HARRISBURG — The state House State Government Committee held a hearing Monday on a proposed bill that would require state departments to give advance notice and invite public input before closing state correctional institutions and law enforcement facilities.

The Public Safety Facilities Act, SB 748, and a companion bill, HB 1606, would require at least 12 months’ notice before the closing of a state correctional or law enforcement facility.

Departments would also be required to work with stakeholders, relevant commonwealth departments and local entities to understand the impact of the proposed closure and to present a report containing those findings to the governor, the majority leader and minority leader of the Senate and the majority leader and minority leader of the House.

Facilities would also have to hold at least one public hearing at least 120 days before the final decision and announcement of a closure.

The committee, chaired by Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R-12th, heard from the bills’ main sponsors and took testimony from public officials and sector experts.

Prime sponsor of SB 748, Sen. David Argall, R-29th, recalled the announced closing of the State Correctional Facility in Frackville, Schuylkill County, and the impact it had on the community.

Employees and residents were given less than a month’s notice.

“Many local residents were shocked to find SCI Frackville on the list,” Argall said. “The department’s plan then was to decide to close a prison within 20 days ... Many people wanted to voice their concerns. 5,000 people signed a petition to keep the facility open.”

The facility ultimately was kept open, but Argall said the community should never have been given such a short time to react to the plans.

“The question remains, what will we do next time?” he said.

Rep. Jeff Wheeland, R-83rd, prime sponsor of the companion bill HB 1606, emphasized that the bill was not intended to stop facilities from closing but to give communities more time to react and prepare.

“I want to make it perfectly clear that I am in no way opposed to closing a facility provided that there are guidelines in place,” he said. “My current concern with the closure policy is the short timeline between public notice and the closing of the facility.”

These include concerns about the impact on the local economy, on employees of the facility and on short and long-term capital improvement plans.

The committee also heard testimony from those working in the state Department of Corrections, as well as an expert who has studied the impacts prison closures have on communities.

Department of Corrections Secretary John Wetzel expressed concern that a 12 month notice would make hiring difficult in an industry that already has trouble finding employees to fill key positions.

“Twenty days, thirty days (is) too short? I agree with that. I think a year’s too long,” he said. “If it’ll be dragging out over a year ... it’ll be very difficult to hire.”

Wetzel said while he agrees philosophically with the bill, people won’t apply to work at facilities that are slated to close or that are publicly being considered for closure.

This could lead to downsizing the facility’s inmate population, transferring them to prisons which may already be filled to capacity.

“I don’t think anyone disagrees that we want to mitigate impact on the employees in particular and the local community in particular,” Wetzel said. “I just want to make sure we think of the unintended consequences.”

He also asked that the definition of “public safety facility” be amended, as he considers the current definition to be too broad.

Jason Bloom, president of the Pennsylvania State Corrections Officers Association, said the increased notice would be much appreciated and that the timelines for previous closures were too short and inconsiderate of employees.

“When you close a prison ... you need to give (employees) advanced warning, you need to let them know,” Bloom said.

He also shared concerns about losing employees and the increasing density of prisons.

“We do a dangerous job and not many people want to do this job. There’s about 100 turnover a month,” he said. “We don’t turn over 100 (inmates) a month.”

Other testimony included a liaison from the Pennsylvania State Troopers Association, who delivered written testimony emphatically supporting the legislation, and an academic expert who testified that closing a prison can cost a community $1 million annually.

Metcalfe closed the hearing by saying that he believed the legislation is important and that he planned to bring it up for a vote in the future, but recommended that the committee consider amendments in accordance with the testimony.