Welcome to the Muscogee County Prison Website.

For more than 145 years, the Muscogee County Government (now the Columbus Consolidated Government) has operated a work prison. Our name has changed over the years, but our core mission has remained the same, "Justice and service to the community", which exhibits the fact that we protect our citizens from prisoners, and require those prisoners to work in the service of our community.

In March 1997, we completed the move into our present facility, which is leased to the Columbus Consolidated Government.

Within 60 to 90 days our organization grew from 32 positions to 115, and our inmate capacity grew 106%, with full population being realized in November 1997. We are contracted to hold 528 state inmates and have reserved 48 beds for county inmates who have been sentenced to short terms of imprisonment. While the county sheriff or the local courts do not operate the prison, we do work closely with both entities in the administration of justice.
 

The most compelling reasons for our existence are revenue and custody of State and County offenders. While we generate and save Columbus a tremendous amount of money, we also keep convicted felons off our streets. The lowest paid city employee salary is over $24,000 per year with benefits.
 

Each day we dispatch about 425 inmates for outside work detail and, around 150 inmates remain inside our facility to provide services and to maintain City property. Our outside details augment the City's work force in maintaining infrastructures and providing services.
 

Replacing these 425 inmates with regular city employees, at G2 pay scale plus benefits, would cost the Columbus Consolidated Government more than $10.2 million dollars annually! Indeed a great cost savings to the community.
 

The inmate subsidy paid to Muscogee County Prison by the State of Georgia is $20 per inmate per day. Based on 528 state inmates, our inmate subsidy receipts should reach more than $3.8 million dollars per year which is deposited into the Columbus Consolidated Government's general fund. Also, we provide inmates the opportunity to earn their GED, as well as "On The Job" (OJT) training, to help prepare them to return to society as productive citizens. These are some of the many reasons Muscogee County Prison plays a vital role in the future of our community.
  

Mission Statement:

• To protect the public through effective control and custody of inmates.
• To provide effective methods of self-improvement for inmates.
• To provide a safe and professional work environment for our staff.