Report Public Safety Realignment: Impacts So Far By Magnus Lofstrom, Brandon Martin Sep 28, 2015 Prompted by a federal court order to reduce prison overcrowding, California’s 2011 historic public safety realignment shifted many correctional responsibilities for lower-level felons from the state to counties. The reform was premised on the idea that locals can do a better job, and it was hoped that incarceration rates and corrections costs would fall. At the same time, critics predicted crime would rise. Four years since its implementation, realignment has made several important impacts: Realignment significantly reduced the prison population, but the state did not reach the court-mandated population target until after the passage of Proposition 47 in November 2014, which reduced penalties for many property and drug offenses. The reform challenged county jails and probation departments by making them responsible for a greater number of offenders with a broader range of backgrounds and needs. The county jail population did not rise nearly as much as the prison population fell, reducing the total number of people incarcerated in California. Realignment did not increase violent crime, but auto thefts rose. Research so far shows no dramatic change in recidivism rates. State corrections spending remains high, but there is reason to believe expenditures could drop in the future. Realignment has largely been successful, but the state and county correctional systems face significant challenges. The state needs to regain control of prison medical care, which is now in the hands of a federal receiver. And the state and counties together must make progress in reducing stubbornly high recidivism rates.
blog post PPIC’s Role in a Changing State By Mark Baldassare Oct 10, 2014 At PPIC we are focused on monitoring and analyzing the impact of big changes underway in California and examining other steps the state can take to meet its critical challenges.
blog post Expanding Health Insurance—to Jail Inmates By David Lesher Jun 20, 2014 At a recent event, PPIC researchers Mia Bird and Shannon McConville discussed how the federal Affordable Care Act provides an opportunity to help to lower costs and improve health conditions in local jails.
Report Health Care for California’s Jail Population By Shannon McConville, Mia Bird Jun 18, 2014 The Affordable Care Act (ACA) has created a new opportunity for California to reach and enroll a medically vulnerable population—the jail population—in health insurance coverage. While inmates receive health care services from county jail systems while incarcerated, few have coverage after they are released from custody. Expansion of the state’s Medicaid program (Medi-Cal) under the ACA has extended insurance eligibility to much of the currently uninsured jail population. As a complement to the ACA, California recently signed into law Assembly Bill 720 (AB 720), which facilitates the use of jails as sites of health insurance enrollment. Increasing enrollment levels for the jail population holds the potential to reduce corrections costs, as well as improve public health and safety.
Report Public Safety Realignment and Crime Rates in California By Steven Raphael, Magnus Lofstrom Dec 10, 2013 Public safety realignment substantially reduced the state’s prison population. Between 2011 and 2012, property crime increased in California as a result of this policy change. Auto theft increased most dramatically, by 14.8 percent—or about 24,000 per year. By contrast, violent crime rates did not appear to be affected. This research was supported with funding from the Smith Richardson Foundation.
