DOC pushes emergency academy as staffing crisis deepens

The Department of Corrections is pushing for an Emergency Corrections Academy to beef up its depleted ranks, with Commissioner Anthony Torres telling lawmakers that chronic understaffing has left officers working extended shifts and DOC spending more than $1 million a year on overtime.

Torres told the House Standing Committee on Ways and Means last Aug. 26 that DOC needs legislative support to get the academy going and hire 30 new correctional officers, although he said the department actually needs closer to 40.

“I’m going to use the number 30. I know in that request it’s 20, but I’m going to use the number 30, and I’m actually, I’m going to use it 30 for this, but the reality is I need 40,” Torres said.

The proposed officers would start at about $25,000 annually.

Torres said DOC has long operated with inadequate sworn staffing for its responsibilities, which include adult incarceration, juvenile detention, facility security, medical and medication administration, transportation, and court runs.

He said officers routinely work 12- to 16-hour shifts, six days a week, with limited or no days off.

“This has produced chronic overtime. Let me repeat that, chronic overtime,” Torres said.

According to Torres, overtime has averaged between $30,000 and $50,000 per pay period and can exceed $1 million annually when sustained.

He told lawmakers that hiring 30 officers at starting salaries of about $25,000 would amount to $750,000 in base annual payroll before benefits and other personnel costs. His argument is that putting more officers on regular salaries would be more sustainable than continuing to pay premium overtime to an already stretched workforce.

“The Commonwealth pays a premium rate for fatigued labor rather than regular rates for rested, fully staffed shifts,” Torres said.

Torres said the Emergency Corrections Academy is needed because other training options cannot meet DOC’s immediate timetable.

“We don’t have that. I need to start this now, today, not tomorrow,” he said.

The extent of DOC’s manpower problem became clearer later in the hearing when Torres told lawmakers that the department currently has 81 employees, including 71 sworn officers. That compares with 124 total employees when he became commissioner in February 2023.

Torres said employee retention remains a major challenge, with DOC losing personnel through resignations and removals, while others have left for better opportunities and higher pay. He also said some full-time equivalent positions had been zeroed out.

“It’s a crisis,” Torres admitted.

DOC, however, already has prospective recruits in the pipeline.

Torres said about 90 people applied, roughly 48 passed the process, and DOC selected candidates after interviews, physical assessments, and other screening.

He said he had hoped to start the academy in September, but the process could slip into October as the government moves into fiscal year 2027.

“If I could do it next week, I’ll start next week,” Torres said.

Torres also warned lawmakers that prolonged understaffing increases the risks of officer burnout, turnover, errors, security problems, and potential liability for the Commonwealth. He said the shortage could also force DOC to redirect personnel from outreach and other programs to maintain adequate coverage at the correctional facility.

DOC was not the only agency that came before Ways and Means seeking help filling a needed position.

Bureau of Environmental and Coastal Quality Administrator Floyd Masga told lawmakers that BECQ currently has no dedicated litter-control officer despite continuing problems with illegal dumping and littering around the islands.

He said the position became vacant after the employee who previously occupied it transferred to federally funded work. BECQ later learned that local funding remained available and began trying to fill the vacancy.

He said federal money supporting other BECQ programs cannot simply be tapped for the position because litter enforcement is considered a local government responsibility.

In the meantime, Masga said he has personally responded to illegal dumping complaints, conducted investigations, and implemented fines while BECQ operates without a dedicated litter-control officer.

CNMI Officer of Veterans Affairs director Jose Crisostomo likewise asked lawmakers to allow his office to replace a grounds-maintenance worker at the CNMI Veterans Cemetery in Marpi.

Crisostomo said the cemetery has two maintenance positions, but one employee resigned around May, leaving one worker to help maintain the facility.

“It’s not enough for one person to do a daily operation,” Crisostomo said.

Although the veterans cemetery was constructed through a federal grant, Crisostomo said responsibility for its ongoing operations and maintenance rests with the CNMI government.

The requested grounds-maintenance position carries an annual salary of about $29,000, according to the committee discussion.

Crisostomo said Veterans Affairs began the process of replacing the employee after the resignation but was subsequently informed that legislative authorization through a joint resolution was required before it could proceed.

The DOC, BECQ, and Veterans Affairs requests came before Ways and Means under provisions of the current fiscal year budget law requiring joint House and Senate approval before certain vacant positions can be filled.