President of the Florida Senate, Mike Haridopolous

First published on WhyIHateCCA

Florida’s leadership is among the most aggressive in the nation in trying to bring private prisons to the state.  The governor, speaker of the house, former speaker of the house, and a host of Republicans in the legislature repeatedly attempted to force through what would have been the largest wholesale privatization of prisons in US history.  Though those measures failed, a battle is still being waged in court over the abuse of the political process by Republicans who tried to force the privatization by putting it into the budget and bypassing the committee that would have normally reviewed it.  The state is now also moving forward with plans to privatize 20 work release centers of the 21 that are still operated by the state, possibly because Governor Scott seems downright determined to put state employees out of work.  Lest you think I’m being unfair, a DOC spokeswoman said the state wasn’t likely to save any money in the process, which would have theoretically been the only justifiable reason to do so.

The industry has fared rather well in the state despite the failure to pass the wholesale privatization, but not quite as well as it has with the federal government in taking responsibility for incarcerating immigration detainees.

The GEO Group has been particularly successful in both these arenas, due in large part to the amount of influence it peddles throughout governments.  This influence was apparent during the 2010 election cycle, when the company donated more than $800,000 to campaigns in Florida.  But what’s not quite as easy to see is how these companies also gain political influence by having favorable people, and sometimes previous employees, placed in positions of power.  Take for example the chief of staff to young Republican superstar Marco Rubio, Cesar Conda.  Conda still maintains ties to a powerful lobbying firm in Florida that has lobbied for the GEO Group.  In fact, he still maintains partial ownership, and was paid between $50,000-$100,000 by the firm after he became Rubio’s chief of staff..  So he’s still being paid by companies like the GEO Group while working as the number-one guy to a US Senator.

So the GEO Group has revenues of nearly $2 billion per year, much of which comes from the federal government as payment for detaining immigrants.  It has spent more than $5 million in lobbying and political contributions in the past 8 years, a small fraction of their overall revenue, and in doing so has greatly expanded its role in the immigration detention system.  They also now have a paid lobbyist working in the office of a Republican Senator at the forefront of the immigration debate, in a state with major immigration issues.

In the state legislature meanwhile, President of the Senate Mike Haridopolous, one of the biggest proponents of the aforementioned failed privatization measure, has a really cozy relationship with a lobbyist as well.  He steered millions of dollars to a company that monitors juveniles for the state, after it had come to light that the company had failed to meet many of the terms of its contract.  But he went a step further – he removed the competitive bidding process as a last-minute budget move (sounds familiar…), assuring the company, which employes his close friend as a lobbyist, would maintain the contract.  The secretary of the state’s Department of Juvenile Justice even wrote that “the use of this exemption from competitive procurement may not be in the best interest of the state.”

First published on WhyIHateCCA

Sometimes, a story comes along that really makes me wonder whether a lot of politicians just really don’t give a shit about people at all.  And no, I’m not even talking about how North Carolina decided it would be a good idea to codify discrimination in its frigging constitution.  I’m talking about the great state of Arizona, whose political leaders have given up their charade of pretending to represent their constituents.

Now, you might say that’s a bit of hyperbole, but how else can I explain the fact that, faced with evidence from numerous sources, including a government study, that demonstrated private prisons actually cost Arizona taxpayers more than government run facilities, the Arizona legislature decided to not only fund more private prisons, but to eliminate the requirement for the government to report on the efficiency and services it receives from the companies it contracts with to operate these money pits?

The industry is already exempt from public records laws that government agencies must adhere to, a distinction granted because it is comprised of private corporations (despite the fact that they perform an inherently governmental function).  So Arizona actually found what might have been the only way to further reduce transparency and oversight for an industry that’s not required to report much of anything about how it operates.

In addition to removing that reporting requirement, the budget that just passed allocated $16 million for 1,000 new private prison beds, while taking $50 million from funds intended to help struggling homeowners manage their mortgages.  That $16 million might go to MTC, the company that operates the Kingman prison, from which 3 prisoners escaped in 2010 in one of the most highly-publicized prison escapes in years (largely because they murdered an elderly couple).  Or it could go to CCA, the company that, despite all its denials about its influence on the legislation, was in the room when SB1070 was drafted and stands to profit handsomely from it.

