WWW arkcity.net

Trimmer, Rising debate fate of state prisons

By ROY GRABER and DAVE SEATON
Staff Writers

Ryan Rising believes the solution to crowded state prisons could lie with the contracting of private prisons.

Ed Trimmer is convinced that is not a viable option.

The two candidates for the 78th District seat in the Kansas House of Representatives butted heads once again in a debate hosted by Southwestern College Monday night.

Speaking in Mossman 101 to a crowd that was so large voters had to sit on the stairs, Rising was the first to field a question about the prison population.

"Our prison capacity is definitely a problem right now," Rising said.

The figures that are commonly heard - that the prisons are at 95 to 99 percent full - is somewhat misleading, Rising said. When you break down the population to security levels and genders, some of those divisions are at "a deficit," while others are at "a surplus."

Rising said they may have to shuffle some inmates to different levels to alleviate the problem.

He also said private prisons, which have been in existence since the first one was introduced in Tennessee in 1987, "may be an option."

Trimmer voiced his disbelief in what he heard in terms of moving inmates to different security levels.

"If we do that kind of shuffling, that's bad," Trimmer said.

Trimmer told the crowd he had before voted against private prisons, largely because their intentions are different from those that are operated by the state.

"It looks like an easy solution, but the minute you contract with a private prison, then you have no control over the prisoners that they bring in," Trimmer said. "The bottom line is profit, and any time you look at that situation, you've got problems."

Trimmer cited a past local juvenile detention facility that was not staffed by employees qualified for the job needed, and as a result, they had a hard time controlling the clients. He worried that would be the same case with private prisons.

"We shouldn't lower the quality of what we can do, risk bringing those people in so those people can make a profit; if we're going to have profits, let the state reinvest in its facilities," Trimmer said.

Rising responded to Trimmer, saying other states like Colorado have had successful dealings with private prisons. He said if Kansas lawmakers were careful in creating related bills, Kansas could be, too.

"You can write it into you legislation," Rising said.

Both candidates said they are in favor of alternative fuels, including ethanol. Rising said one concern he had with ethanol would be the water usage, which could be hard on Kansas farmers who have been stricken by drought.

Trimmer said it might be a good idea to offer encouragement to farmers to grow crops, like cotton, which don't require much moisture and don't need irrigation.

Trimmer said another concern he had with ethanol is finding a way to make it a sustainable fuel source in coming years.

Trimmer also said he is in favor of biofuels such as biodiesel. Salemby Resources has a biodiesel plant in Burden, but the company has hit some roadblocks due to outdated legislation. Trimmer said he is behind the effort to update those laws to help the company succeed.

The remainder of the debate was spent revisiting topics the two had discussed before. Some of the repartee, however, was new.

Rising, in describing the need for accountability in education, discussed the inconsistency in salaries and raises between local teachers and administrators.

Trimmer said he had voted in favor of accountability in education and accused Rising of trying to upset voters over matters that were irrelevant to state races.

"He's trying to steal votes from local teachers by creating discontent. It is not the job of the legislator to decide what happens at the local level with educational money. Our job is to get an education package through the state. If you don't like what's happening at the local level, then you have a school board election," Trimmer said. "Surely my opponent isn't advocating the Legislature start meddling in local affairs and take over local jurisdictions of our local school boards because that's what it sounds like he's saying."

Rising provided an answer that drew laughs, and even a grin from Trimmer.

"To say that I'm to try to steal the teachers' votes is to presume that he had them in the first place," Rising said.

Trimmer grew passionate when he attacked Rising's ad in Monday's Courier. The dramatic growth in the state budget to $8.6 billion, Trimmer said, and the comparisons to personal income growth since 1972, were "half truths." The reason the state budget has grown so much is the 1992 school finance act which took all local school funds into the budget as a state responsibility, Trimmer said.

In a quiet, but aggressive, way, Trimmer criticized Rising for saying he was a lifelong Cowley County resident, when he has only been here for the last four years. "We don't even know where his residence is," Trimmer said.

Rising responded that he had always had a driver's license from Kansas and paid taxes in Cowley County. "All roads lead to Cowley County," he said.

In their closing comments, Rising repeated his opening, mentioned former legislator Dorothy Flottman and others on his campaign committee, and said he would always listen.

"My door is always open," he said.

Trimmer mentioned his endorsement by a list of health care and educational organizations. Again, he implied Rising was not telling the whole truth.

"You're not voting for a committee," Trimmer said, "You're voting for a candidate."