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An Act To Make the Reimbursement Rate for Transfers of Inmates from County Jails Equal to the Federal Reimbursement Rate
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. 30-A MRSA §1557-B, sub-§3, as enacted by PL 2015, c. 335, §16, is amended to read:
 
3. Reimbursement.   Reimbursement for the support of a prisoner who is transferred by a sending jail to a receiving jail or the Department of Corrections is subject to the provisions of this subsection.
 
A.  During a state fiscal year in which at least $12,202,104 has been appropriated to the County Jail Operations Fund and disbursements have been made equal to that amount to the counties as required by Title 34-A, section 1210-D, the receiving jail or the department may not charge the sending jail a per diem rate for the transferred prisoner.
 
B.  During a state fiscal year in which less than $12,202,104 has been appropriated to the County Jail Operations Fund or disbursements have not been made equal to that amount to the counties as required by Title 34-A, section 1210-D, the following provisions apply:
 
(1) The receiving jail may charge the sending jail a per diem rate for the transferred prisoner;
 
(2) The rate charged by the receiving jail must equal the per diem per prisoner amount calculated by the department in making the disbursement to the counties under Title 34-A, section 1210-D, subsection 4; and
 
(3) The department may charge the sending jail an amount that has been negotiated between the department and the jail that does not exceed $108 per diem per prisoner.
 
B-1.  The sending jail shall reimburse the receiving jail or the department a fee equal to the amount of the federal reimbursement fee for housing prisoners, but no less than $90 per diem per prisoner.
 
C. The sending jail shall reimburse the receiving jail or the department for any costs incurred in the provision of extraordinary medical or surgical treatment for conditions of the prisoner that existed prior to transfer.
 
D. Payment amounts provided for in this subsection may be adjusted or dispensed with upon terms mutually agreeable to the sheriff of the sending jail and the sheriff of the receiving jail or the department.
 
SUMMARY
This bill makes the reimbursement rate for transfers of inmates from a county jail to another county jail or to the Department of Corrections equal to the federal reimbursement rate for housing prisoners, but no less than $90 per diem per prisoner.