Emerging Issues on Privatized Prisons

U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs Bureau of Justice Assistance

Monograph

EMERGING ISSUES ON PRIVATIZED PRISONS

Bureau of Justice Assistance

U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs

810 Seventh Street NW. Washington, DC 20531

John Ashcroft Attorney General Office of Justice Programs World Wide Web Home Page ojp. Bureau of Justice Assistance World Wide Web Home Page ojp.BJA For grant and funding information contact U.S. Department of Justice Response Center 1?800?421?6770

This document was prepared by the National Council on Crime and Delinquency, under grant number 97?DD?BX?0014, awarded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance, Office of Justice Programs,U.S.Department of Justice. The opinions,findings,and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this document are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice.

The Bureau of Justice Assistance is a component of the Office of Justice Programs, which also includes the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the National Institute of Justice, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, and the Office for Victims of Crime.

Bureau of Justice Assistance

Emerging Issues on Privatized Prisons

James Austin, Ph.D. Garry Coventry, Ph.D.

National Council on Crime and Delinquency

February 2001

Monograph

NCJ 181249

Cover photo used with permission from The American Correctional Association.

Emerging Issues on Privatized Prisons

Foreword

One of the most daunting challenges confronting our criminal justice system today is the overcrowding of our nation's prisons. The past decade has witnessed a doubling of the number of adult offenders brought before our courts. According to one estimate, as we begin the new millennium, the nation's inmate population approaches the 2 million mark. Securing and humanely housing such a large population has placed an enormous burden on prison administrators as well as the federal, state, and local jurisdictions that must finance the institutional confinement of so many inmates.

In the 1980s, the public's frustration over a perceived failure of the penal system to rehabilitate offenders and a reluctance to provide more funding for correctional institutions, coupled with the increasing demand for more jail space, precipitated a crisis. One proposed solution that emerged was the privatizing of prisons and jails by contracting out, in part or in whole, their operations. In 1987, the number of inmates incarcerated in privately operated correctional facilities worldwide was 3,100; by 1998 the number had risen to 132,000. In the United States today there is a total of 158 private correctional facilities. Proponents of privatization have suggested that allowing the facilities to be operated by the private sector could result in cost reductions of 20 percent.

To explore the issues pertaining to the privatization of prisons, the Bureau of Justice Assistance funded a nationwide study that has resulted in this monograph, Emerging Issues on Privatized Prisons. The monograph examines the historical factors that gave rise to the higher incarceration rates, fueling the privatization movement, and the role played by the private sector in the prison system. It outlines the arguments, both in support of and opposition to, privatized prisons, reviews current literature on the subject, and examines issues that will have an impact on future privatizations. An appendix provides practical guidelines for policymakers who are considering privatizing a facility.

The study resulted in some interesting conclusions. For example, it was discovered that, rather than the projected 20-percent savings, the average saving from privatization was only about 1 percent, and most of that was achieved through lower labor costs. Nevertheless, there were indications that the mere prospect of privatization had a positive effect on prison administration, making it more responsive to reform. It is hoped that this monograph will prove enlightening to those involved with the issue of privatized prisons and promote a greater discussion about it.

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