Former state senator named to corrections board
Former state Sen. William S. "Bill" Jackson, of Appling, has been appointed to serve on the state Board of Corrections by Gov. Sonny Perdue.
Ex-state Sen. Bill Jackson, at his Appling home in 2002, has been appointed to a five-year term as an at-large member of the Georgia Board of Corrections, spokeswoman Peggy Chapman said.
Photo by Jim Blaylock
Jackson's appointment to the board is for a term of five years, Board of Corrections spokeswoman Peggy Chapman said.
The former Republican senator, who served in that capacity for 16 years, will be an at-large member of the board that oversees and administers the state's Department of Corrections. The board meets monthly to review the policies of the corrections department and approve new rules if needed, Chapman said.
There are 16 members on the board of corrections. Eleven of the 16 represent a specific district, and five serve as members-at-large, representing the entire state, Chapman said.
Jackson is filling a vacancy on the board as a member-at-large.
"Bill Jackson's history as a public servant distinguished him as an excellent candidate to join the Board of Corrections," said Heather Hedrick, a spokeswoman for the governor.
"His sixteen years as a member of the General Assembly and four years as chairman of the Columbia County Board of Education gave him the perspective and experience to contribute as a board member, overseeing one of the state's largest state agencies," Hedrick said.
The state of Georgia currently houses 48,628 adult prisoners and monitors 139,715 adults sentenced to probation and 22,977 adult parolees, according to the Department of Corrections Web site.
The department directly controls 37 state prisons, in addition to halfway houses, inmate boot camps and 120 probation offices, according to their Web site.
Jackson was a member of the first elected school board in Columbia County in 1968. He retired from public service in 2002.
Numerous telephone messages at Jackson's home and office were not returned.