Myths vs. Reality in Private Corrections: The Truth Behind the Criticism
Since its founding in 1983, CCA and the private corrections industry it founded has experienced its share of criticism and scrutiny,
primarily from special interest groups and opponents of public-private partnerships. The fact is that the corrections industry, including publicly and privately managed institutions, has been and will always be a controversial and highly regulated one.  Such
an environment, however, only motivates CCA to perform to the best of its ability and to continue to prove its worth in meeting
government’s correctional needs.

Myth:
Reality:

Private companies experience higher rates of
assaults and escapes.
Historical, statistical data for related
incidents actually reveal that public and
private sector performances are comparable. Specific to escapes, CCA’s
escape rate for the past three years is ten times lower than the rate for the
most recent three years of data for the public sector.

Myth:
Reality:

Private companies consistently offer poor training of
correctional staff and employ unqualified personnel.
In every single instance, CCA training of
correctional staff meets or exceeds all
established standards by the American Correctional Association,
as well as the stringent requirements of the jurisdiction with whom
the company contracts. In many instances, CCA employees complete
training alongside their public sector counterparts. In addition to a 40hour orientation program for all new, full-time employees, all security
personnel receive a minimum of 120 hours of training during their first
year of employment. Additionally, staff receive 40 hours of in-service
training each year. And designated staff receive specialized training to
enhance security and control. CCA’s commitment to quality training is
exemplified by the presence of a full-time managing director of Staff
Development and Training, division training managers and a full-time
training manager at every CCA facility.

Myth:
Reality:

Private companies’ poor security record is due in part
to low pay of correctional staff.
CCA offers competitive salaries to attract
and retain qualified employees. That is
sound business practice. However, salary is not the only benefit that an
employee considers when deciding to work for an employer. CCA offers
a comprehensive health benefits package and 401K retirement plan.
Because CCA is so large – dozens of facilities across the country - the
company can provide employees with great flexibility and opportunities
for lateral and promotional moves that are not typically possible in
publicly managed corrections systems.

Myth:
Reality:

Private companies have higher turnover of
correctional staff than the public sector.
CCA’s retention record is comparable
to many public corrections systems. It
is difficult to compare equally, as most state, federal and local systems
have differing measures for calculating retention levels. Attracting and
retaining staff is a challenge facing the entire corrections profession –
public and private. This is due partly to the dangerous, high-stress nature
of corrections that not everyone is suited for, and partly because of the
highly competitive market that pits corrections against many other
professions for qualified employees in a time when many employees
choose to try various new careers. Regardless, To address this challenge,
CCA has expanded its Human Resource department in order to work

diligently on new and innovative efforts to attract and retain staff. An
example includes assigning veteran staff to work alongside new staff as
mentors.

Myth:
Reality:

Private companies are in the immoral business of
profiting from prisons.
No one would argue that people providing
these dangerous, difficult and meaningful
services should be denied compensation for their efforts. The fact
that they work for a company or for a government agency in no way
diminishes the significance or importance of the services they provide.
However, if a company can partner with government to provide the same
or better level of service at a cost savings, then those saved tax dollars can
in theory be appropriated to other meaningful services like education,
health care for the poor, or other social justice initiatives.

Myth:
Reality:

Private companies are actively engaged in
legislation to promote longer and tougher
sentences in order to keep beds filled and increase profits.
The industry absolutely does not
participate in or lobby for stricter
sentencing. In fact, several companies in this industry provide services
that serve as alternatives to sentencing, such as electronic monitoring, day
reporting centers and probations services. Lobbying for longer sentences
does not lead to increased business. Providing safe, secure facilities that
offer meaningful programs and services for inmates does.

Myth:
Reality:

The presence of private facilities greatly reduces
property values and economic vitality of
communities in which they are located.
To the contrary, the existence of a
private correctional facility enhances
the economic vitality of a community in a variety of ways. Through
the creation of jobs, a demand for housing and other services enhances
property values and local businesses. Residents with gainful employment
significantly impact the overall tax base for the community and help spur
new businesses. Furthermore, unlike a public prison, a privately managed
prison is subject to all applicable taxes like property and sales taxes.
Many communities hosting CCA facilities have been able to upgrade and
enhance infrastructure for utility services as a result from the increase
use and subsequent funds paid by CCA for said services. It has also been
the case that in some host communities taxes for local residents have
remained constant or even reduced as a result of tax revenues received
from CCA.

Myth:
Reality:

Private facilities offer poor programs for inmates and
have very little concern for rehabilitation.
CCA has a great emphasis on quality
programs for inmates. CCA’s frequently
updated, targeted programs for education, vocational training, faith-

based instruction, counseling and substance abuse help rehabilitate
offenders and return them to more productive lives in society. We
measure and report program effectiveness as a key part of our
accountability to government customers. As part of our contracted
agreement with customers – and often well above the stated minimum
programmatic requirements – every CCA facility offers a wide array of
programs. A core program package is provided in CCA prisons and jails
– programs intended to raise offenders’ basic skill and literacy levels.
Enhanced program opportunities are available to facilitate higher levels
of achievement which could significantly increase the likelihood of an
offender’s success upon release.

