CHAPTER 9.5. Community Correctional Centers [6250. - 6259.]

Cal. Penal Code - PEN 9.5.

in effect

Cal. Penal Code - PEN § 6250. Section 6250.

(a) The Director of Corrections may establish and operate facilities to be known as community correctional centers. The director may enter into a long-term agreement, not to exceed 20 years, for transfer of prisoners to, or placement of prisoners in, community correctional centers. (b) No later than 30 days after the department has designated a site as a potential site, the director shall notify the county board of supervisors or city council in whose jurisdiction the center may be located. The notification shall set forth the specifics of the site location, design, and operational characteristics for the facility. The department shall not contract for the facility until it has received and reviewed the comments of every local agency notified under this section or the expiration of 60 days after having given notice to the local agency, whichever occurs first. Upon receipt of the notice, the city, county, or city and county may hold a public hearing concerning the impact of the facility on the community. At the conclusion of the public hearing, the city, county, or city and county may make a recommendation to the department as to the appropriateness of the proposed site, specific design and operational features to help make the facility more compatible with the community, and alternative locations, if appropriate. Upon receipt of comments and recommendations, the department shall determine whether to proceed with the facility, to modify the proposal, or to select an alternative site. If the department selects a site recommended by the local agency after a hearing conducted pursuant to this section, no further review or hearings are required by this subdivision. (c) The notice referred to in subdivision (b) may be delivered by hand or sent by any form of mail requiring a return receipt. Failure to provide the notice shall be grounds for extinguishing the contract upon motion of the board of supervisors or city council. (d) The Director of Corrections shall not change the use of or significantly increase the capacity of a community correctional center established pursuant to subdivision (a) unless the director has first notified the county board of supervisors or city council in whose jurisdiction the center is located at least 30 days prior to the change of use or capacity. Failure to provide the notice shall be grounds for enjoining the change in use or capacity.

Cal. Penal Code - PEN § 6250.5. Section 6250.5.

(a) The Director of Corrections may contract for the establishment and operation of community correctional facilities that offer programs for the treatment of addiction to alcohol or controlled substances based on the therapeutic community model, only if the cost per inmate of operating the facilities will be less than the cost per inmate of operating similar state facilities. The Legislature finds and declares that the purpose of a therapeutic community program, which emphasizes alcohol and controlled substance rehabilitation, is to substantially increase the likelihood of successful parole for those inmates. (b) Each facility under contract pursuant to this section shall provide programs that prepare each inmate for successful reintegration into society. Those programs shall involve constant counseling in drug and alcohol abuse, employment skills, victim awareness, and family responsibility, and generally shall prepare each inmate for return to society. The programs also shall emphasize literacy training and use computer-supported training so that inmates may improve their reading and writing skills. The program shall include postincarceration counseling and care in order to ensure a greater opportunity for success. (c) The department may enter into a long-term agreement, not to exceed 20 years, for transfer of prisoners to, or placement of prisoners in, facilities under contract pursuant to this section. (d) The department shall provide for the review of any agreement entered into under this section to determine if the contractor is in compliance with the terms of this section. The review shall be conducted at least every five years. The department may revoke any agreement if the contractor is not in compliance with this section. (e) Notwithstanding the Public Contract Code or Article 10 (commencing with Section 1200) of Title 15 of the California Code of Regulations, the Department of Corrections shall select an independent contractor to conduct an annual audit and cost comparison evaluation of any programs established under this section. Any contract for annual audits and evaluation shall provide that the annual report, whether in final or draft form, and all working papers and data, shall be available for immediate review upon request by the department.

Cal. Penal Code - PEN § 6251. Section 6251.

The primary purpose of such facilities is to provide housing, supervision, counseling, and other correctional programs for persons committed to the Department of Corrections.

Cal. Penal Code - PEN § 6252. Section 6252.

The Director of Corrections shall make rules and regulations for the government of the community correctional centers in the management of their affairs.

Cal. Penal Code - PEN § 6253. Section 6253.

(a) The Director of Corrections may transfer inmates whose terms of imprisonment have been fixed from the state prisons and facilities of the Department of Corrections to community correctional centers, and place parolees in the community correctional centers. The director may charge the resident reasonable fees, based on ability to pay, for room, board and so much of the costs of administration as are allocable to such resident. Fees may not exceed actual, demonstrable costs to the department. No fees shall be collected from an inmate or parolee after his or her residency in the center has terminated. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no inmate or parolee shall be denied placement in a community correctional center on the basis of inability to pay fees authorized by this section. (b) Inmates transferred to community correctional centers remain under the legal custody of the department and shall be subject at any time, pursuant to the rules and regulations of the Director of Corrections, to be detained in the county jail upon the exercise of a state parole or correctional officer’s peace officer powers as specified in Section 830.5, with the consent of the sheriff or corresponding official having jurisdiction over the facility.

Cal. Penal Code - PEN § 6254. Section 6254.

The Director of Corrections may grant furloughs to residents of community correctional centers for the purpose of employment, education, including vocational training, or arranging a suitable employment and residence program.

Cal. Penal Code - PEN § 6255. Section 6255.

