The City of New Orleans has agreed to provide an additional $6.2 million in funding for the Orleans Parish Prison raising total funding by the city this year to nearly $51 million.
City officials agreed to the 14% increase after the court-appointed jail administrator, Gary Maynard, presented a plan to control costs at the facility.
His spending plan calls for construction of a new building to house 89 inmates with mental or physical health issues.
Mayor Mitch Landrieu commended Maynard for presenting "a comprehensive and detailed budget for approval."
"My administration has made requests for years to right-size the jail and make sure its budget is a balanced. It is a big deal that we have now forced major changes to occur," Landrieu said.
"While this has been a long, tough and, at times, contentious process, it will no doubt lead to cost savings for our taxpayers<' Landrieu added.