Executive Summary
The Georgia Senate Study Committee on Safety and Welfare in Department of Corrections Facilities (SR 570) held five hearings between August and December 2024, examining conditions affecting approximately 49,000 people in state custody. The committee’s findings reveal a system in crisis:
- Georgia operates its prisons at a 47% security staff vacancy rate, leaving nearly half of funded security positions empty and people in prison without adequate supervision or protection.
- The state spends $355 million annually on correctional healthcare for approximately 55,000 people, with over 50% of the pharmacy budget consumed by Hepatitis and HIV treatment — conditions frequently discovered only at intake because people lacked healthcare access before incarceration.
- 14,000 people in Georgia prisons have identified mental health conditions — roughly 29% of the incarcerated population — yet staffing shortages undermine the state’s capacity to deliver consistent treatment.
- All seven close security prisons are at least 30 years old, exceeding the 15-20 year functional lifespan acknowledged by GDC leadership, while 21 people were killed and 19 died by suicide in Georgia prisons during just nine months of 2020.
- Vocational programming cuts recidivism by half (from 26% to approximately 13%), yet the state has failed to ensure universal access to these programs.
Key Takeaway: Georgia’s prison system is dangerously understaffed, medically overburdened, and physically deteriorating — conditions that directly endanger the 49,000 people the state is constitutionally obligated to protect.
Fiscal Impact
Current Budget Pressures
Healthcare: The state budgets approximately $355 million annually for health services including dental and pharmacy across GDC facilities. Over 50% of the pharmacy budget is dedicated to Hepatitis and HIV treatment drugs. The system covers approximately 55,000 individuals annually and provides 100,000 prescription medications per month and roughly 70 medical appointments per day per facility.
Staffing: GDC is funded for 10,919 total positions, of which 7,587 are security officers. An additional 2,000 correctional officer positions remain unfunded in the agency’s budget. At a training cost of approximately $3,000 per cadet (excluding salaries), the state loses significant investment when officers leave — and most voluntary departures occur within the first two years. The current 2,600 open positions represent an ongoing recruitment and retention failure.
Starting pay for corrections officers averages $44,000 statewide, a figure that must compete with less dangerous employment options.
Capital Infrastructure
The committee documented a stark cost disparity between renovation and new construction:
| Approach | Cost | Capacity |
|---|---|---|
| Renovation (e.g., Autry facility) | $70 million | Existing beds |
| New facility (upcoming) | $842 million total ($700M construction) | 1,500-1,800 beds |
| New facility (full specifications) | $1.2 billion | ~1,500 beds |
With all seven close security prisons exceeding 30 years of age — well past the acknowledged 15-20 year lifespan — the state faces hundreds of millions in deferred maintenance obligations that grow more expensive with each year of inaction.
Private Prison Costs
Four private facilities operate in Georgia under GEO Group and CoreCivic. GEO Group reported that its operation costs increased approximately 40% over the last five years. Private facilities shift excess medical costs back to GDC when care exceeds contractual caps, obscuring the state’s true healthcare liability. GEO Group’s empty 1,800-bed facility at Folkston is maintained by approximately five personnel — a stranded asset producing no public benefit.
Recidivism and Return on Investment
The general three-year recidivism rate is 26%. Vocational programming reduces recidivism by half. In FY 2024, GDC helped people earn approximately 45,000 career, technical, and educational certificates. Every person who does not return to prison represents savings in incarceration costs, court processing, and public safety resources. The state’s failure to universally fund and deliver these programs is fiscally indefensible.
Key Takeaway: The state faces $355 million in annual healthcare costs, hundreds of millions in deferred infrastructure obligations, and ongoing staffing losses — while underinvesting in programming proven to cut recidivism in half.
