AVONDALE - Prisoners in orange jumpsuits could soon be washing city vehicles, picking up trash and cleaning graffiti in city parks.

The city is looking to contract with the state Department of Corrections to have prison work crews from the nearby Arizona State Prison Complex-Perryville perform basic labor in hopes of saving up to $10,000 a month.

City Councilman Al Carroll said he believes taking advantage of prison labor could be a big benefit to the city.

He said he would even like to see convicts dispatched to do cleanup work in the Gila River bed.

The DOC program charges 50 cents an hour per prisoner, and the agency provides a supervisor to oversee the work crew.

Putting prisoners in charge of washing city vehicles would cost about $80 a month, the city estimates, well short of the $1,281 a month it costs to have city employees do the work.

Using prisoners for park-maintenance work, such as cleaning bleachers and restrooms, picking up trash and covering graffiti, would cost about $480 a month. Using city employees for that work costs about $12,516.

Buckeye, Surprise, the state fairgrounds and the Arizona Department of Transportation use prison labor, and Avondale Assistant City Manager Charlie McClendon said those agencies have never reported any trouble.

Still, Mayor Ron Drake said he wanted to hold at least one public meeting to present the idea to residents to ensure there were no major objections. That meeting has not yet been scheduled.