(a) Authority.--The county commissioners of any two or more adjoining counties may join in establishing, according to a plan, detention facilities for the confinement of persons awaiting trial or sentence on criminal charges, convicted on criminal charges or not otherwise eligible for confinement in other county correctional institutions. (b) Preapproval of plan by department.--Before establishing detention facilities, the counties shall submit their plan to the department for approval. The department may require, as a condition to approving any plan, that two or more adjoining counties join with another adjoining county to establish detention facilities.
Pennsylvania Legal Code