INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Indiana's sheriffs say they need more state money to cover the costs of holding low-level felons in county jails.
Indiana's county jails currently get a $35 per-day payment for every Level 6 felon they house. But the Indiana Sheriffs Association says it's been at least 30 years since that amount changed.
Hendricks County Sheriff Brett Clark is proposing the payment be increased to $55, based on the sheriffs association's research of rates in other states and the federal government. Research from this year shows that such an increase would cost the state about $45,000 a year.
The number of felons in state prisons and county jails is on the upswing this year. The number of Level 6 felons in county jails has increased about 37 percent in the last year.
