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County Commissioners Give Two Weeks for Jail Fee Negotiations

KWGS File Photo

Tulsa County Commissioners formalized increased jail fees today for the City of Tulsa.

Last week the county criminal justice authority agreed to negotiate with the city ahead of their jail contract extension expiring. Now the Board of County Commissioners definitively says Oct. 31 is the last day for the city and the county to reach a new agreement before fees go up.

"So, on Nov. 1, if we don't have a new agreement with the City of Tulsa, we will begin charging them $118 per person to be booked and $52.02 per day for the stay rate at the jail," said county spokesman Michael Willis.

The commissioners unanimously passed a resolution setting next Friday as the deadline for a new agreement. The fees will be charged for every prisoner booked on municipal and/or open state charges.

Chairman Ron Peters will represent Tulsa County commissioners in negotiations over jail rates with the city. Willis said the increased booking and daily fees are based on the jail’s actual costs. Those might be paid by a city using the county jail exclusively for a short period of time.

"But if they wanted to do some sort of longer-term agreement, we'd be able to then say, 'OK, well, we can work some economies of scale, we can do some different things to maybe adjust this price down,'" Willis said. "And that's what I think — I mean, that's what I hope that will end up coming out of the talks on the contract."

Peters, a sheriff’s designee and the mayors of Glenpool and Owasso will negotiate with the city.

Matt Trotter joined KWGS as a reporter in 2013. Before coming to Public Radio Tulsa, he was the investigative producer at KJRH. His freelance work has appeared in the Los Angeles Times and on MSNBC and CNN.