November 12, 2010
CDCR’s Matt Cate Q&A on budget cuts, reform, CCPOA contract, etc
How realistic are the budget cuts to Corrections when over $800 million of it is to prison healthcare, which is the part the state seems to have the least control over?
The receiver has said that he thinks he can do it. He relies on us to try to find efficiencies and vice versa. While on the one hand we continue to battle in the courts, on the other hand we try to work day-to-day to help each other reach those kinds of goals. He’ll have a definite challenge to try to reduce $800 million from his budget.
The thing that has been significant of late is we have agreed on a single construction plan. When I became secretary, the prisons had one construction plan for using AB 900 to build high security prisons. The receiver had a plan to build seven prison hospitals at a billion dollars apiece. Within the last year, we’ve gotten together. He’s eliminated his seven projects altogether and agreed that we would build facilities that the department has under AB 900 but that have a healthcare mission. His seven projects are now one healthcare facility in Stockton that we are going to use AB 900 for. Brokering that deal was significant as far as saving the state long term bond costs and in getting all four courts - meaning medical, mental health, dental and ADA to all agree that this is a construction plan that will meet the needs of state...
LINK - CapitolWeekly.net