Key Findings
The State Fails to Adequately Staff Its Prisons
Georgia’s correctional facilities operate with a 47% vacancy rate among the 7,500 total funded security positions. During COVID-19, GDC lost approximately 2,000 entry-level correctional officers, driving the vacancy rate to 50%. Pre-pandemic, the agency had approximately 1,700 open positions; at peak, 3,500; currently, 2,600. The current academy class includes approximately 200 individuals undergoing a five-week (208-hour) basic training program, planned for extension to six weeks by July 1, 2025.
Critically, most voluntary officer terminations occur within the first two years of employment. The state invests approximately $3,000 per cadet in training costs alone (excluding salary), meaning each early departure represents a direct financial loss and a gap in protection for people inside.
People in Prison Face Dangerous, Deteriorating Conditions
- 33 homicides occurred within GDC facilities from 2010 to 2014, exceeding rates of other southern states.
- From January to September 2020 alone, 21 people were killed and 19 people died by suicide in Georgia prisons.
- All seven close security prisons are at least 30 years old, exceeding the 15-20 year functional lifespan that GDC leadership acknowledges.
- The committee recognized that single-cell policies reduce violence: Smith State Prison saw reduced violence after transitioning to single-person cells. Yet some prisons remain triple-bunked.
Mental Health Needs Are Vast and Underserved
Approximately 14,000 people in GDC custody — roughly 29% of the population — have identified mental health conditions. Mental health evaluations occur over 7-14 days of intake, with crisis phases requiring 30-90 days of further evaluation. The staffing crisis directly undermines the state’s capacity to deliver mental health services and prevent suicides.
Contraband Reflects Systemic Failure, Not Individual Misconduct
Over 37,000 cell phone devices have been confiscated from inside prisons since 2022, averaging 1,300 per month. The GDC Commissioner described cell phones as “deadly weapons” inside prisons. 151 arrests were made related to drone-delivered contraband in the last year. The Office of Professional Standards made over 800 arrests during fiscal years 2023 and 2024 for contraband smuggling — mostly by civilians, not incarcerated people. Federal regulations prohibit states from using cell phone and drone jamming technology that federal facilities employ.
The Incarcerated Population Has Changed — The System Has Not Kept Pace
GDC oversees approximately 49,000 people as of August 2024. Following 2012 criminal justice reforms that reduced non-violent incarceration, there has been a 12% increase in the proportion of people convicted of violent offenses. Currently, 75% of people enter the system due to violent crimes. Approximately 31% of the incarcerated population are validated Security Threat Group members with gang affiliation. The average sentence length is at least ten years.
In FY 2024, approximately 15,000 admissions occurred against 13,000 releases, driving population growth. The system processes 200-250 intakes per week within 15 days of county notification.
Parole and Reentry Systems Need Reform
Of the returning prison population for parole violations, only 12% are for new offenses — the remaining 88% are technical violations. Five parole board members generated 17,600 reviews in 2023, raising questions about the adequacy and thoroughness of the review process. Approximately one quarter of the incarcerated population is from outside Georgia, complicating the documentation process critical for successful reentry.
Key Takeaway: Georgia’s prison system is dangerously understaffed, physically deteriorating, and failing to protect the 49,000 people in its custody from violence, inadequate healthcare, and preventable death.
Comparable States
The source document provides limited direct state-to-state comparisons, but several benchmarks emerge from testimony:
- National recidivism rate: The national recidivism rate is 39%, compared to Georgia’s general population rate of 26% and GEO Group’s Riverbend facility rate of 25%. Georgia’s lower-than-national rate is encouraging, but the committee’s own findings demonstrate that vocational programming could reduce it further — to approximately 13%.
- Staffing crisis is national: The Commissioner testified that staffing shortages are “consistently felt by corrections agencies around the country,” though specific state comparisons were not provided in the report.
- Southern state homicide comparison: The report noted that Georgia’s 33 homicides within GDC facilities from 2010 to 2014 exceeded the rates of other southern states during that period, indicating Georgia’s system is more lethal than its regional peers.
