Implement legislation to immediately counter extreme temperatures in Texan prisons

When you think of American prisons, you think of metal bars, walls, limited ventilation, and little access to the outside, but I would like you to also consider extreme heat. Prisoners in Lopez State Jail in Edinburg, Texas, have experienced 48 days of 100 degrees (~37 Celcius) or above! Texas Prison officials have said that sweltering heat conditions have led to 12 inmates and 21 employees suffering heat-related illnesses, although critics say the numbers are probably much higher. In the rare instance of Texan prisons having an air conditioning unit, there is little guarantee that the ventilation/cooling will be able to cover the entire building. Inmates utilize popsicles, fans, and ice water to cope with extreme temperatures that often do not even allow prisoners to be on their metal furniture. Prisoners sometimes prefer to be on the floor to get a good night's sleep because it's a reprieve from the sweltering heat. Prisoners have likened their experience in extreme heat to "living in an oven." As the Governor of Texas, I would suggest that Greg Abbott implement climate-resilient policies that optimize improved ventilation in prisoners' cells and address the psychological toll that extreme heat has on prisoners' rehabilitation processes and those who work in the prisons. In 2019, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice put a hefty $1 billion price tag on the proposed air conditioning installation in all of its uncooled prisons. Critics say this high number is used to scare people from supporting this prison policy in the deeply conservative state. However, this hotly contested debate (pun intended) has returned to the Texas legislature this year. Now, there is a surplus in Texas' state budget, where a $1 billion investment does not seem so out of reach. I think adding air conditioning to prisons will save lives by removing unnecessarily heightened heat-related tensions among prisoners, improving working conditions for officers, and it will help prisoners focus on their rehabilitation process. What do you think? I'm interested in what you have to say on this subject. Let me know what you think in the comments 👇 (My sources are in the comments too) Click here to read the New York Times Article about American prisoners in Texas dealing with extreme heat: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/26/us/texas-prisons-heat-air-conditioning.html.