Crime has many costs – not the least of which is paid by taxpayers.

It’s a lesson we have learned the hard way recently with Chautauqua County sentencing more people to spend time in jail than the jail can hold. Through mid-November, 30 inmates from Chautauqua County had been relocated to Niagara and Cattaraugus counties. County officials have agreed to jail housing agreements with Allegany, Livingston and Steuben counties as well. Boarding these inmates can cost between $50 and $80 per day – or roughly $1 million a year.

There are many reasons for the high jail population. The 2009 Rockefeller Drug Law reform eliminated some mandatory prison sentences and left those who would have been in state prison to serve their time in local jails. The state prison system is closing facilities, meaning people who would have served in state prisons serve their time locally because there are no other jails.

As we have said before, there is little local appetite right now to build a new jail or expand the current facility. Sheriff Joe Gerace said he and County Executive Vince Horrigan have talked about forming a Criminal Justice Coordinating Council to study the current jail situation and recommend solutions such as ankle bracelets, transitional housing and “day reporting,” which entails those on probation attending a school-like facility for all-day monitoring. Having a solution that works for the county means nothing if local judges aren’t on board since they are the ones who actually decide sentences. They are an essential part of the solution.

The idea of a task force is certainly not new, but for some reason the county hasn’t formed the group. The current situation in the jail is untenable. The task force should be created and begin its work before the end of January.