A U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee approved $43.7 million for equipment and staffing to continue the activation of Thomson Prison. According to a news release from U.S. Senator Dick Durbin, the measure also includes $15 million for modernizations and repairs at the prison.
In March 2014, Durbin and Rep. Cheri Bustos announced the Department of Justice’s Bureau of Prisons committed $53.7 million in funding to the activation of Thomson Correctional Center. The funding was approved by Congress in January as part of the Omnibus Appropriations bill for Fiscal Year 2014. The full activation of Thomson prison is expected to cost $25 million for upgrades and renovations and approximately $170 million for equipment and staffing.
In February, Durbin and Bustos sent a letter to President Obama asking him to include the necessary funding for the second year of activation of the Thomson Correction Center in his Fiscal Year 2015 Budget request.