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    Prison isn’t even hiring

    By William K. Wolfrum on Wed, 03/17/2010 - 9:30am | Politics, Business

    How bad is the economy? Well, it’s getting harder to get your three hots and a cot for the first time in almost 40 years.

    Spurred by budget crises, California and Michigan together reduced their prison populations by more than 7,500 last year, contributing to what a new report says is the first nationwide decline in the number of state inmates since 1972.

    The overall drop was slight, according to the Pew Center on the States – just 0.4 percent – but its report suggests there could be a sustained downward trend because of keen interest by state policymakers in curtailing corrections costs.

    “The political and policy environment has changed drastically,” said Adam Gelb, director of the Pew Center’s Public Safety Performance Project.

    It’s early yet, but one wonders if the prison population continues to go down, where will all the inmates find good jobs that pay them $.03 an hour?

    –WKW

    Crossposted at William K. Wolfrum Chronicles

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