at its current rate, but was unwilling to reduce costs.

Vermont received seven bids in the previous contract competition including three from private companies that were lower than the current agreement of $47.50 per day. The private bids ranged from $28.95 to $46.

Vermont will release details of the new bidding after it accepts a contract.

Officials identified the private prison operators in the competition as Corrections Corp. of America, which would bed inmates in Kentucky; Emerald Correctional Management LLC, which would hold offenders in Louisiana; and CiviGenics Inc., which would use a facility in Texas.

The additional distance that family members would need to travel to visit inmates is not a factor, officials said, because relatively few make the shorter trip to Virginia.

Vermont currently rents 550 beds from Virginia, but will need fewer under the new contract.

Vermont is opening a new prison in Springfield that will increase state capacity by about 250.