Myth:
Reality:

inmate populations.

Private companies have many incidents in their
prisons and they shouldn’t be trusted to manage

Every large corrections system at some
point will experience serious incidents
but the true measure of an agency’s or company’s worth, however,
is in how they respond to such adversities. CCA has a track record of
responding quickly and appropriately when corrective action is needed,
to the complete satisfaction of our governmental customers and the
communities we are located. The company’s 95% contract renewal rate
validates the confidence placed in CCA by our customers.

Myth:

Private companies shouldn’t be allowed to manage
inmates from other states. They bring in the “worst
of the worst”, which is a threat to public safety. Additionally, once the outof-state inmates complete their sentences, they are released locally in the
state in which they are serving their time.
States do not send “the worst of the
worst” out of state and upon completion
of their sentence, inmates are released back to their state of origin.
Many states are facing significant budget pressures that prohibit the
ability to build or expand correctional capacity to match existing and
growing needs. Housing offenders out of state provides a corrections
agency flexibility in meeting its capacity needs in the short or long term
– resulting in safer and more efficient facilities in-state as overcrowded
conditions are relieved. Additionally, this alternative prevents the costly
task of accessing capital for building new prisons or expanding existing
ones.

Reality:

Myth:

Private operators offer poor medical treatment to
inmates, and their medical staff are discouraged
from sending inmates to hospitals or emergency rooms because it takes
away profit from the companies.
CCA offers high-quality medical treatment.
To do otherwise would make poor business
sense, as a reputation for lower quality of services would eventually lead
to a loss of existing contracts and the loss of future business. Expectations
and guidelines for medical services are defined in the management
contracts, ensuring that a company lives up to its promised level of
services. All CCA facilities adhere to the standards of the American
Correctional Association (ACA). The ACA, which covers all aspects of
correctional management including medical services, represents the
highest set of standards in the country. Some CCA facilities are also
contractually required to be nationally accredited by the National
Commission of Correctional Health Care (NCCHC).

Reality:

Myth:
Reality:

Private companies save costs by cutting corners in
the areas of operations, food service, medical care
and staff training/pay.
Absolutely CCA does not cut corners to
save costs. Because the private industry
is not burdened by the time-consuming, bureaucratic procurement

guidelines of government, we are able to quickly identify and purchase
goods and services at the best possible prices. CCA is able to achieve
many cost savings through economies of scale, by contracting for goods
and services company wide, thus getting even better prices. Additional
cost savings are realized through efficient facility designs that result in
more efficient staffing patterns. Savings are also achieved because private
companies do not typically have as much administrative bureaucracy as
their public counterparts.

Myth:
Reality:

Private companies are beholden to their
shareholders’ interests above the interests and wellbeing of their government customers and the inmates in their care.
All companies are contractually required
to deliver a certain level of service. Failure
to do so results in lost contracts and ultimately going out of business.
On a regular basis, government officials, contract monitors and auditors
are on-site at private facilities ensuring that companies are performing
at expected levels of service. Adding to this high degree of oversight,
the additional scrutiny of shareholders only enhances the level of
accountability that companies in this industry are held to – a level that is
in many cases much higher than that of our public counterparts.

Myth:
Reality:

Private companies operate at lower standards than
public facilities.
Committed to the American Correctional
Association (ACA), which represents
the nation’s highest correctional standards, CCA proudly operates
every facility according to the nearly 500 rigorous standards of ACA.
Additionally, CCA has established more than 150 operating standards by
which our facilities are managed. Each CCA facility receives more than 15
internally conducted audits annually, as well as numerous external audits.
Plus, our government customers audit the operation of our facilities.

Myth:
Reality:

Private prisons are anti-union.

CCA’s commitment to its employees is
reflected in our creating and maintaining
the safest possible working conditions, offering competitive salaries
and benefits, along with quality training and proper equipment to
perform effectively on-the-job. CCA recognizes the right of employees
to choose – or not to choose – to be represented by a labor union.
However, the vision, mission, and guiding principles of CCA, as well as the
work environments created based upon those principles, for most of our
employees, have made the perceived need for union representation to be
both unnecessary and undesirable.
	
The vast majority of our employees have chosen to work
directly with our management team in a union-free workplace. Only 7%
of CCA’s workforce are represented by a labor union, which, interestingly
enough, is the same national percentage of America’s private sector
workforce represented by labor unions. In those situations where
employees have elected union representation, CCA has respected that
choice and has proven it can successfully manage unionized correctional
facilities.

Myth:
Reality:

Private prisons only house less expensive, low
security inmates.
Private prisons are responsible for the
safe and secure housing of inmates at
all security levels, including maximum security. The security levels
of inmates housed in a private prison and the range of services and
programs provided are determined by our customers and clearly
defined in the management contracts. Contrary to this common myth,
a majority of CCA-managed facilities house inmates of medium-security
classification and higher.

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