Inmates at the Island County jail will no longer get fresh-and-warm-out-of-the-oven breakfast under a proposed new contract with a food vendor

Jose Briones, the jail commander, discussed the jail food service contract with Island County commissioners during a work session last week and offered options for dealing with a cost hike. He explained that Summit Food Services asked for a contract increase of 44% next year.

The options, Briones explained, include paying the total increase or going to a cold breakfast option, which would only mean a 22% cost hike. The inmates would still get hot lunch and dinner under the option. He said the cost savings would come from the jail kitchen being open just eight hours a day instead of 12.

With a cold breakfast, Briones said, inmates would receive a sack of food that was prepared previously. He said the amount of calories would be the same, and the menus would still be approved by a dietitian. A cold breakfast might include cold cereal, milk, hard boiled eggs, pieces of fruit or muffins, Briones explained.

“It’s just like if you were to grab a piece of fruit, cold cereal and yogurt in the morning versus eggs and bacon,” he said.

A third option, he said, is for a county-managed food program, which he estimated would only amount to a 9% increase.

According to Briones, the current average daily population at the jail is 45 inmates. Under the current contract, the price per meal is $6.12. The 2025 budget for inmate food is $241,000.

The commissioners were interested in learning more about a county-managed program but decided to look into the details next year. For now, two of the three commissioners said it made sense to move forward with the cold breakfast alternative.

Commissioner Jill Johnson, the sole Republican, was adamantly against the idea, even though she admitted she doesn’t eat breakfast. In fact, Commissioner Melanie Bacon polled everyone in the meeting room, and only two people said they had hot breakfast that morning.

Still, Johnson argued that people in the jail don’t have a lot to do and look forward to meals. She pointed out that the board approved additional staff members and spending during the ongoing budget process. She said she was willing to get rid of some of those positions so the county could afford the extra $108,000 a year for hot breakfast.

“We have an existing responsibility to this population. We don’t have a responsibility to provide the prosecutor with an investigator, but we did that,” she said, referring to a new position.

Exasperated, Bacon said they are still going to feed inmates 2,600 calories a day.

“They get a hot lunch. They get a hot dinner,” Bacon said.

Johnson was undeterred.

“Why don’t we just give them bread and water?” she asked, earning an “Oh jeez” from Bacon.

Briones attempted to discuss the matter further, but Johnson cut him off, saying she was allowed to have a difference of opinion.

“I’m just a no,” she said. “I have a different value structure than my colleagues. They are voting to save the money. I’m voting for our responsibilities.”

In an interview afterward, Briones said Summit Food Services provides food and management of the program, as well as employees to supervise inmate workers who cook meals in the jail kitchen. Inmate workers aren’t paid, Briones said, but earn such perks as extra food and more time on electronic tablets. Perhaps more importantly, they get out of their cells and stay busy.

Briones is proud of the quality of food in the jail. In fact, he used to be part of an informal food-related contest between leaders at other jails in the state. They would share photos of trays of jail food and decide which looks best. He said the friendly rivalry ended because everyone got tired of him winning.

Some of the most popular meals at the jail, he said, include hot dogs, hamburgers, garlic muffins and meatballs.

“There’s nothing I wouldn’t eat,” Briones said.