Tug of War over Prisoners Continues

Senator Stephen M. Saland was one of nine state senators who filed a lawsuit on Monday, April 4, against the New York Legislative Task Force on Demographic Research and Reapportionment and the New York State Department of Corrections. The complaint seeks to reinstate the policy of counting prisoners as residents of the communities where they are incarcerated. Among the arguments presented in the complaint are these: "Incarcerated persons draw upon the services of the communities in which their prisons are located"; "Inmates use community resources including the local courts, hospitals and health services, water, sewer and other infrastructure. Such communities must consider incarcerated persons with their local population when budgeting and planning for fire, rescue, police, water, sewer, sanitation, road maintenance and other public services."