ASHLAND, TALENT, AND MEDFORD CITY COUNCILS VOTE THIS WEEK ON WHETHER TO ENDORSE THE COUNTY’S $171 MILLION JAIL PROPOSAL – OR INSIST ON A BETTER PLAN
The Jackson County Commission (Rick Dyer, Colleen Roberts, and Bob Strosser), County Administrator Danny Jordan, and Sheriff Nathan Sickler are demanding that city councils pass a resolution endorsing a new tax to triple county jail capacity to 896 beds.
The news media has been reporting that the new triple-sized jail would cost $171 million, including $60 million from reserves county taxpayers have already paid. That drastically understates the cost, according to the county’s own information, as explained below.
This week is our last opportunity to tell our city councils to ask the county for alternative proposals that include prevention, diversion, crisis assistance, and treatment/rehab to keep people out of jail in the first place, lower rates of repeat offenses, and save money, as other counties have done.
According to the county, the new triple-sized jail would cost more than $1 billion to build, maintain, and operate over the next 23 years.
The county is unable or unwilling to provide basic data or analysis to justify a tripling of jail capacity.
The county didn’t study, analyze, or present any cost-effective alternatives, proven in other counties, to reduce the number of people jailed in the first place, reduce repeat offenses, save money, and provide better prevention, diversion, crisis assistance, and treatment.
This huge expenditure will make it far less likely that the county would ever fund those alternatives.
Evidence shows that holding people in jail longer leads to more repeat crimes, not fewer.
The county’s plan does not address underlying problems like mental illness, addiction, homelessness, and poverty.
Being jailed creates new trauma and new barriers to getting jobs, rental housing, and needed benefits.
The county is asking each city council to endorse the county’s plan, and to lock in that city’s residents to paying for this plan, no matter how that city’s residents vote.
The county decided that the new tax would be collected and spent by a new service district run by the three county commissioners and the county administrator, unlike other service districts with elected boards that are more directly accountable to the public.
The county chose to tax residents in a way that prohibits use of the money for anything but the new triple-sized jail.
Speak Up, Speak Out! City Councils Decide Whether to Approve a New Jail or to Demand Better for our Community:
Ashland City Council Vote Tuesday
When: Tuesday, November 19th, starting at 6:00pm
Where: Ashland City Council Chambers located at 1175 E. Main Street, Ashland
Agenda item: ORDINANCES, RESOLUTIONS AND CONTRACTS
Resolution 2019-31 and 2019-32 to Join the Jail Service District
Full City Council Meeting agenda can be found here
Talent City Council Vote Wednesday
When: Wednesday, November 20th, starting at 6:45pm
Where: Talent Community Hall located at 206 E. Main Street, Talent (large white building, corner of Main and Market Streets)
Agenda item: 9.1 Long-Term Detention Facility Resolutions, packet pages 52-57
Full City Council Agenda can be found here
Medford City Council Vote Thursday
When: Thursday, November 21st, starting at 6:00pm
Where: Medford City Council Chambers located at 411 W. 8th Street, Medford
Agenda item: 70.1 COUNCIL BILL 2019-123 A resolution approving a Jackson County order to initiate formation of a Jackson County Law Enforcement Service District and consenting to the inclusion of City territory within the boundaries of the district.
Full City Council Meeting Agenda can be found here
Tips on speaking at a city council meeting:
Write it down – If you plan to speak at the hearing, it can be helpful to write out what you want to say ahead of time. Make sure you include why you care about this issue and what you want the council to do.
When you speak:
- First, state your name and address while speaking clearly for the record.
- When speaking to the Council it is common to address them by their titles as Mayor and Council.
- Keep it personal – How does this issue impact you and our community? Why do you care?
- Keep it brief – You’ll probably have a maximum of three minutes to speak. Ten people speaking for one minute is more powerful than one person speaking for ten minutes. If you have more to say, you can always submit it through written testimony.
- Stay on topic – Always tie your testimony to the subject at hand.
- Make a clear ask – Make sure to bring your testimony back to a clear ask for action. Relax – Remember to breathe and take your time. You’ll do great!
Hope to see you there!
~Team RAC
