By The Vanguard Staff
SACRAMENTO, CA – California—facing a billion-dollar budget crisis—may soon close some state prisons, and consolidate others, per legislation approved Tuesday by the State Assembly, according to a statement issued by Californians United for a Responsible Budget (CURB).
The Assembly passed AB 2178, authored by Assemblymember Phil Ting (D-SF), which CURB explains, “sets a threshold of how many empty beds the state can have, paving the way to consolidating – even closing – some prisons, while promoting fiscal responsibility and enhancing community safety.”
CURB maintains the measure, which now heads to the Senate for an OK, “could save billions of dollars in prison costs.”
“AB 2178 is a sensible step toward reducing surplus capacity at CDCR. That money should be reallocated to vital social programs that have faced devastating cuts,” said Brian Kaneda, deputy director of CURB, one of 120 organizations supporting the bill.
“The passage of my legislation comes at a crucial time, as California grapples with severe budget constraints. It’s fiscally irresponsible to maintain such high levels of unused prison beds at taxpayer expense when schools, social safety net programs, transportation and other priorities are on line,” said Ting.
CURB, in a statement, wrote, “As a result of a declining prison population over the last decade, there are currently 15,000 state prison beds going unused, incurring unnecessary staff and maintenance costs,” citing a Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) estimate that “our state could save $1 billion annually by closing five prisons and up to an additional $2 billion in capital cost savings.”
AB 2178, said CURB, “proposes a gradual approach to reducing the empty bed buffer to 2,500 beds. In urgent cases, the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) Secretary can ask the Legislature to temporarily increase the empty bed count.
“This measure also addresses the disproportionate growth in CDCR’s budget, which has escalated from about $10 billion a year to approximately $15 billion in recent years, despite a more than 40 percent drop in the number of people incarcerated.”
CURB added, “Consolidation and closures of facilities aim to optimize state spending and improve Corrections management – a course of action the state of New York has successfully taken and can be replicated in California without risk to public safety.”