The provisions of Title 5 (commencing with Section 4500) of Part 3 shall apply to all persons placed in a community correctional center by the Director of Corrections except that those persons who are on active parole shall be subject to the provisions of Article 3 (commencing with Section 3040) of Chapter 8, Title 1, Part 3.

Cal. Penal Code - PEN § 6256. Section 6256.

The Director of Corrections may enter into contracts, with the approval of the Director of General Services, with appropriate public or private agencies, to provide housing, sustenance, and supervision for such inmates as are eligible for placement in community correctional centers. Prisoners in the care of such agencies shall be subject to all provisions of law applicable to them. The Department of Corrections shall reimburse such agencies for their services from such funds as may be appropriated for the support of state prisoners.

Cal. Penal Code - PEN § 6258. Section 6258.

(a) The Secretary of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation may contract for the establishment and operation of separate community correctional reentry centers for men and women, provided that the per-inmate cost for operating these facilities under contract will be less than the per-inmate cost of maintaining custody of the inmates by the department. The department may enter into long-term contracts, not to exceed 10 years, for transfer of prisoners to, or placement of prisoners in, facilities under contract pursuant to this section. (b) The purpose of the community correctional reentry center is to provide an enhancement program to increase the likelihood of a successful parole. The objective of the program is to make the inmates aware of their responsibility to society, and to assist the inmates with educational and employment training to ensure employability once on parole. (c) A community correctional reentry center shall prepare the inmate for reintegration into society. These centers shall provide counseling in the areas of drug and alcohol abuse, stress, employment skills, victim awareness, and shall, in general, prepare the inmate for return to society. The program shall also emphasize literacy training and utilize computer-supported training so that the inmate can read and write at least at a 9th-grade level. (d) In awarding contracts pursuant to this section, the secretary shall advertise the potential contract and may entertain proposals for the establishment and operation of community correctional reentry centers from public and private entities and shall give preference to the following community correctional reentry centers: (1) Centers located near large population centers. (2) Centers with approved state or local land use. (3) Centers with an identified facility with appropriate capacity to serve not greater than 200 individuals. (4) Centers that provide a rehabilitative, supportive setting and programming that is trauma-informed, culturally responsive, and community oriented in order to improve the outcomes of the participants and reduce recidivism. (5) Centers operated by a nonprofit organization that has demonstrated experience successfully operating community correctional reentry centers. (e) Notwithstanding any other law, except as provided in subdivision (d), for the purposes of entering into or renewing agreements pursuant to this section, any process, regulation, or requirement, including any state government reviews or approvals, or third-party approval that is required under, or implemented pursuant to, any statute that relates to entering into or renewing those agreements, is hereby waived. (f) On or after October 14, 2023, the department shall not contract for the establishment or operation of a community correctional reentry center located in current or former state prison facilities or on current or former state prison property. This subdivision does not apply to other types of facilities owned or operated by the department.

Cal. Penal Code - PEN § 6258.1. Section 6258.1.

An inmate shall not be transferred to a community correctional reentry facility unless all of the following conditions are met: (a) The inmate applies for a transfer to a community correctional reentry facility. (b) The inmate does not have a current or prior conviction for an offense that requires registration as a sex offender pursuant to Chapter 5.5 (commencing with Section 290) of Title 9 of Part 1. (c) The inmate has less than two years left to serve in a correctional facility. (d) The inmate does not have a history, within the prior 10 years, of an escape pursuant to Section 4532 of the Penal Code. (e) The department determines that the inmate would benefit from the transfer.

Cal. Penal Code - PEN § 6259. Section 6259.

(a) For the purposes of acquiring the 2,000 community correctional facility beds and notwithstanding any other provision of law, the procurement and performance of any contracts authorized pursuant to Chapter 9.5 (commencing with Section 6250) of Part 3 of Title 7 of the Penal Code shall be conducted under the provisions of Article 4 (commencing with Section 10335) of Part 2 of Division 2 of the Public Contract Code, as a contract for services. (b) The procurement shall include requirements that the contractor provide to the state options to purchase all or a portion of the facilities and equipment used by the vendor in the performance of the contract and that the consideration of the proposals include the terms of these options. The contract shall provide specifications for the vendor’s acquisition of sites, compliance with environmental requirements, preparation of plans and specifications for, and development and operation of, facilities, and such other matters as may be reasonably incidental to the development, operation, and potential future acquisition by the state pursuant to an option to purchase the facilities. (c) The exercise of an option to purchase shall be subject to the jurisdiction of the State Public Works Board and the requirements of the master plan for prison construction, Chapter 11 (commencing with Section 7000) of Title 7 of Part 3 of the Penal Code, the State Contract Act, Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 10100) of Part 2 of Division 2 of the Public Contract Code, the State Building Construction Act of 1955, Part 10b (commencing with Section 15800) of Division 3 of the Government Code, and the Property Acquisition Law, and Part 11 (commencing with Section 15850) of Division 3 of the Government Code, but these provisions shall not apply to the procurement of the option to purchase or the procurement and performance of the contract.

Source: CA Legislative Counsel Bulk DataURL: https://downloads.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/pubinfo_2025.zipFetched: 6/27/2026