Title of Regulation: 6VAC15-80. Standards for Planning, Design, Construction and Reimbursement of Local Correctional Facilities (amending 6VAC15-80-10; adding 6VAC15-80-211).

Statutory Authority: §§ 53.1-5 and 53.1-80 through 53.1-82 of the Code of Virginia.

Effective Date: September 3, 2009.

Agency Contact: Brooks Ballard, Architectural & Engineering Services, Department of Corrections, 6900 Atmore Drive, Richmond, VA 23225, telephone (804) 674-3102, FAX (804) 674-3529, or email brooks.ballard@vadoc.virginia.gov.

Summary:

The amendment allows local and regional correctional facilities to receive cost reimbursement and to define limits for required value management assessment studies that serve to keep construction costs lower while promoting quality and efficient designs. The value management assessment will analyze a project design including systems, products/materials used, quality, efficiency, functionality, long-term design, and operational needs beyond 10 years and cost.

Summary of Public Comments and Agency's Response: No public comments were received by the promulgating agency.

Part I
Introduction

Article 1
Definitions

6VAC15-80-10. Definitions.

The following words and terms, when used in this chapter, shall have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:

"Acceptable" means those applicable standards or practices with which a registered professional architect, engineer or other duly licensed or recognized authority must comply.

"ADA" means Americans with Disabilities Act.

"Administrative area" means an area of the jail dedicated to maintaining the operation of the jail facility.

"Approved type" means an item approved by the reviewing authority.

"Artificial light" means light other than natural light.

"A.S.T.M." means the American Society for Testing and Materials.

"Board" means the State Board of Corrections.

"Board standards" means Standards for Planning, Design, Construction and Reimbursement of Local Correctional Facilities, and Minimum Standards for Local Jails and Lockups.

"Building code" means the current edition of the Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code and the Virginia Statewide Fire Prevention Code.

"Capacity or design capacity" means the maximum number of general population and community custody beds for which the facility is designed and constructed based on the space requirements in these standards.

"CCTV" means closed circuit television.

"Cell" means a space the size of which is specified in these standards enclosed by secure construction containing plumbing fixtures and usually a bunk in which an inmate is detained or sleeps. Cells can be single or multiple occupancy depending upon custody level.

"Central intake unit (CIU)" means an area constructed to provide, at a minimum, space for intake, temporary holding, booking, court and juvenile (if approved for juveniles) holding, classification and release functions.

"Central control point" means the principal secure space of the entire facility in which is located the equipment and control for the safety and security of the jail through electronic equipment for surveillance, communication, fire and smoke detection, emergency functions, regulation of entrance to jail through the security perimeter and regulation of ingress and egress to cells, dayrooms, corridors and other spaces within the jail.

"Chief jailer or chief correctional officer" means that individual who is in charge of the day to day security operation of the jail within the secure perimeter.

"Chief of Operations" means the Chief of Operations for Support, Division of Community Corrections, Department of Corrections.

"Classification cell" means a cell for short term holding of inmates for purposes of classification after booking and prior to being assigned to general population or other housing.

"Climate control" means temperature appropriate to the summer and winter comfort zones.

"Community-based corrections plan" means an evaluation of trends and factors at the local or regional level affecting current and future facility needs, and the assessment of resources available to meet such needs which is used as the basis for a request for reimbursement of local correctional facility construction costs.

"Community custody" means inmates incarcerated by the judicial system and classified for involvement in local work forces; participating in work, education, and rehabilitation release; and weekend and non-consecutive sentencing.

"Contact visiting" means a space where inmate and visitor at a minimum can pass papers to one another.

"Control room or station" means a space enclosed by interior security walls, roof and floor from which a jail officer may supervise inmates and control systems in a portion of the jail, such as locks, doors, etc. from that secure location.

"Dayroom" means a secure area contiguous to an inmate sleeping (cells, rooms) area, with controlled access from the inmate sleeping area, to which inmates may be admitted for daytime activities such as dining, bathing, and selected recreation or exercise.

"Department" means the Department of Corrections.

"Direct supervision" means a specific style of management where supervisory officers intermingle with inmates in housing units rather than observing inmate activity from within secure control points. Also, within this concept, services are generally brought to the inmate rather than taking the inmate to the service.

"Dormitory" means an area designed for accommodating five or more inmates and used to house minimum custody and community custody inmates.

