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Comparing Public and Private Prison Costs: The Arizona Method

NCJ Number
182134
Journal
Corrections Today Volume: 62 Issue: 2 Dated: April 2000 Pages: 152-155
Author(s)
Carl E. Nink; Judith Kilgus
Editor(s)
Susan L. Clayton
Date Published
April 2000
Length
3 pages
Annotation
From the onset of prison privatization in Arizona, the State Legislature called for a comparison of the costs and a review of service quality in order to determine the efficacy of private sector prisons.
Abstract
Arizona legislation provides guidelines for comparing the costs of privatization, through appropriate fiscal methods and using comparable direct and indirect costs. A cost comparison for each contract must be performed once every 5 years. Procedures followed in Arizona to conduct an independent cost comparison by an unbiased evaluator and to evaluate specific prison costs are described. These procedures involve calculating direct and indirect costs and adjustments for public versus private prisons. The flexible nature of the Arizona cost model and its adaptation in other jurisdictions are considered. 3 references