SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California will no longer use for-profit, private detention facilities, including those under contract to the federal government to hold immigrants awaiting deportation hearings beginning in 2020.
Gov. Gavin Newsom said the ban on for-profit prisons helps fulfills a campaign promise when he argued for-private prisons contributed to over-incarceration and does "not reflect our values."
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Summary:
Current law:
The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation could enter into a contract with private prisons to house inmates in or out of the state.
The current law also allows the department to enter into an agreement to send prisoners to community correctional centers.
What's new:
California's Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation would no longer be able to either enter or renew a contract with a private, for-profit prison after Jan. 1 2020.
However, the department would be able to renew contracts in order to comply with the court-ordered population cap until 2028.
Why it's needed:
"I vowed to end private prisons, because they contribute to over-incarceration, including those that incarcerate California inmates and those that detain immigrants and asylum seekers," Newsom said.
Assemblymember Rob Bonta, who wrote the law, said the legislation would send a message that California would not profit off those who are in prison.
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