Florida is already forging down the path Georgia wants to follow on private prisons. Steve Bousquet writes in the Miami Herald:

The Florida Legislature’s push to privatize many more prisons, its most far-reaching cost-cutting plan in years, could open a lucrative door to politically connected vendors who stand to profit.

Senate and House budgets require the state to privatize prisons in South Florida, home to one-fifth of the statewide inmate population of 101,000. The region is the home of the GEO Group, the nation’s second-largest private prison operator, which currently runs two private prisons, including the largest private lockup, the Blackwater River Correctional Facility in Milton.

Why is this path so popular with the Florida legislature?

The Boca Raton company, a reliable contributor to the Republican party, employs more than 2,000 people and a stable of 16 Capitol lobbyists. It donated $25,000 to Gov. Rick Scott’s inaugural celebration in January. A top transition budget adviser to Scott, Donna Arduin, is a former trustee of a GEO real estate company, Correctional Properties Trust. The company’s healthcare subsidiary, GEO Care, is led by Jorge Dominicis, a familiar figure in the Capitol from years of lobbying for the sugar industry.

So how is privatizing prisons supposed to save money?

In recent testimony before the Senate, Dominicis touted the advantages of privatization and said his firm achieves savings through higher staffing ratios — more inmates per staff member.

Hm, I wonder if that will cause any problems with prison conditions.

Not to mention public safety:

As a half-dozen GEO lobbyists looked on, James Baiardi, president of the PBA [Florida Police Benevolent Association]’s correctional officers chapter, argued the privatization plan would be dangerous.

“The prisons in Miami-Dade and Broward counties handle some of the worst inmates in the state,” he said. “To take that and just turn it over to a private company is just unreal.”

Dangerous criminals handed over to private contractors who want to cut the number of guards per inmate; what could possibly go wrong?

What’s this got to do with Lowndes County, Georgia, specifically?

GEO’s main competitors are Corrections Corporation of America, the nation’s largest private prison operator, and Management and Training Corp.

CCA, the company that wants to build a private prison in Lowndes County, Georgia (and Decatur County); Georgia’s “great partner”.

Do we really want Lowndes County to help Georgia follow Florida down this private prison path?

-jsq

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