Good news first: the US imprisonment rate keeps going down.
Employment of correctional officers is declining as well:
Fewer inmates, fewer guards - you’d think the cost of incarceration would be going down as well. But it isn’t. Take California, where per-inmate spending has increased over 100% since 2011. Take a look:
What’s happening here? For one thing, California’s prison guards keep getting hefty pay raises:
“Under their new contract, with two successive 2.5% annual increases, guards will receive a top base pay of $98,600 in the fiscal year that starts Thursday [July 1, 2021] and $101,000 annually the following year. When benefits and perks are added in, by 2022-23, the total state cost for a senior prison guard will be close to $200,000 a year.” - Editorial: California to pay prison guards an astounding $100,000 a year/San Jose Mercury News, June 30, 2021
Now contrast California’s spending on prison security ($44,918 per inmate) with spending on education and training: just $2230 per inmate, or less than $200 per month.
No wonder California’s recidivism rate is so high - around 50% over the past ten years. Unfortunately, the situation is just as bad in the rest of the country. To quote:
“The United States has some of the highest recidivism rates in the world. According to the National Institute of Justice, almost 44% of criminals released return before the first year out of prison.” - Recidivism Rates by State 2022, World Population Review
Next: A better way to reduce recidivism and protect the public.