Georgia Spends $1.8 Billion on Corrections While Expanding Private Prisons and Surveillance — Not People

Why This Research Matters for Advocacy

The Georgia Department of Corrections FY 2026–2027 budget reveals the state’s true priorities for the more than 50,000 people it holds in cages. Georgia taxpayers are now spending nearly $1.8 billion per year on corrections — and the spending choices embedded in this budget tell a damning story.

The state is pouring $13.4 million into managed access and drone detection systems. It is expanding private prison capacity by 263 beds. It is spending $5.5 million on surveillance technology for the Over Watch and Logistics (OWL) Unit. Meanwhile, the pilot program for peer-led programming at Autry State Prison received just $150,000 — roughly 1% of what the state spent on contraband detection technology in a single year.

Healthcare costs are exploding — up $39.8 million in FY 2026 and $54.8 million in FY 2027 — revealing what happens when a state chronically underfunds medical care for incarcerated people and then must pay crisis-level prices to catch up. Mental health staffing received just $479,411 in FY 2026, while drone detection systems received $13.4 million in the same year.

This budget is a roadmap of Georgia’s carceral priorities. Advocates fighting for decarceration, healthcare access, educational programming, and accountability can use these numbers to demonstrate — in the state’s own words — that Georgia is choosing surveillance over rehabilitation, private profit over public safety, and capacity expansion over the well-being of the people in its custody.

This document is especially powerful because it comes directly from the Governor’s office. These are not allegations — they are the state’s own funding decisions, published for the legislature and the public.

Key Takeaway: Georgia’s own budget proves the state prioritizes surveillance, private prison expansion, and capacity growth over rehabilitation, healthcare, and the humanity of incarcerated people.

Talking Points

1. Georgia spends $1,799,204,979 in amended FY 2026 to incarcerate more than 50,000 people — nearly $1.8 billion in taxpayer dollars flowing into a system that prioritizes confinement over rehabilitation.

2. The state is spending $13,387,475 on managed access and drone detection systems in FY 2026, while allocating just $150,000 for a peer-led programming pilot and $93,179 for reentry programming — a 90-to-1 ratio of surveillance spending to rehabilitation investment.

3. Healthcare costs are surging because the state has failed to provide adequate care — physical health contract per diem increases jumped from $10,946,108 in FY 2026 to $23,627,395 in FY 2027, more than doubling in a single year, revealing the cost of chronic neglect.

4. Georgia is expanding private prison capacity by 263 beds at a cost of $4,227,620, adding 160 beds at Coffee Correctional Institution and 103 beds at Wheeler Correctional Institution — both operated by private corporations profiting from incarceration.

5. The state mandates that incarcerated people work in farm operations, food preparation, laundry, construction, facility maintenance, and factory work in Georgia Correctional Industries’ manufacturing plants — the budget itself documents this forced labor system.

6. Mental health staffing received only $479,411 in FY 2026 while the Over Watch and Logistics surveillance unit received $5,521,230 in FY 2027 for technology costs alone — the state spends more than 11 times as much watching people as it does treating their mental health needs.

7. The private prison budget totals $177,767,784 in FY 2027 — nearly $178 million in taxpayer money flowing to CoreCivic and GEO Group, corporations that profit from keeping beds full.

8. Georgia’s corrections spending jumped 25% in a single year, from $1,526,654,104 in FY 2024 to $1,913,888,054 in FY 2025 — an unsustainable trajectory that demands the legislature examine whether incarceration is the best use of these resources.

Important Quotes

The following quotes are taken directly from the Governor’s Budget Report for Amended FY 2026 and FY 2027, Department of Corrections section:

“GDC requires offenders in its facilities to work to support the prison system and the community. Inmates work in prison farm operations, food preparation, laundry, construction, facility and landscape maintenance, and perform factory work in Georgia Correctional Industries’ manufacturing plants.”
— Page 145, Agency Operations section

This quote documents the state’s own admission that it compels incarcerated people to labor for the benefit of the prison system.

“More than 50,000 of these offenders are serving prison sentences.”
— Page 145, Roles and Responsibilities section

The scale of Georgia’s incarceration system, stated plainly.

“Increase funds for the physical health contract for a per diem increase ($10,946,108), outside-the-wire care ($15,000,000), and to reflect the opening of additional beds ($12,923,790).”
— Page 146, Health program, Amended FY 2026

This single line item reveals $38.9 million in physical health contract increases — evidence that years of inadequate healthcare are now creating massive fiscal obligations.

