At last count, only one inmate at Schuylkill County Prison is being housed temporarily at a jail other than at Northumberland County.
Schuylkill County has several agreements with other counties to house inmates temporarily to avoid overcrowding. Last year, the County government came to terms with Northumberland County to keep its inmates there for $72 per day, slightly less than rates at the other temporary locations in Centre and Clinton counties. The difference is it’s much shorter to transport those inmates to and from Schuylkill County than it is at, for instance, Centre.
At last week’s Schuylkill County Prison Board meeting, Sheriff Shawn Butler thanked Warden Michael Buchanan for getting all but 1 of the 32 inmates temporarily housed in other counties at Northumberland. The other inmate is at Centre County.
“That’s a big help for us,” Butler said. “It saves us a lot of roaming.”
Buchanan did report however, that at the time of last week’s board meeting, there were five cells at Schuylkill County Prison housing three inmates each. At the May meeting, there were seven.
As usual, Buchanan also delivered his State of the Prison report, detailing the revenues and expenses at the Pottsville jail. In May, he reported, expenses totaled $974,764.67. That’s slightly more than the $911,287.60 spent in April.
So far in 2026, the County has spent $4.24 million at the prison. That’s an average of $848,823 per month and at that rate, the County will spend nearly $10.2 million at the prison. That’s in line with what’s budgeted this year.
Here’s a breakdown of the expenses over the last two months at Schuylkill County Prison:
APRIL EXPENSES
- Salary – Department Head: $7,526.93
- Salaries – Deputies and Assistants: $67,108.43
- Wages – Deputies and Assistants: $4,585.43
- Salaries – Clerical Staff: $3,520.64
- Wages – Regular Employees: $264,718.69
- Wages – Regular Part Time: $2,791.06
- Wages – Overtime: $70,984.98
- In Lieu of Benefits: $420.00
- Materials & Supplies: $12,240.13
- Clothing and Bedding: $5,857.91
- Groceries: $58,154.40
- Cleaning Supplies: $2,504.77
- Uniforms: $1,076.42
- Fuel, Electric, Water, Sewer: $16,770.23
- Temporary Housing: $172,135.47
- Professional Services: $163,208.76
- Dues and Conferences: $77.62
- Travel Expenses: $46.08
- Non-Payroll Commissions: $846.98
- Inmate Wages: $594.00
- MAT Program: $29,066.69
- Maintenance & Repairs: $10,644.40
- Maintenance Agreements: $231.90
- Copier-Capital Leases: $91.68
- Capital Building & Improvement: $16,034.00
- Pre-Employment Physicals: $50.00
- Total Expenditures: $911,287.60
MAY EXPENSES
- Salary – Department Head: $7,526.92
- Salaries – Deputies and Assistants: $65,048.44
- Wages – Deputies and Assistants: $4,585.44
- Salaries – Clerical Staff: $3,520.64
- Wages – Regular Employees: $269,949.52
- Wages – Regular Part Time: $2,156.13
- Wages – Overtime: $53,803.93
- In Lieu of Benefits: $420.00
- Materials & Supplies: $16,046.12
- Clothing and Bedding: $194.01
- Groceries: $47,441.10
- Cleaning Supplies: $1,762.78
- Uniforms: $3,689.06
- Fuel, Electric, Water, Sewer: $14,899.52
- Temporary Housing: $8,369.00
- Professional Services: $285,785.30
- Travel Expenses: $67.43
- Non-Payroll Commissions: $751.78
- Inmate Wages: $579.00
- MAT Program: $51,984.42
- Maintenance & Repairs: $25,539.60
- Maintenance Agreements: $110.00
- Copier-Capital Leases: $91.68
- Capital Building & Improvement: $110,442.85
- Total Expenditures: $974,764.67
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