Statement of Norman A Carlson Before the House Subcommittee on Courts, Civil Liberties and the Administration of Justice Committee on the Judiciary Concerning Prison Privatization on March 18, 1986

• NCJ Number: 101302
• Author(s): N A Carlson
• Date Published: 1986
• Length: 11 pages
• Sale Source: National Institute of Justice/; NCJRS Photocopy Services
• Publication Type: Legislative Hearing/Committee Report
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

In this statement before the House subcommittee on Courts, Civil Liberties, and the Administration of Justice, Norman A. Carlson presents the Bureau of Prison's views on privatization.

Abstract

The Bureau's experiences with two facilities, one for youthful offenders, the other for illegal aliens, operated by private contractors have been essentially positive. However, some legal, cost, quality, and philosophical issues need to be resolved before considering the widespread use of contracts as a primary alternative for housing the typical Federal inmate. These relate to the legal authority to contract for an entire facility, inmates' rights to bring suit against the Government for violations by private concerns, difficulty in comparing private- versus public-sector costs and in assessing quality of services, and the appropriateness of turning administrative responsibility for imprisonment over to private parties. While the Bureau's relationships with private providers of correctional services generally have been positive in those areas where highly specialized services or flexible responses were needed for lower security inmates, wider use of privatization will require careful monitoring and attention to cost, quality, and related issues.