Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty is mulling the request of $89 billion from a sex offender program with facilities in Moose Lake, Minnesota. The facilities currently house violent sex offenders. Pawlenty recently recommended a package of investment projects costing $685 million – the $89 million request is for about 13% of that package.
Aid for the Minnesota Sex Offender Program (MSOP) would go towards adding an additional 400 beds among other needs. The program believes it can rehabilitate dangerous sex offenders and reinstate them into society after their prison sentence, but has so far failed to rehabilitate anyone.
There is an estimated population of 600 within the program, a huge jump from 200 in 2003. The costs to keep the program running have also ballooned considerably, from $20 million in 2004 to $65 million this year. That represents a 300% jump in costs despite the program spending less per patient than before ($387 per person per day, according to the Department of Human Services).
Many lawmakers are debating whether this program really needs the money, or if the money should be spent elsewhere such as state infrastructure or education.
No matter what happens with the program, the fact remains that the state and Minnesotans are with less money today. Make sure you’re saving enough for your future with a Minnesota savings account.
