Schuylkill County as of Wednesday had 41 prison inmates used out-of-county at a cost of $65-$70 per inmate per day.

That’s a total of $2,665-$2,870 a day.

Centre County has 23, Columbia County has one, Northumberland County has two, and Clinton County has 15, Warden David J. Wapinsky reported at Wednesday’s Prison Board meeting.

Schuylkill in 2021 earmarked $932,292 for housing inmates out of the county. This year, they increased that amount to $1.5 million.

“Outsourcing” inmates is to reduce overcrowding at the aging county prison on Sanderson Street, across from the county courthouse in Pottsville.

That strategy started in 2016 after the state Department of Corrections found the prison was routinely overcrowded. It ordered the county to stop accepting new inmates if the average daily inmate count topped 277.

Wapinsky also reported that the June peak census was 291, with the peak female census at 71. The census low was 241.

The average number of outsourced inmates in June was 37.

Currently, Wapinsky said, there are two correctional officers out on extended medical leave, and one on restricted duty.

There are currently seven part-time correctional officer positions open.