As part of his long list of budget vetoes this year, Gov. Ron DeSantis denied funding for two prison reform initiatives that would have brought Florida inmates air-conditioning and access to free phone call minutes.
Prison advocates were left disappointed after the state budget was signed Monday, June 30. DeSantis’ list of vetoes included the $1.3 million legislators approved to improve conditions inside the state’s correctional institutions.
After a long, drawn-out session, lawmakers agreed on allocating $300,000 to a nonprofit that would’ve launched a pilot program, bringing air-conditioning units to the 10 institutions that the organization runs a reform program out of.
Another pilot program received $1 million that would’ve provided inmates who exhibit good behavior with one free 15-minute phone call a month to loved ones.
Horizon Communities Corp. Executive Director Nathan Schaidt, alongside prison advocate Connie Edson, pushed lawmakers to support an air-conditioning initiative in some of Florida’s southernmost prisons.
Horizon is a faith and character program offered to inmates in the Calhoun, Dade, Everglades, Franklin, Hamilton, Homestead, Lowell, Okeechobee, Tomoka and Wakulla correctional institutions.
The fight for air-conditioning has been ongoing, and the two advocates’ attempted to fund air-conditioning units in prisons at a time when Dade Correctional Institution was slapped with a lawsuit about the lack of A/C.
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While Schaidt and Edson focused their efforts on air-conditioning, other advocates and loved ones of inmates were hoping to see funds make it across the finish line for a free phone call program.
Last year, funding ran out to provide state inmates with their coveted 15-minute phone calls. The pilot program received $1 million in non-recurring funds in 2023 from the Inmate Welfare Trust Fund.
University of Florida student Graham Bernstein, who advocated for the idea, was working with lawmakers to reinstate the funding this year. Bernstein and other supporters said that access to loved ones via phone calls is crucial for reducing recidivism.
This year’s vetoes mark the latest legislative loss for state prisons as the 2024 legislative session was also a letdown for prison reformers. Several bills last year targeted numerous initiatives, including air-conditioning in the prisons, but were to no avail.
Elena Barrera is the local government watchdog reporter for the Tallahassee Democrat, a member of the USA TODAY NETWORK – Florida. She can be reached at ebarrera@tallahassee.com. Follow her on X: @elenabarreraaa.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: DeSantis budget vetoes include money for air-conditioning, free phone calls in prisons
Reporting by Elena Barrera, USA TODAY NETWORK – Florida / Tallahassee Democrat
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