"Enlargement or expansion" means to add an area of new construction to an existing local correctional facility by constructing additional area or areas.

"Facility" means a jail or lockup including all associated buildings and site.

"Federal population" means prisoners being held for any federal authority in a local facility.

"General population housing" means maximum, medium, minimum and community custody housing. General population excludes special purpose cells and central intake.

"Housing unit" means a group of cells with a common dayroom.

"IMC" means intermediate metal conduit.

"Inmate housing area" means a single person cell, multi-occupancy cell, room, or group of such cells with a common dayroom (housing unit) or dormitories which provide accommodations for sleeping, approved personal effects, and personal hygiene.

"Interior security walls" means walls within but not a part of a security perimeter which are utilized to restrict movement within the secure area, including but not limited to housing units, dormitories, corridors, inmate activity areas, intake areas, and program areas.

"Life safety operations" means the function of certain electrical, mechanical and other building equipment provided for the purpose of ensuring the safety of building occupants in the case of an emergency situation.

"Light" see artificial light.

"Local correctional facility" means any jail, jail farm, or other place used for the detention or incarceration of adult offenders, excluding a lockup, which is owned, maintained, or operated by any political subdivision or combination of political subdivisions of the Commonwealth.

"Local governing body" means a governing body as defined in § 53.1-95.3 of the Code of Virginia.

"Lockup" means a facility, separate from a jail facility, operated by or for a local government for detention of persons for a short period of time.

"Maximum custody inmates" means persons who cannot be allowed to mingle physically with other inmates without close supervision, normally because of assaultive and aggressive behavior or high escape risk.

"Medium custody inmates" means those persons who require a moderate level of staff supervision and secure accommodations against escape, but who can be allowed to participate in group activities.

"Minimum custody inmates" means those inmates classified as not dangerous or likely to escape, but are of sufficient concern to require a minimum level of supervision.

"Minor renovation project" means renovation project which does not increase beds and has an estimated cost less than $200,000.

"Natural light" means daylight which must be from a direct source within the living unit.

"New construction" means to build or replace a local correctional facility.

"Office of the deputy director" means the Deputy Director, Division of Community Corrections, Department of Corrections, or his designee.

"Operating capacity" means capacity of the facility as established by the Department of Corrections.

"Overcrowding" means a facility having operated at greater than 25% over the operational capacity for at least one year exclusive of the federal prisoner population.

"Owner" means the representative from the locality or jail authority responsible for making decisions about the project.

"Owner's agent" means the persons or firm designated by a locality or jail authority to make decisions about the project.

"Per inmate or per bed" means for each general population bed.

"Regional jail" means, for purposes of state reimbursement for construction costs, those jails which meet the criteria set forth in §§ 53.1-81, 53.1-82 and 53.1-95.2 of the Code of Virginia, and jail having at least three member localities that was created (created means localities having submitted resolutions of local governing bodies or cooperative agreements) before February 1, 1993, or any jail construction project recommended for approval by the Board of Corrections as a regional jail prior to February 1, 1993.

"Renovation" means the alteration or other modification of an existing local correctional facility or piece of equipment for the purpose of modernizing or changing the use or capability of such local correctional facility or equipment.

Renovation does not include work on, repair or replacement of any part of an existing local correctional facility or equipment, which may be generally associated with normal wear and tear and included in routine maintenance. Renovation renders the facility, item or area in compliance with current board standards and superior to the original.

"Repair" means the correction of deficiencies in a local correctional facility or equipment which have either been damaged or worn by use, but which can be economically returned to service without replacement.

"Replacement" means the construction of a local correctional facility in place of a like local correctional facility or the purchasing of like equipment to replace equipment which has been so damaged or outlived its useful life that it cannot be economically renovated or repaired.

"Reviewing authority" means the department, division or agency to which the Governor has delegated authority to act in his behalf in reviewing local correctional facility construction cost estimates, plans, specifications and construction and recommends reimbursement approval. The current reviewing authority is the Department of Corrections Division of Planning and Engineering Services a representative or representatives of the Department of Corrections or the Department of Criminal Justice Services responsible for reviewing required documents, attending required meetings, and interpreting and determining compliance with 6VAC15-80.

"Room" means a cell without plumbing fixtures. Rooms are utilized when inmates have control of the individual room doors and are free to circulate from rooms to dayrooms at will.

