State Rep. Kathy Schmaltz and Jackson County Sheriff Gary Schuette this week testified before a House committee to advocate for critical state funding to address severe problems at the Jackson County Jail and improve public safety.

Schmaltz and Schuette focused their testimony on a comprehensive plan to replace the county’s aging and failing jail infrastructure with a safer, modern facility that better serves inmates, law enforcement, and taxpayers.

“The conditions inside the current jail are unacceptable for everyone involved,” Schmaltz said. “We have deputies working in dangerous conditions and a facility that is quite literally breaking down. This is a serious public safety issue that needs to be addressed.”

Sheriff Schuette described the severity of the situation.

“The first time I walked into this facility as the sheriff and began looking at it, I was terrified – terrified about the liability that the county has and by all of the different problems that are associated with this facility,” Schuette said.

Jackson County currently operates two jail facilities. The Wesley Street facility, which houses pre-trial detainees, is more than 70 years old and in severe disrepair, with frequent sewage leaks, failing locks, and unsafe conditions for both inmates and staff. The Chanter Road facility, built just over 20 years ago, is designed for low-security inmates and cannot meet the county’s broader needs on its own.

Schmaltz’s request for a $54.4 million grant would fully address these issues by consolidating operations into a single, modernized facility at Chanter Road. The plan would eliminate the failing Wesley Street jail, convert part of Chanter Road into a centralized booking center, and construct a secure addition for pre-trial inmates. It also includes expanded mental health and addiction treatment services aimed at reducing repeat offenses.

By combining operations and modernizing the facility, the plan would improve safety for corrections officers and inmates, reduce long-term maintenance costs, and better protect the public.

Recognizing the significant cost of a full overhaul, Schmaltz also submitted two smaller funding requests as alternatives to help the county make meaningful progress if the full project cannot be funded.

A $12 million request would allow the county to establish a modern booking center at the Chanter Road facility, including updated observation cells and a secure sally port for safe inmate transfers. This would help reduce overcrowding and improve safety and efficiency for law enforcement.

A $1.19 million request would expand housing for female inmates at Chanter Road, freeing up space at the overcrowded Wesley Street facility and providing women with better access to mental health and addiction services.

“These smaller requests are not a complete fix, but they would help us take important steps forward if the full project cannot be funded right now,” Schmaltz said. “At the end of the day, doing nothing is not an option. This is about making sure our community is safe and our system is working the way it should.”