Gov. Sanders is locked in on Franklin Co. prison site
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Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders attends a governors' working session at the White House in February. Photo: Francis Chung/Politico/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Editor's note: This is a second story in a question-and-answer interview with Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders.
Amid controversy and local opposition, Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders stands by her decision to build a 3,000-bed prison in Franklin County.
Why it matters: The proposed project will likely cost taxpayers $1 billion or more and would be one of the largest development projects in recent state history, lawmakers say.
The big picture: Many public safety officials and legislators note the need for more state prison capacity as inmates wait in overcrowded county jails.
- Its location is opposed by many area residents, who were surprised by the October announcement. They've cited skyrocketing construction costs, lack of adequate workforce or infrastructure and fears of declining land values.
State of play: In a recent conversation with Axios, Sanders defended the decision and said there is widespread legislative support for the project, despite the Arkansas Senate rejecting $750 million in spending authority for it five times.
Yes, but: She didn't reveal her thoughts on how the money will come together.
This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.
I've not found anyone living in Charleston who supports the project.
There are people who support it. …I think some of them don't want to say so publicly, because they live in that community.
- Members of the legislature in that area, when we first called them … said, "this is the best thing that's ever happened in Franklin County in terms of economic development," and [when] their constituents started to say something different, then we saw [an] … about-face on their feeling about the prison going into that location.
Given all the objections, is it still the right place for the proposed prison?
There's never going to be an easy place to put a prison.
- When you take a map of the state and you say "OK, where do we know that we have to meet a minimum threshold of population that can serve the workforce for a prison of this size?" your circle gets smaller. When you look at "Where are the vast majority of criminals coming from?" your circle gets smaller. When you look at available land that you can actually purchase … your circle gets really small.
And what of the infrastructure obstacles?
Those are things that have been factored in … it has access to water, to sewer, to utilities, all of that research and data was factored into the site selection and into the cost estimates.
- I still feel strongly that while there will never be a perfect place … it is still the best place for us to put a new prison in the state.
Is it the highest, best use of taxpayer dollars?
I don't know how you could say letting a violent criminal out on the street is a better use of taxpayer dollars.
How will you get the money? Are you planning to call a special session?
I think we keep every option on the table. We keep working with our legislative partners.
Sanders pointed out that legislators already approved $330 million and the Protect Arkansas Act. But that was in 2023, and the money was earmarked for broad prison expansion needs and not specifically for this project, so using that bucket requires approval from the Legislative Council.
The bottom line: The capacity issue in the state will only get worse as truth-in-sentencing and parole restrictions in the Protect Arkansas Act begin to take hold, she said.