"Routine maintenance" means the normal and usual type of repair or replacement necessary as the result of periodic maintenance inspections or normal wear and tear of a local correctional facility or equipment.

"Sally port" means a safety vestibule as a defined space that promotes security by the use of two or more interlocking doors.

"Secure" (as relates to construction) means that the walls, floors, and ceilings or roofs are constructed in accordance with the secure construction portion of these standards.

"Secure area" means all spaces of the facility which are regularly occupied by inmates, including but not limited to cells, housing units, dormitories, corridors, inmate activity areas, intake areas, counseling or treatment areas, and program areas. (See security perimeter.)

"Secure custody" means maximum, medium and minimum security levels of housing located within the perimeter of a secure building or facility.

"Secure housing" means housing for all inmates (maximum, medium and minimum) which is not classified as community custody.

"Security perimeter" means the outer limits of a jail or lockup proper where walls, floor, roof and ceiling are used to prevent egress by inmates or ingress by unauthorized persons or contraband.

"Special purpose cells" means cells within the security perimeter which may include isolation, segregation, medical, protective custody or other special use cells.

"Standards" means the Board of Corrections' Standards for Planning, Design Construction and Reimbursement of Local Correctional Facilities.

"State responsible felon population" means those with greater than two-year felony sentences in accordance with § 53.1-20 of the Code of Virginia.

"Stationary equipment" means built-in equipment or fixtures normally included in a structure at the time of construction.

"Supervision" means the act or process of performing watchful responsible care over inmates. Supervision, which ensures the safety of jail officers, requires more than casual observation or surveillance. It is an active process.

"Temporary holding cell or area" means a cell or group of cells used to hold one or more persons not to exceed 72 hours, while awaiting processing, booking, court appearance, classification or discharge, or a cell used to temporarily hold one or more persons until they can be moved to another facility or the general housing areas after booking. Cells holding more than one person are frequently referred to as group holding.

"Value management analysis (VMA)" means an analysis of facility design and construction for the purpose of satisfying required function, cost efficiency, while providing the greatest quality and efficiency for the project.

"Value management team" means a team of people, independent from the owner or the architect/engineer under contract to the owner, headed by a certified value specialist (CVS) or certified value engineer (CVE) with a combination of the following disciplines based on phase and nature of the project: architecture, engineering (civil/site/mechanical/electrical) security and cost estimating.

"Vehicular sally port" means a drive-in or drive-through made secure preferably by remotely controlled electrically operated interlocking doors for entrance and exit. It is normally located in close proximity to the facility intake area.

"Ventilation" means providing, at minimum, movement of air within the facility in accordance with requirements of the building code.

6VAC15-80-211. Value management analysis.

A. All jail projects for which reimbursement is being requested for new construction, expansion [ , ] or renovation shall have a value management analysis (VMA) performed during design. For renovation projects, a waiver may be requested from the board.

B. VMA shall be performed [ a at ] the conclusion of the design development (35%-40% complete) phases of the project. For large projects (in excess of 250 beds), it is recommended that a second phase of VMA be performed at the construction documents phase (90%-95% complete).

C. The VMA shall involve a three- to four-day exercise at the design development phase, or four to five days each at the design development and construction document phases. The first day, or portion thereof, of each analysis consists of a presentation overview by the owner and the A/E design team to the value management team. The final day or portion thereof, consists of a presentation of findings and recommendations by the value management team to the owner and A/E design team and attended by the reviewing authority.

D. The VMA process shall analyze at a minimum the following aspects of the project's design: systems, products/materials, quality, efficiency, functionality, long-term design [ , ] and operational needs (beyond 10 years) and cost.

E. The owner shall engage the services of a qualified value management team, as defined in the definitions and headed by a certified value specialist (or engineer) pursuant to the definitions. The VMA team shall be independent of the A/E design team. Cost estimators are also recommended as beneficial to the analysis, particularly for projects performing VMA at the construction documents phase.

F. The owner shall advise the reviewing authority in writing at least 15 working days in advance of the meeting dates for the VMA. A representative of the reviewing authority shall meet with the value management team at the formal presentation of results to the owner and A/E design team.

G. Upon completion of the VMA process, a summary report detailing VMA recommendations and the owner's decision on implementation of the recommendations shall be provided in writing to the reviewing authority.