By Ethan Faverino |
State Representative Walt Blackman (R-LD7) is asking the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation, and Reentry (ADCRR) to provide records detailing cooling system failures reported at correctional facilities in Arizona throughout August.
Blackman, who chairs the Arizona House Government Committee, said he plans to review the outages to determine which prison facilities experienced cooling failures, how long the systems were offline, and how the conditions affected correctional officers, employees, and inmates.
The review will also examine the cost of emergency repairs and whether continuing to maintain aging cooling systems is the most cost-effective option for taxpayers.
“Arizona’s prisons must remain safe, secure and operational through the summer,” stated Blackman. “Correctional officers should not be working in dangerous temperatures because critical equipment is failing, and taxpayers should not be repeatedly paying for emergency repairs without knowing whether there is a better long-term solution. Before we consider additional spending or legislative action, I want the facts.”
Blackman intends to request information covering August 1 through August 31, including records of cooling system outages, affected facilities, the duration of outages, temperature readings, and emergency cooling measures implemented by ADCRR.
The request will also seek maintenance requests, work orders, and repair costs, as well as information about any heat-related impacts on correctional officers, employees, and inmates.
Blackman is specifically seeking information about any medical incidents or inmate relocations resulting from excessive heat. The review will also include conditions at the Lewis Prison Complex, including the Bachman, Barchey, and Stiner units.
Another focus will be the age and expected service life of existing cooling equipment. Blackman said he wants to compare the projected cost of continuing to repair aging systems with the potential cost of replacing or modernizing them.
ADCRR has an extreme heat strategy in place for the 2026 summer season that calls for regular temperature monitoring, additional checks of HVAC performance, and the use of temporary cooling equipment when air-conditioning systems become inoperable.
The department’s strategy also provides for portable fans, ice, air-conditioned cooling centers, and increased health monitoring in heat-affected areas.
Blackman said the information he receives from ADCRR will help determine whether the department’s current maintenance practices are adequately protecting employees and inmates and whether continued repairs to aging equipment remain the most cost-effective approach.
“Our correctional officers perform one of the toughest public-safety jobs in state government, and they deserve facilities where they can safely do their jobs,” said Blackman. “Conservative government means taking care of the infrastructure taxpayers already own and making sound decisions before small problems become expensive emergencies. If we are spending substantial sums every summer repairing the same aging equipment, we need to know that. If replacement would save money over the long term, we need those numbers too.”
The records will help shape Blackman’s next steps, depending on what the review finds. He said the legislature could consider additional oversight, hearings, budget discussions, or changes to how the state approaches maintenance and replacement of aging prison infrastructure.
Ethan Faverino is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
