When MinnPost's Andy Mannix researched and wrote Minnesota crime is at a 50-year low. So why are we imprisoning more people than ever?, it's not likely that the young investigative reporter could foresee his examination of the state's rising rate of incarceration used in the effort to re-open Correction Corporation of America's private prison in Appleton.

The story has been cited in an public affairs firm's proposal to Swift County to promote the expansion of the private prison and in a local newspaper's coverage of the county's effort. We embed both documents below.

According to Elizabeth Emerson, Director of Government Relations and lobbyist at Goff Public in Saint Paul, the county accepted her firm's proposal and CCA officials visited Western Minnesota for a preliminary meeting with county officials the next day, Wednesday, August 5.

Speaking for herself, rather than Swift County, Emerson noted in a twitter direct message:



There was a preliminary meeting between CCA and Swift County to discuss possible options but no decisions or agreements were made.

We anticipate that the lobbying effort will generate controversy. Not only because CCA is non-union, but the for-profit prison industry has been widely criticized in articles such as Truth-out's America's Top Prison Corporation: A Study in Predatory Capitalism and Cronyism.

In the county's cover cover sheet request for approval of the memo of understanding between the county and firm (below), county staffer Mike Pogge-Weaver wrote that the county would be telling its story through the 2016 legislative bonding session:

To be effective in promoting the availability of the Prairie Correctional Facility in Appleton with the DOC,the legislature, and the public; staff feels it is important to engage the services of a firm that can help us effectively tell our story through public relations and lobbying. After discussing this with a number of organizations including Pope County and AMC, both of which have used Goff Public and highly recommended their services, staff requests board approval to move forward and enter into the attached MOU with Goff Public. Additionally staff requests that the board approve an initial allocation of $10,000 from County Board Discretionary Funds for this work. We are also requesting that both the RDA and City of Appleton participate in this work. Finally, we anticipate bring back a budget with a proposed scope as this work moves forward into the 2016 legislative session.

Here's the Swift County Monitor Story from July 29, 2015, some of which appears to drawn on the Goff Public proposal (embedded in this post below the Monitor story:

Swift County developing strategy to convince state to use private prison

Part of the story is online here.

Here's the Goff Public proposal from the August 4, 2015 Swift County Board agenda packet. Some details:

The public stage is already being set on this issue in advance of the 2016 legislative session. Nationally, recent media stories have highlighted nationwide trends of increased incarceration rates despite decreased rates of major crimes. Locally, MinnPost pointed to the Minnesota Department of Corrections’ preliminary capital investment request of $85 million to expand its Rush City facility to accommodate close to 500 new beds as a result of this trend. Our Goff Public team has also picked up comments from both an influential state senator andthe state’s Commissioner of Human Services, both expressing the need for more beds and intimating that the Rush City expansion may be a good solution. In order to be successful in influencing media and policymakers’ perceptions, it is important for Swift County to implement a fully integrated approach to government and public relations. Goff Public stands ready to work with you to fully assess your situation, establish your goals, and strategically implement tactics to support those goals. Goff Public has a long history of working with local government clients. We have worked within local governments to help align their internal communications and external marketing efforts. We also work with local governments on economic development projects, both in advocating for state bonding dollars and in providing public relations assistance. For the last two legislative sessions, we have lobbied with the Minnesota Association of County Social Services Administrators (MACSSA) on a variety of issues, including child protection and county cost shares related to the Minnesota Sex Offender Program. Additionally, we have worked with MACSSA and individual counties on media relations efforts related to the child protection issue. We assisted them in reducing the negative media rhetoric on a highly sensitive topic. Our professional experiences have contributed to a deep understanding and respect for the work that local governments do. . . . Goff Public would provide services to Swift County at our nonprofit, discounted hourly rate of $175. We can be flexible in developing a payment structure – whether it be hourly, hourly with a “not-to-exceed” cap, or fee-based so payments are uniform each month.. . . Our team for Swift County would led by Elizabeth Emerson, our director of government relations, who would serve as your main point of contact and lead strategist. She would be assisted by Goff Public President, Chris Georgacas, who would play a key strategic role in developing a public relations strategy. Account Executive Matt Roznowski would play a key role in executing media relations efforts. Matt has a strong background in legislative communications and through that work has developed relationships with reporters throughout Minnesota.

Here's the entire proposal:

Goff Public's proposal to Swift County re: CCA Appleton Prison

The personnel outlined in the Goff Public proposal are well-known players in Minnesota's political landscape. Memo author and Goff Public president/CEO Chris Georgacas is a former state chair of the Republican Party of Minnesota, while Emerson came to the firm from the left side of the aisle, MinnPost reported in 2012:

Emerson had been a lobbyist with the Lockridge Grindal Nauen law firm in Minneapolis; before that, she had experience in the Legislature as administrator of the Minnesota House Commerce and Labor Committee. She also worked on the campaign of the late U.S. Sen. Paul Wellstone, was on the House DFL Caucus campaign committee and is now deputy chair of the St. Paul DFL party. She was appointed by St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman as a member of St. Paul’s Human Rights and Equal Economic Opportunity Commission. The mayor's father, the late Nick Coleman, was a founder of Goff Public in 1966; then it was known as Coleman and Goff Advertising. . . .

It's interesting to see a county--which does not have a registered lobbyist under contract listed with the Minnesota Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board as we write this--move to hire a public affairs and lobbying firm to assist with a project to secure funding for one out-of-state corporation's local and shuttered facility.

CCA's registered lobbyists are Todd A. Hill and Kelly Durham.

We'll have more on this story as it develops.

Freshman MN17A state representative Tim Miller (R-Prinsburg) campaigned on re-opening the prison, while decrying incumbent Andrew Falk's votes for bonding for facilities to house civilly committed patients in the state's sex offender program. Bluestem examined the issue in Tim Miller's Prairie Correctional Facility flyer: clueless about DHS & DOC funding distinctions.

Photo: The fence at the closed private prison in Appleton, via Star Tribune.

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