In yet another example of the corrupting and toxic influence of money in government, this budget proposal was really the handiwork of Governor Brewer’s Chief of Staff, Chuck Coughlin.  Coughlin founded HighGround Consulting, the most powerful lobbying force in the state.  HighGround happens to represent the private prison industry.  A former CCA lobbyist, married to a current CCA lobbyist, also works on Brewer’s staff.  And John Kavanagh, the chair of the House Appropriations Committee, is quite cozy with Public Policy Partners, a lobbying firm that represents the GEO Group.  So it naturally made sense for him to be the one to introduce the provision that eliminated the analyses of private prisons in the state.

I don’t even think it’s a question who Governor Brewer and the rest of the Republican establishment in Arizona represent.  And it’s a damn shame.  Thank god I don’t live there.

Update on CCA’s Diabolical Scheme

Just wanted to give a quick update on the newest craze sweeping the private prison industry, CCA’s diabolical scheme to connive state governments into selling prisons to the company and guaranteeing 90% occupancy of said prisons for decades to come.  Basically, they’re looking to ensure the US remains the world’s embarrassing outlier in its unnecessarily high rate of incarceration.  The proposal has been quickly and loudly criticized by dozens of groups, including advocacy groups and a coalition of religious organizations.

Beyond the mere idiocy of guaranteeing a private prison company income despite prison population shifts for the next twenty years, people are starting to question the source of the proposal; former director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons, Harley Lappin.  Shortly after leaving his post in the federal government, Mr. Lappin took his highly lucrative job in the private sector in one of many examples of the “revolving door” that characterizes the industry and its success at cultivating political relationships.  The proposal from CCA actually encourages the sale of federal prison facilities, which Mr. Lappin himself was in charge of just a few short months ago.  But that’s not all; in his capacity as director of the BOP, Mr. Lappin authored a report highly critical of the very private prison industry in which he is now employed.

Thankfully, it’s looking like the work of the groups who were quick to oppose CCA’s proposal is paying off.  Many states have already decided to reject it; at least five states, including those with the highest correctional populations, many of which have existing contracts with private prison companies, have said they aren’t even considering it.  I guess their current relationships with the industry have dissuaded them from wanting to further entangle themselves with a company that profits off human misery.  Who woulda thunk?  Of course, some governments were bound to take the bait; Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal recently announced his plans to sell a state prison to the highest bidder, which is, in the words of a state representative, “an unlawful dereliction of state duty.”

I’m sure this won’t be the last of what we hear from states as they consider the proposal.  But hopefully this will be the last bad news.

After the Revolving Door Stops Turning

Revolving Door Paying Off

The Mighty Political Influence of Private Prisons

Revolving Door (Turn, Turn, Turn)

 The Huge Revolving Door

The private prison industry, like many other private industries that have interests in politics (think oil, pharmaceuticals, energy companies, etc.), routinely sees “revolving-door” activity between its leaders and the political scene. What I mean by this is that leaders in the industry often get jobs in government where they can directly influence legislation and policy to the benefit of the industry they left, and vice-versa. They also routinely get gigs lobbying for major companies, and the three different positions (and the circulation between them) make for the “revolving door” effect, which blurs the lines of distinction between corporations and government.

The real danger of this situation is in the inevitable conflicts of interest that arise when people with connections in a certain industry find themselves in positions that wield power and influence over how that industry operates. It is not healthy for a society to be regulated based on the interests and desires of industry leaders looking to protect corporate interests, which almost invariably run counter to social and human interests.

So it’s particularly troublesome that the former director of the largest prison system in the country, the federal Bureau of Prisons, Harley Lappin, was just hired by CCA as an executive VP. He retired from the BOP on May 7, and less than three weeks later was hired by CCA, a company that receives approximately 40% of its operating revenue from the federal government, including the BOP. Lappin is now one of two former BOP directors on CCA’s payroll.

While going from government to the private sector isn’t nearly as troubling as its opposite, it still raises questions about the influence CCA has on the BOP and its relationship with the leaders of our federal prison system. Having a private company with a long track record of human rights abuses and contract noncompliance be apparently close enough with the leaders of a government agency supposed to be in charge of overseeing its operations explains a lot about how CCA is able to get away with all the terrible things they do