California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation:
Inmates Sentenced Under the Three Strikes Law and a Small Number of Inmates Receiving Specialty Health Care Represent Significant Costs
HIGHLIGHTS
Our review of California's increasing prison cost as a proportion of the state budget and California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation's (Corrections) operations revealed the following:
- Inmates incarcerated under the three strikes law (striker inmates):
- Make up 25 percent of the inmate population as of April 2009.
- Receive sentences that are, on average, nine years longer-resulting in about $19.2 billion in additional costs over the duration of their incarceration.
- Include many individuals currently convicted for an offense that is not a strike, were convicted of committing multiple serious or violent offenses on the same day, and some that committed strikeable offenses as a juvenile.
- Inmate health care costs are significant to the cost of housing inmates. In fiscal year 2007-08, $529 million was incurred for contracted services by specialty health care providers. Additionally:
- 30 percent of the inmates receiving such care cost more than $427 million.
- The costs for the remaining 70 percent averaged just over $1,000 per inmate.
- The costs for those inmates who died during the last quarter ranged from $150 for one inmate to more than $1 million for anotherCalifornia Corrections Report