“Increase funds for managed access and drone detection systems to prevent contraband in facilities. 13,387,475”
— Page 147, State Prisons, Amended FY 2026

The state’s investment in surveillance technology dwarfs its investment in programming and rehabilitation.

“Increase funds to add 160 private prison beds at Coffee Correctional Institution and 103 private prison beds at Wheeler Correctional Institution. 4,227,620”
— Page 149, Private Prisons, FY 2027

Georgia is actively expanding private prison capacity rather than investing in alternatives to incarceration.

“Provide funds for a pilot program at Autry State Prison to provide for peer led programming. 150,000”
— Page 147, State Prisons, Amended FY 2026

The total investment in peer-led rehabilitation programming: $150,000 — less than the cost of a single private prison bed expansion.

Key Takeaway: The state’s own budget language documents forced labor, massive surveillance spending, and token investments in rehabilitation.

How to Use This in Your Advocacy

Legislative Testimony

When testifying before the House or Senate Appropriations Committees, frame the budget as a question of priorities. The numbers speak for themselves:

• Open with the total: “Georgia is spending $1,799,204,979 to incarcerate more than 50,000 people. What are we getting for that investment?”
• Contrast surveillance vs. rehabilitation: $13,387,475 for managed access and drone detection vs. $150,000 for the only peer-led programming pilot in the entire system.
• Highlight the healthcare crisis: Physical health per diem increases more than doubled from $10,946,108 in FY 2026 to $23,627,395 in FY 2027. Ask legislators: “What does it tell us about conditions inside when healthcare costs are escalating this fast?”
• Challenge private prison expansion: “Why is the state spending $4,227,620 to add 263 private prison beds when it could invest those dollars in reentry, education, and mental health?”

Public Comment

During public comment periods on corrections budgets or related policy:

• Lead with the human cost: “More than 50,000 people are held in Georgia’s prisons. This budget reveals what the state values — and it is not their well-being.”
• Use the forced labor quote directly from page 145 to challenge the state’s own description of requiring incarcerated people to work.
• Cite the mental health staffing increase of just $479,411 in FY 2026 compared to $13,387,475 for contraband detection technology.

Media Pitches

Angle 1: The Surveillance State Inside Georgia’s Prisons. The state is spending $13.4 million on managed access and drone detection, $5.5 million on OWL Unit technology, and hiring five managed access analysts — all while peer-led programming received $150,000. Frame this as Georgia building a surveillance infrastructure inside its walls.

Angle 2: The Healthcare Cost Explosion. Healthcare spending increased $39.8 million in FY 2026 and $54.8 million in FY 2027. Outside-the-wire care alone costs $15 million. This story is about what happens when a state neglects healthcare for years — it pays crisis prices later.

Angle 3: Private Prison Profits. Georgia is paying $177,767,784 to CoreCivic and GEO Group in FY 2027 and adding 263 beds. Follow the money.

Angle 4: Forced Labor by the State’s Own Admission. The budget document itself states that the GDC “requires offenders in its facilities to work” in farms, factories, laundry, and construction.

Coalition Building

This budget touches multiple advocacy areas — use it to build bridges:

• Healthcare advocates: The $54.8 million FY 2027 healthcare increase and $15 million for outside-the-wire care demonstrate that correctional healthcare is a public health issue.
• Education advocates: High school diploma program funding jumped from $93,672 to $953,033 — a sign the state acknowledges educational programming matters, but the investment remains a fraction of security spending.
• Labor rights organizations: The state’s own language about requiring incarcerated people to work in farms, factories, and construction invites scrutiny of prison labor practices.
• Fiscal conservatives: Total spending jumped 25% from FY 2024 to FY 2025, from $1,526,654,104 to $1,913,888,054. This is an unsustainable trajectory that demands alternatives to incarceration.
• Women’s rights organizations: Lee Arrendale State Prison, Georgia’s only women’s state prison, received $1,542,179 in operational increases — engage groups working on incarcerated women’s issues.

Written Communications

In letters to legislators, the Governor’s office, and corrections officials:

• Always cite the source: “According to the Governor’s Budget Report, Amended FY 2026 and FY 2027…”
• Use specific dollar amounts — they are undeniable because they come from the state itself.
• Frame every number as a choice: “For every dollar spent on surveillance technology, the state invested less than a penny in peer-led rehabilitation.”
• Request accountability: Ask for data on outcomes — recidivism rates, healthcare outcomes, violence rates — to measure whether these spending choices are producing results.

Key Takeaway: The state’s own budget numbers are your most powerful advocacy tool — they cannot be disputed because they come from the Governor’s office.

