By Sascha Cordner
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wfsu/local-wfsu-979880.mp3
Tallahassee, FL – The massive plan to privatize the state's prisons is gaining more attention as private vendors start to bid on the 30 prison facilities in the 18 South Florida county regions. As Sascha Cordner reports, some are concerned the switch will result in a lack of oversight and a security risk.
The plan is to privatize 30 public prisons, work release centers, and road camps by a January 1st deadline set by Governor Rick Scott and the Legislature. But, the Florida Police Benevolent Association is suing the Florida Department of Corrections over the plan, citing several reasons that include lack of transparency in the private prisons and putting the public's safety at risk. But, the Department's Secretary Edwin Buss says unless the FPBA gets an injunction to stop it, he must move forward in his task to make sure things run smoothly.
"This is the most aggressive expansion, so it should be the most aggressive oversight on my part as well to make sure there aren't any instances, like escapes, that would jeopardize public safety. So, it's going to be very important that we work very closely whoever the winning bidder is, the company, make sure they have the same level of security, are offering the same evidence-based programs that we would expect from our own facilities and staff."
The privatization plan also includes health services of inmates and the correctional officers as well.
New Port Richey Senator Mike Fasano is the Chair of the Senate's Criminal and Civil Justice Appropriations subcommittee, who is against prison privatization. The Republican Senator says he at least managed to stop the privatization of probation officers outside the jail.
"Talk about a dangerous situation for the public! Because, in my opinion, privatizing our prisons, you bring a private company in, all they care about is the bottom line. That's why they're a company. That's why they trade on the New York Stock Exchange, that's why they trade on any exchange for that matter, they have stockholders, they have board members to be answerable to; therefore, they have to make a profit and by doing that, in my opinion, you put people at risk."
That goes hand-in hand with one of FPBA President John Rivera's issue with privatization.
"There's no oversight with the prisons. There's no accountability. They only have to answer to the shareholders. They don't have to answer to the Department of Corrections, they don't have to answer to the Secretary of Corrections, they don't have to answer to the Governor, they don't have to answer to Floridians, to the citizens, so, there is no, no accountability."
But, Steve Owen, Spokesman for Corrections Corporation of America, or CCA does not agree. CCA is one of the two main private vendors that already run several Florida prisons, and is one of the potential bidders. Owen says he strongly supports the idea of a public-private partnership.
"We're combining the best of both worlds. You're taking the innovation and the efficiencies of business and combining it with the oversight and accountability of Government, the two strong suits of the two and marrying those together and that ultimately benefits the taxpayers."
Owen says not only does CCA make sure to hold themselves accountable, but the Government has complete access to their facilities and can pop in at any time to do inspections.
"An official from the state of Florida can come into any of our facilities at any time to review documentation, to interview inmates, to interview staff, they provide strong oversight. They conduct audits and reviews both scheduled and unscheduled. In addition to that, we certainly do a high degree of review of our own policies and procedures internally because If you don't meet those expectations and you aren't doing a good job, that's when you're going to find yourself out of business."
Even with that argument, there are those who are not so easily convinced.
"Public safety is at risk when you cannot see the inner-workings of a prison loaded with inmates."
To Matt Puckett, FPBA's Executive Director, that's what it comes down to. He says in addition to the lack of oversight, the FPBA is adamantly opposed to privatizing prisons for that reason:
"We think it's a public safety issue to begin with. Private prisons are not monitored to the same level and degree as state run facilities as evidenced by the recent South Bay Facility, where they had a drug interdiction team approach the facility and basically, no one was home. They couldn't get a response from any of the staff. That's a problem the public should be concerned with. That's priority number one."
South Bay Correctional Facility is a prison operated by the other private vendor in Florida called GEO group, which is based in Boca Raton. On June 13th, when inspectors came to the facility, no one answered the door, after they rang the doorbell repeatedly. When questioned about what happened, GEO officials said it was a problem with the buzzer, the problem is fixed now, and the inmates at the time of the incident were alright. Corrections' Secretary Edwin Buss called the incident absurd. He adds when handling future contracts with the private company who takes over the 30 prisons, there will be proper oversight and accountability.
"The most bizarre thing about that South Bay incident is I've never heard of a correctional facility having doorbells. I can't for the likelihood get my arms around how that incident occurred, but I can assure you moving forward, we will have proper oversight over the prison and if they do happen, people will be held accountable."
Buss says his department will know who the winning bidder is sometime in November and will present that information to the Legislative Budget committee. After they sign off on it, the privatization of the 30 prisons in the South Florida region will begin.