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California prison closings could save more than $1 billion

The report says the population changes, coupled with closing five adult prisons and three juvenile facilities, could save the corrections system $1.5 billion a year.
Credit: AP
FILE - In this June 20, 2018 file photo , inmates pass a correctional officer as they leave an exercise yard at the California Medical Facility in Vacaville, Calif. A new report says California prisons and jails should do more to protect guards from prisoners who fling bodily fluids in so-called "gassing" attacks. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli, file)

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A new report says California, which has a declining prison population, could save more than $1 billion by closing eight lockups.

The Legislative Analyst’s Office released a report Thursday saying the state has seen a reduction in its inmate population because of early releases and other actions linked to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The report also says parole and sentencing law changes may flatten the prison population in the next few years. 

The report says the population changes, coupled with closing five adult prisons and three juvenile facilities, could save the corrections system $1.5 billion a year by 2025.

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