‘Gut-punch to our area.’ Local officials react to closure of Rockview state prison
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Pennsylvania prison closures
Gov. Josh Shapiro’s administration has announced that it will move forward with a proposal to close Rockview state prison and Quehanna Boot Camp. The move is aimed at saving tens of millions of dollars but will affect the lives of hundreds of workers in central Pennsylvania, as well as the local economy.
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After Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro’s administration announced Wednesday it would move forward with a proposal to close Rockview state prison and Quehanna Boot Camp, locally elected officials are speaking out against the decision.
Centre County Commissioners said in a press release they’re among those who disagree with closing the facilities. Chair Mark Higgins said the closures will be detrimental to the employees, their families and those returning to society who rely on having their families close and have strong ties to local programs and services.
Commissioner Amber Concepcion added both places play a vital role in public safety, rehabilitation and local economic stability.
“This decision makes the meaningful and already-difficult work of rehabilitation all the more difficult. I am worried about the impacts,” Concepcion said. “We received numerous heartfelt letters from staff and inmates at both facilities, all of whom wanted their respective facilities to remain open.”
The state Department of Corrections published a final report Wednesday that recommended the closure of both facilities, and a formal decision is expected to be announced by the end of the week.
The proposal to close Rockview was first announced in February, saying it would save the state tens of millions of dollars. Since then, a bipartisan group of state lawmakers and other officials and stakeholders have urged the state to reconsider, pointing to impact on employees, inmates and the county’s economy.
What exactly the economic impact will be is unknown. But Greg Scott, president and CEO of the Chamber of Business and Industry of Centre County, said in a written statement the closure has a significant impact on both Centre and Clearfield counties — especially the hundreds of employees, families and local businesses connected to the facilities.
In a statement, Michael Ohler, president of the Pennsylvania State Corrections Officers Association, questioned the timing of the decision.
“As the budget continues to be negotiated the timing of this decision makes no sense,” he wrote. “These closures were pitched as a way to save the commonwealth money, but taxpayers are still conservatively spending well north of $150 million on properties that have already been closed but haven’t been repurposed. The department is more interested in playing budget games than focusing on the safety and quality of life of our brave corrections officers and staff.”
Ohler said closing Quehanna “makes even less sense” as it has the lowest recidivism rate in the state prison system.
The district of state Rep. Paul Takac, D-College Township, includes Rockview state prison. He has long been against the proposed closure and held his own forums to hear from the public on the matter. In a statement he said he is “bitterly disappointed” in the “misguided and harmful decision,” and will continue to fight for the community.
He said Democrats and Republicans alike have openly discussed the potential harm that could be caused by the closures, and spoke with the Shapiro administration about it as recently as last week.
“Unfortunately, those arguments fell on deaf ears, and we are left with this misguided decision made by out-of-touch bureaucrats in Harrisburg who failed to meaningfully engage with the public beyond minimum requirements and who did not even care to visit the facilities before recommending their closure,” Takac said. “Despite this announcement, I continue to urge Corrections Secretary Laurel Harry and Governor Shapiro to reverse course and to keep Rockview and Quehanna open. I also continue to insist that the DOC does everything possible to provide help and support for all affected employees and their families, as well as those incarcerated there.”
If the administration does not reverse course, he said the closures need to be done in a way to help the community and without causing more harm. The closure process and divesting of the land needs to be open and transparent, and without “backroom sweetheart deals” or failure to receive fair value or compensation for land transfers or sales, he said.
State Sen. Cris Dush, R-Brookville — another advocate for keeping the facilities open — said his most immediate concern is for the families involved. Dush wondered aloud whether employees with children might be forced to decide between traveling farther for work or finding a lower-paying job in the area. Or maybe, with a move, children might be forced to change schools in the middle of an academic year.
“All those factors, those are my biggest concerns,” Dush said during a phone interview. “I worked with some of these people before, when I was in the department, and I know it’s going to be challenging for a lot of folks.”
For those incarcerated at the facilities, Dush said he’s concerned they’ll be transferred to an institution that does not provide the same technical training that Rockview has or doesn’t emphasize and support getting GEDs the way Rockview does.
“My concern is we may end up seeing an increase in recidivism rates simply because two of the best performing institutions in the Commonwealth are no longer going to be there serving those inmates,” he said.
State Sen. Wayne Langerholc, R-Richland Township, alongside state Reps. Dallas Kephart, R-Clearfield County, and Mike Armanini, R-Clearfield/Elk, issued a statement criticizing the closure.
“I would strongly recommend that the Secretary not adopt this closure,” Langerholc said.
Rep. Scott Conklin, D-Rush Township, questioned the decision as well.
“This decision is a gut-punch to our area. Rockview and Quehanna are both professionally operated by dedicated officers and staff, most of whom are our friends, neighbors, and family,” he said in a written statement. “Although these facilities are outside of my district, I worked in a bipartisan manner in the fight to save these institutions. Based on the reports I reviewed, which gave Rockview and Quehanna high marks, this decision makes absolutely no sense. I stand ready to support my colleagues, the corrections officers, staff, and their families in the difficult days ahead.”
Rep. Kerry Benninghoff, R-Bellefonte, said during a phone interview he was not surprised with the decision but was frustrated with the drawn-out process. The Shapiro administration previously said it expected to make its decision known by the end of May, but that was delayed by months.
“I got the feeling even at the public hearing in May, this was a pre-drawn conclusion,” Benninghoff said. “They can say what they want, I’m not here to argue with the administration but the dragging this thing out as long as it has, I feel has really caused some undue frustration with staff not knowing whether they’re going to be employed now, scrambling to figure out where they’re going to be.”
Although the DOC has said all affected employees are guaranteed a job offer at their existing pay and classification within 67 miles of Rockview or Quehanna, Benninghoff is concerned that some employees may have to travel more for work.
He also called for more transparency and openness once the closure process gets underway. As far as what happens to the land, Benninghoff said he doesn’t think a lot of it will get sold off like some think. There’s a lot of functional use and coexistent use with the neighboring Benner state prison, he said.
“I would tell people to keep their jets cool for a little bit on what’s going to happen with the disposition of the property, if any. Because, again, that goes to a whole different department, under Department General Services, and they all have their own complicated procedures,” he said. “Keeping in mind, we’re already sitting on three (closed) prisons, at least, I think, Pittsburgh, Graterford and Retreat. And, you know, there’s some logistic reasons, but nonetheless, it still costs you money to maintain them, whether you have inmates in them or not.”
This story was originally published September 17, 2025 at 7:29 PM.