Use Impact Justice AI

Need to turn these findings into action? Visit Impact Justice AI to generate customized advocacy materials using this research and other GPS data. The tool can help you:

• Draft legislative testimony incorporating the specific budget figures and comparisons outlined above
• Write letters to legislators challenging private prison expansion and demanding investment in rehabilitation
• Create public comment submissions for budget hearings and corrections policy reviews
• Generate email campaigns targeting specific spending decisions like the $13.4 million in surveillance technology
• Build fact sheets for coalition meetings using the budget data in this analysis

The data in this budget belongs to the public. Impact Justice AI helps you use it effectively.

Key Takeaway: Impact Justice AI at https://impactjustice.ai can help you generate letters, testimony, and advocacy materials using this budget data.

Key Statistics

Population & System Scale
– More than 50,000 people are serving prison sentences under GDC administration (Page 145)
– 8 facility types operated by GDC: state prisons, county prisons, probation detention centers, transition centers, private prisons, RSAT centers, integrated treatment facilities, and re-entry facilities (Page 145)

Total Budget
– $1,799,204,979 — Total amended FY 2026 GDC budget (Page 151)
– $1,778,839,635 — Total FY 2027 GDC budget (Page 151)
– $87,137,031 — Budget increase in amended FY 2026 over original FY 2026 (Page 151)
– $1,782,435,308 — State General Funds in amended FY 2026 (Page 151)

Healthcare Spending
– $417,255,739 — Total Health program budget, amended FY 2026, approximately 23% of total budget (Page 151)
– $432,247,728 — Total Health program budget, FY 2027, approximately 24% of total budget (Page 151)
– $39,777,721 — Health program budget increase in amended FY 2026 (Page 146)
– $54,769,710 — Health program budget increase in FY 2027 (Page 148)
– $10,946,108 — Physical health per diem increase, FY 2026 (Page 146)
– $23,627,395 — Physical health per diem increase, FY 2027 (Page 148)
– $15,000,000 — Outside-the-wire care increase, FY 2026 (Page 146)
– $479,411 — Mental health staffing increase, FY 2026 (Page 146)
– $1,917,644 — Mental health staffing increase, FY 2027 (Page 148)
– $374,587 — Dental health staffing increase, FY 2026 (Page 146)
– $1,498,347 — Dental health staffing increase, FY 2027 (Page 148)
– $3,681,328 — Pharmacy contract per diem increase, FY 2027 (Page 148)

State Prisons & Staffing
– $938,705,499 — State Prisons program budget, amended FY 2026, approximately 52% of total budget (Page 151)
– $914,864,554 — State Prisons program budget, FY 2027 (Page 151)
– $4,982,902 — Additional correctional officer positions, FY 2026 (Page 147)
– $26,824,134 — Additional correctional officer positions, FY 2027 (Page 149)

Surveillance & Security Technology
– $13,387,475 — Managed access and drone detection systems, FY 2026 (Page 147)
– $5,521,230 — OWL Unit technology costs, FY 2027 (Page 150)
– $409,040 — Five managed access analysts, FY 2027 (Page 150)

Private Prisons
– $173,540,164 — Private prison budget, amended FY 2026 (Page 151)
– $177,767,784 — Private prison budget, FY 2027 (Page 151)
– 263 beds — Private prison expansion (160 at Coffee, 103 at Wheeler) (Page 149)
– $4,227,620 — Cost of private prison bed expansion, FY 2027 (Page 149)

Rehabilitation & Programming
– $150,000 — Peer-led programming pilot at Autry State Prison, FY 2026 (Page 147)
– $93,179 — Metro Reentry Facility programming, FY 2026 (Page 147)
– $93,672 — High school diploma program accreditation staff, FY 2026 (Page 147)
– $953,033 — High school diploma program accreditation staff, FY 2027 (Page 150)

Historical Spending Trajectory
– $1,526,654,104 — Total FY 2024 expenditures (Page 152)
– $1,913,888,054 — Total FY 2025 expenditures (Page 152)
– 25% increase — Year-over-year spending growth from FY 2024 to FY 2025 (Page 152)

Key Takeaway: Georgia’s corrections budget reveals massive investments in surveillance and private prisons alongside token investments in rehabilitation and mental health.

Read the Source Document

Read the full Governor’s Budget Report — Department of Corrections, Amended FY 2026 and FY 2027 (PDF)

This analysis covers pages 145–152 of the Governor’s Budget Report.

Other Versions

This analysis is also available in versions tailored for different audiences:

• Public Version — Plain-language overview for community members and the general public
• Legislator Version — Policy-focused briefing for elected officials and their staff
• Media Version — Story angles and key findings formatted for journalists