WASHINGTON, D.C. -- U.S. Senator Daniel K. Inouye announced today that the Senate Appropriations Committee approved $25 million for a federal detention facility adequate to address the current and future federal detention needs in Hawaii. This initiative is included in the Fiscal Year 1998 Commerce, Justice, State, and the Judiciary Appropriations Bill.

"Establishing a federal detention facility in Hawaii has been a top priority. There is presently no federal facility in Hawaii and only 50 beds available under contract with a state prison facility. Consequently, the U.S. Marshals Service is spending millions of dollars each year shuttling prisoners back and forth between Hawaii and California for pretrial and trial proceedings. This is an inefficient, costly, and potentially dangerous method of dealing with federal detainees, and one which presents significant constitutional and docketing problems for Hawaii's federal judicial system," stated Senator Inouye.

To date, $74.7 million has been appropriated for site acquisition, design and construction of the federal detention facility of 670 beds in Hawaii. The Bureau of Prisons (BOP) and the State of Hawaii have settled on the location and purchase price for the land, and are presently involved in a friendly condemnation action to transfer property ownership from the State to the BOP.

The measure will now go to the full Senate for consideration. It will then face a joint House-Senate Conference and final Senate vote before its transmittal to the White House.