Legislators Push Bill To Address California Prison Understaffing

A coalition of congressional representatives introduced a bipartisan bill calling on the federal prison system to address persistent understaffing issues in U.S. prisons, Rep. Jackie Spier, D-Calif., announced on Monday.

If passed, the Prison Staffing Reform Act would require the Bureau of Prisons to analyze its current understaffing problem, make a three-year plan and submit annual progress reports to Congress.

The plan must not only adequately fill vacancies, but also address how understaffing lowers the standards of workplace safety, lengthens processing time on inmate paperwork and prevents inmates from accessing medical care and enrichment programs.

Spier said in her visit to Federal Correctional Institute, Dublin she saw firsthand how everyone suffers, especially inmates, when prison facilities are understaffed.

“The toxic environments and alarmingly rampant rates of sexual harassment and abuse of women inmates at these facilities is disgraceful,” Spier said. “The bipartisan Prison Staffing Reform Act is a crucial step towards addressing some of the long-standing conditions in BOP prisons that allow abusers and sexual predators to flourish without recourse.”

Spier introduced the bill alongside representatives Judy Chu, D-Calif., Karen Bass, D-Calif., Salud Carbajal, D-Calif., Jay Obernolte, R-Calif., and Randy Weber, R-Texas.

Chu added that understaffing has caused inmates to wait for medical care for months until their health escalates into medical emergencies. It’s also causing known sexual abusers to remain on payroll, causing inmates to be subject to sexual violence and harassment, she said.

“We simply must guarantee accountability measures are in place to ensure the respectful treatment of prisoners,” Chu said. “I am proud to be a cosponsor of the bipartisan Prison Staffing Reform Act, which will provide an accountability structure to do just that.”

Bass said abuse and neglect are not justified consequences for someone committing a crime. And overworked corrections employees who witness mistreatment are not able to intervene the little resources they have, said Bass.

“This bipartisan bill is an important step to improving the safety and accountability of our federal prison system, while ensuring the health and safety of incarcerated individuals, employees and visitors in its facilities,” Bass said.

Fifteen presidents representing a union for workers in federal prisons in the Western region said staffing shortages prevents the BOP to uphold its values of accountability and rehabilitation.

“Our prison system cannot operate effectively if a dearth of staff is making it unsafe. Currently, incarcerated people are too worried about their own safety to have the time and energy it takes to make changes in their skillset or character,” they wrote in a joint statement.