State Sen. Dan Stec (R-Queensbury) recently criticized the state’s exploration of constructing a new 3,000-bed correctional facility.
“Given the governor’s commitment to shutting down correctional facilities across New York State, news that OGS is organizing a study for the construction of a new 3,000-bed correctional facility is a shock,” Stec said in a news release on Friday afternoon.
Melissa Seale, his Democratic challenger in the November election, said Stec is being too hasty in his criticism.
“Putting the blame on the governor and complaining does not help our corrections officers. It is time to come up with a system that meets the needs of both corrections officers and prisoners so that we facilitate creating an environment that is safe and rehabilitative,” Seale said, in a statement on Saturday.
The state Office of General Services is seeking proposals to design and construct such a prison at a yet-to-be-determined location.
“We are in the early stages of exploring what a modern facility could look like, focusing on incorporating modern technology and spaces built specifically for rehabilitative and reintegrative programming,” said Thomas Mailey, a spokesman for the state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision. “Modernizing our facility-wide technology would improve safety for both staff and incarcerated individuals while allowing us to phase out inefficient, paper-based systems. Beyond infrastructure, new facilities present an opportunity to elevate the work of our security and civilian professionals and drive meaningful culture change across the system.”
Mailey emphasized that no decision has been made to actually construct such a facility.
“This is strictly a conceptual exploration, and no decisions have been made,” he said. “Should any plans move forward, we will fully engage the Legislature, labor unions, and key stakeholders.”
Stec said the study is unnecessary, given the number of closed correctional facilities that could be reopened.
“Instead of commissioning a study, there are two better options,” Stec said.
“First, it’s beyond time to take action that protects correction officers. Enacting common sense safety reforms like repealing HALT and cracking down on contraband would help address the staffing crisis.”
The Humane Alternatives to Long-Term Solitary Confinement Act, commonly known as the HALT Act, which took effect April 1, 2022, limits long-term solitary confinement to 15 days, the maximum duration under a United Nations standard, and allows solitary confinement to be served in traditional cells, among other changes in procedures.
Stec has been pushing since 2022 to repeal the law.
“After that,” Stec continued in his news release, “the governor and DOCCS should look at the recent closures they pushed for. Instead of constructing a costly new facility, reopen the recently shuttered facilities that are in good condition and should never have been closed to begin with.”
Seale said it may be more practical and cost effective to construct a new correctional facility rather than reopen facilities that have been closed.
“It should be viewed as an opportunity to address decades of aging infrastructure, deteriorating facilities, staffing challenges, and the changing operational needs of the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision,” she said. “New York’s correctional system cannot be expected to operate safely and efficiently forever in facilities that were designed for a different era.”
Stec has been among the most vocal state legislators about staffing shortages and safety conditions for correction officers.
He supported correction officers during their wildcat strike in 2025.
The New York State Correction Officers Police Benevolent Association, which represents state correction officers, has endorsed his reelection bid.
It is thought that Stec’s support for correction officers was a factor in the New York AFL-CIO endorsing his reelection bid.
“Just as important as the state’s mismanagement of dormant correctional facilities, is its self-created officer staffing crisis,” Stec said, in his news release. “DOCCS data has shown that officer enrollment has dropped from 14,334 in September 2024 to 11,113 as of this month. Given the governor and DOCCS’ continued refusal to take officer safety seriously, New York State is struggling to secure currently open correctional facilities.”
Seale said that concerns about staffing shortages and safety are real.
“The senator is correct that correctional officer staffing is a serious concern. But that reality strengthens, rather than undermines, the case for evaluating a new facility,” she said. “A modern correctional institution should be designed around the safety and working conditions of correctional officers, with updated security systems, improved sightlines, modern housing units, better medical and mental-health spaces, and infrastructure that reduces the burdens placed on staff.”
Stec reiterated that the state has been negligent by not selling or reusing correctional facilities that were closed.
“In recent years and in defiance of all logic, New York State has closed down correctional facilities in the 45th Senate District and statewide,” he said. “Many of these have been allowed to deteriorate into appalling, unsafe conditions. Given this shoddy track record of ownership, the governor and state officials should address their culpability in allowing sites that were once crucial sources of jobs and economic revenue to become blights on their home communities.”
Seale said it is not a forgone conclusion that the study will recommend constructing a new facility.
“Most importantly, commissioning a study is not a commitment to spend billions of dollars. It is an opportunity to gather facts before making a major infrastructure decision. The responsible approach is to determine what New York’s correctional system will require over the next several decades, compare the cost of constructing a modern facility with the cost of renovating and maintaining aging facilities, and then make a decision based on evidence rather than nostalgia for institutions that have already closed,” she said. “New York should not build a new facility simply for the sake of building one. But neither should the state reject the idea simply because some elected officials oppose it.”
Seale, of Glens Falls, a nurse practitioner who specializes in pediatric psychiatry, is the Democratic challenger to Stec, a three-term Republican incumbent.