Source: ABC 27
(WHTM)– A Pennsylvania lawmaker is proposing legislation to prohibit state and local contracts with private prison facilities and corporations in Pennsylvania.
State Representative Perry Warren (D-31) says he intends to introduce legislation to prohibit private prisons in Pennsylvania, highlighting a range of issues associated with them.
Rep. Warren argues that criminal justice is the responsibility of the U.S. government, not for-profit private entities. The memo says that 99,754 individuals were incarcerated in privately owned prisons in the U.S. in 2020, according to the Sentencing Project.
He added that private prisons have a history and are often associated with questionable behavior and poor service when compared to state-run facilities.
According to the Office of Justice Programs, private prisons are often accused of prioritizing profit over inmate well-being, which can lead to increased violence, understaffing, poorly maintained facilities, and other issues.
The memo claims that private prison companies have little incentive to rehabilitate inmates.
“While we cannot change federal law, we must take action as a state to end the privatization of corrections, prisons and immigrant detention centers at the state and local level. There is no acceptable reason for private entities to be in charge of the custody, care and rehabilitation of any incarcerated individual,” the memo says.
There are currently no private state prisons in Pennsylvania; however, there was one private county prison, the George W. Hill Correctional Facility in Delaware County, which the GEO Group operated before the county took over.
The county took over the prison’s operations in 2022 after a vote by the Delaware County Council. The council cited operational difficulties, increased violence, and understaffing as reasons for the change.
The bill has not yet been submitted for introduction.
Governor Josh Shapiro included plans to close two state-run prisons as a way to cut spending in his 2025-26 budget proposal