One of the most common arguments in favor of privatizing prisons (granted, it usually comes from the privateers themselves, but that's not the point) is that they generate cost savings for financially-strapped governments looking to manage more prisoners than they have capacity for. More often than not, the cost savings they generate come from cutting corners in things like medical care, maintenance of the facilities, staffing (and training of staff), and programming.
It turns out however that even all these reductions in services aren't enough for the private prison industry to save money in New Mexico. The state has decided to remove 114 prisoners from private prisons and transfer them back to state-run facilities. This move will save them approximately $2.1 million over the next year, or more than $18,000 per prisoner. So for nearly $20,000 per prisoner per year LESS than what private prisons charge, New Mexico can incarcerate its own citizens.
Or alternatively, New Mexico has been overpaying its private prison operators by millions upon millions of dollars for years. Whichever way you slice it, the private prison industry is a scam.
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