- Federal jamming technology: Federal prisons employ cell phone and drone jamming technology that federal regulations prohibit states from using, creating an unequal security landscape.
- South Carolina peer support model: GDC brought in personnel from South Carolina’s corrections system for a three-day training seminar on staff wellness and peer support, suggesting South Carolina has a more developed officer support infrastructure.
A comprehensive 50-state benchmarking study would strengthen the legislature’s capacity to evaluate Georgia’s performance. The Guidehouse, Inc. operational study commissioned through the Governor’s office — expected by end of December 2024 — may provide additional comparative data.
Key Takeaway: Georgia’s prison homicide rate exceeded other southern states from 2010-2014, and its staffing crisis mirrors a national pattern — but the legislature lacks comprehensive state-by-state data to fully benchmark performance.
Policy Recommendations
The committee issued nine recommendations. The following synthesizes those recommendations with the evidentiary record and identifies actionable legislative priorities:
1. Fund All Security Positions and Close the Vacancy Gap
The legislature should fund the approximately 2,000 unfunded correctional officer positions currently excluded from GDC’s budget. With a 47% vacancy rate across 7,500 funded security positions, the state cannot ensure the safety of incarcerated people or staff. Competitive salary increases beyond the current $44,000 average starting pay — informed by the pending Guidehouse operational study — should be appropriated in the FY 2026 budget.
2. Mandate and Fund the Transition to Single-Person Cells
The committee chair and GDC Commissioner both affirmed that single-person cells are “modern-day best practice.” Smith State Prison demonstrated that transitioning to single-person cells reduces violence. The legislature should establish a statutory timeline for eliminating multi-bunked housing, prioritizing the seven close security prisons that currently exceed their design lifespan.
3. Expand Mental Health Services and Staffing
With 14,000 people identified as having mental health conditions, the legislature should appropriate dedicated funding for licensed mental health professionals within GDC — not contingent on security officer recruitment. The planned extension of academy training to six weeks with crisis intervention training should be codified in statute, not left to agency discretion.
4. Invest in Vocational and Educational Programming
Vocational programming reduces recidivism by half. GDC produced 45,000 certificates in FY 2024, but the committee should require GDC to report on the percentage of the eligible population with access to such programs and set a target for universal enrollment.
5. Reform Parole Revocation Practices
With 88% of parole returns resulting from technical violations rather than new offenses, the legislature should examine statutory alternatives to reincarceration for technical violations. This single reform could meaningfully reduce admissions and ease population pressure.
6. Authorize Infrastructure Investment Strategy
The legislature should commission a comprehensive capital needs assessment for all 85 facilities, prioritizing the seven close security prisons exceeding 30 years of age. Renovation (at $70 million for Autry) offers dramatically better value than new construction ($842 million to $1.2 billion), but only if undertaken before facilities deteriorate beyond repair.
7. Seek Federal Authorization for Counter-Contraband Technology
Georgia’s congressional delegation should be formally asked to support federal legislation allowing states to employ cell phone and drone jamming technology in correctional facilities, consistent with what federal prisons already use.
8. Establish Independent Oversight Mechanism
The committee heard testimony from advocacy organizations and formerly incarcerated people alongside GDC leadership. The legislature should codify an independent corrections oversight body with authority to conduct unannounced facility inspections and publish findings — ensuring that the conditions documented in this report do not persist without public accountability.
9. Require Transparent Death Reporting
With 21 homicides and 19 suicides documented in a single nine-month period (January-September 2020), the legislature should mandate quarterly public reporting of all deaths in custody — by cause, facility, and demographic characteristics — with independent verification.
Key Takeaway: The legislature has clear, evidence-supported pathways to reduce violence, improve staffing, expand proven programming, and establish meaningful oversight — but each requires appropriation and statutory action, not study committees.
Read the Source Document
Other Versions
- Read the Public Version → — Plain-language summary for general audiences
- Read the Media Version → — Press-ready format with key quotes and context