INMATE LABOR The 1975 General Assembly enacted legislation G.S. 148-26(b), which stated that as many minimum custody prisoners as are available and fit shall be employed in the maintenance and construction of public roads of the state. The 1977 General Assembly revised the legislation to include medium custody prisoners. Since July 1, 1975 the Departments of Transportation and Correction have annually entered into agreements covering the use of inmate labor for highway maintenance and construction activities. The agreement provides for approximately 1,072 minimum and 1,224 medium custody inmates daily and the Department of Transportation reimburses the Department of Correction in accordance with current legislation for minimum and medium custody inmates. Minimum custody inmates are supervised by DOT employees, certified by DOC to work inmates, and are used in all types of maintenance and construction activities from cleaning out pipes, asphalt patching, litter pickup, to vegetation maintenance. The inmates are used in either all inmate crews or integrated with regular maintenance crews. Medium custody inmates are worked and supervised by armed correctional officers. The crew may range from 8 to 12 inmates and perform manual labor maintenance activities. Approximately 80% of their time is spent on litter pickup, and the remaining 20% is spent on miscellaneous road maintenance activities. CONTACT: Scott Capps or Emily McGraw at (919) 733-3725