In a proposal deemed long overdue to prison reform activists, the California Legislature passed AB 32 with the aim of eliminating all private prisons, including ICE detention centers, in California by no later than 2028.
Quote (California Globe)
Assembly Bill 32. Under the bill, all contracts with private or for-profit prisons in California would end, effectively making California responsible for incarcerating all it’s prisoners in state-run prisons. A lone exception was added, allowing a contract renewal only if there is a court-ordered population cap, and only until 2028.
All four ICE detention centers in California would also close, and be phased out in the state by 2028, as they are privately run. In June, Assemblyman Rob Bonta added significant amendments to AB 32, to expand the scope of the bill to include the ICE detention facilities.
While the 4,000 prisoners currently in private prisons would be transferred to other state prisons, it’s unknown what would happen to the immigrants currently held in ICE detention centers.
Quote (SF Chronicle)
California has been paying for beds at private prisons for three decades to deal with an overflow of inmates that once reached twice what its own state prisons were designed to hold. It increased its dependence on private lockups after a federal court ruled in 2009 that the state was violating inmates’ constitutional rights by packing them into overcrowded facilities. The court told California to reduce the prison population to 137.5 percent of the intended capacity.
AB32 would prevent the state from entering into or renewing a contract with a private prison company after Jan. 1, 2020. California currently has agreements, costing taxpayers $60 million a year, to house inmates in four prisons in Kern and San Bernardino counties run by the Florida-based GEO Group through 2023.
Those opposed to this measure have concerns about potential conflict with the federal government when it comes to housing immigrant inmates, the ability to meet population caps, and the total cost to taxpayers.
Quote (SF Chronicle)
Opponents of AB32 include the California State Sheriffs’ Association, which represents the sheriffs that oversee local jails. They contend that the bill would remove a key tool for complying with the prison population cap, potentially requiring the state to redirect more dangerous inmates from prison facilities to county jails.
The measure would also likely cost California more than $100 million annually, as the average cost of keeping an inmate in a state prison has ballooned more than twice that of a private facility.
https://californiaglobe.com/section-2/recap-ab-32-will-shut-down-the-private-prison-industry-in-california/https://www.sfchronicle.com/politics/article/Legislature-votes-to-ban-private-prisons-sends-14432505.php?psid=nKpww