BILL CRAWFORD: Legislature undercut Fisher’s efforts to clean up MDOC
Why did the Legislature make the job of new MDOC Commissioner Marshall Fisher so hard?…
…Fisher told the governor’s Task Force on Contracting and Procurement in the Mississippi Department of Corrections his top priority would be to transform MDOC’s low-paid, poorly trained, correctional officers into a highly trained, professional force. He said it would take training and higher pay to remove the enticement of corruption from his workforce…
…To get anywhere with his transformation plan, Fisher said pay for correctional, probation and parole officers must be increased across the board. Also, because of the increased number of parolees resulting from passage of House Bill 585 last year, MDOC needs more parole officers.
Fisher took his transformation plan and salary realignment request to the Legislature, asking that his appropriation be increased by $11 million.
What did they do? They cut his appropriation by $12 million.
MBJ
5/10/15
Magnolia Tribune
