37 Tex. Admin. Code § 155.23 - Site Selection Process for the Location of Additional Facilities
(a) Purpose. This rule
establishes procedures for determining the location of new Texas Department of
Criminal Justice (TDCJ) facilities in a manner that is fair and open,
cost-effective for construction and operations, and sensitive to the ultimate
mission of the facilities sited. Determining the location of a new facility
designed to house inmates is a multi-factor process that assesses
cost-effectiveness, logistical support requirements, operational concerns, and
legal mandates.
(b) Definitions.
The following words and terms, when used in this rule, shall have the following
meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.
(1) Facility is a substantially
self-contained, permanently constructed correctional facility for housing
inmates. This includes prison units, state jails, and substance abuse felony
punishment (SAFP) facilities, but does not include community corrections
facilities, as defined by Texas Government Code §
509.001, or parole
facilities defined in Texas Government Code §§
508.118,
508.119, or
508.320.
(2) Prison unit includes a private prison
under Texas Government Code Chapter 495, Subchapter A (Contracts with Private
Vendors and Commissioners Courts), a psychiatric unit, and a unit whose
capacity is determined by Texas Government Code Chapter 499, Subchapter E (Unit
and System Capacity).
(3) SAFP
facility is a substance abuse felony punishment facility authorized by Texas
Government Code §
493.009.
(4) State jail is a state jail felony
facility authorized by Texas Government Code Chapter 507.
(c) Procedures.
(1) The Legislative Budget Board is
responsible for projecting the demand for prison unit, state jail, and SAFP
facility beds. Based on these projections, a plan shall be developed by TDCJ
staff and adopted by the Texas Board of Criminal Justice (TBCJ) that details
how any additional bed needs shall be met. This plan shall be presented to the
legislature with a request for appropriations. The plan shall include any
recommendations for re-designation and renovation of existing facilities. With
respect to new facilities requiring the selection of a site, the plan adopted
by the TBCJ shall include:
(A)
Recommendations for specific types of facilities needed by the TDCJ, the
approximate size of each facility, and any regional distribution planned by
facility type;
(B) A description of
each facility's mission; and
(C) A
description of the type of inmates to be housed in each facility and the
programming requirements for that population.
(2) Site selections shall be made in
accordance with and through a Request for Proposals (RFP) process, unless the
TBCJ determines that land currently owned by the state shall be used as the
site for the location of additional facilities, in which case an RFP process
shall not be required. The RFP shall be based on the array of facilities
authorized by the legislature. For each round of site selections, the RFP shall
specify:
(A) Types of facilities
needed;
(B) Minimum acreage and
site characteristics required for each facility type;
(C) Requirements for geotechnical information
based on drilling matrix and site preparation requirements;
(D) Requirements for verified documentation
of the absence of any environmental problems and historical preservation
conditions;
(E) Requirements for
supporting information such as easement, utility, and topographical
maps;
(F) Requirements for
description of land values, transferability of mineral rights, surface leases,
easements, title report, warranty deed, aerial photographs, and other issues
affecting the timely transferability of a site;
(G) Transportation and utility requirements;
and
(H) Requirements for soliciting
citizen input and state and local elected official input regarding a specific
site.
(3) Under the
direction of the TDCJ executive director, the Facilities Division shall
coordinate the site selection process. In accordance with the TBCJ approved
criteria and process, TDCJ staff shall be responsible for the development of
the RFP, devising and completing scoring instruments, as well as cost analysis
for TBCJ review and action. Information presented to the TBCJ shall:
(A) Be structured in a uniform format as
illustrated in the Facilities Division policies and procedures;
(B) Include data from a weighted scoring
evaluation system that objectively assesses each site based on the proposal
requirements, the site visit, and supporting information developed before any
review, based on the Facilities Division policies and procedures and on the
requirements outlined in the RFP;
(C) Include life-cycle cost calculations for
a specific time period for each responsive proposal;
(D) Include information relating to the
workforce available in the area surrounding each proposed site from which the
TDCJ would recruit correctional staff; and
(E) Identify and explain any deviations from
the TBCJ approved process.
(4) Any selection process shall take into
consideration the intent of the legislature to locate each facility:
(A) In close proximity to a county with
100,000 or more inhabitants to provide services and other resources provided in
such a county;
(B) Cost-effectively
with respect to its proximity to other TDCJ facilities;
(C) In close proximity to an area that would
facilitate release of inmates or persons to their area of residence;
and
(D) In close proximity to an
area that provides adequate educational opportunities and medical
care.
(5) The TBCJ shall
be responsible for site selection, but may request that TDCJ staff provide a
short list of recommended sites or a preference ranking of sites with an
explanation for the recommendation or ranking. Staff recommendations shall be
determined through the scoring of information contained in each submitted
proposal based on RFP requirements, actual site assessment, and information
obtained from external and internal sources for each site. Staff
recommendations may include, and the TBCJ may select, a site other than one
contained in the submitted proposals if the site is on state-owned
land.
Notes
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