California is in the middle of the largest planned contraction of its prison system in modern history. Multiple state correctional facilities have closed or been announced for closure between 2022 and 2026, the result of a state prison population that has fallen to its lowest level since the late 1980s. For families with loved ones in the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation system, these closures have direct implications — from facility transfers to program availability to the state's long-term approach to incarceration.
Why Is This Happening Now?
California's prison population reduction has been decades in the making, driven by several intersecting policy changes. In 2011, AB 109 (the Public Safety Realignment Act) shifted responsibility for many lower-level offenders from state prisons to county jails. In 2014, Proposition 47 reclassified many drug and property offenses from felonies to misdemeanors, reducing the pipeline of new state prison admissions. In 2016, Proposition 57 accelerated parole eligibility for nonviolent offenders. These policies, combined with the general decline in crime rates during the 2010s, reduced California's incarcerated population from a peak of roughly 170,000 in 2006 to fewer than 100,000 by the mid-2020s.
By 2025-26, the CDCR's budget was projecting an average of 11,300 empty beds across the system — beds that cost money to staff and maintain whether or not they hold an inmate. The fiscal logic for closure became impossible to ignore.
Facilities That Have Closed or Are Closing
Deuel Vocational Institution (Tracy)
Deuel Vocational Institution in Tracy, opened in 1953, was one of the oldest facilities in the state system. It closed in 2021, becoming one of the first CDCR closures of the modern era. DVI's closure was presented as a response to declining population and the facility's aging infrastructure. Inmates were transferred to other CDCR facilities.
California Correctional Center (Susanville)
The California Correctional Center in Susanville closed in 2023, despite significant opposition from the Susanville community. The city of Susanville, located in Lassen County, depended heavily on the prison for employment and economic activity. The closure triggered legal challenges and community advocacy campaigns, but the state ultimately proceeded. The Susanville closure illustrated the political dimension of prison closures in California — communities that built their economies around corrections facilities face severe disruption when those facilities close.
Chuckawalla Valley State Prison (Blythe)
Chuckawalla Valley State Prison in Blythe, in the Riverside County desert, closed in 2024. Like CCC, it was a facility whose closure reflected both declining population and the high cost of operating a desert facility far from population centers.
California City Correction Facility
California City Correction Facility, which California leased from CoreCivic (a private prison company), ceased operations in 2024 when the state declined to renew the contract. This was notable because it represented California's continued withdrawal from private prison contracting — the state had previously ended all out-of-state private prison contracts and has been systematically reducing its reliance on private vendors.
California Rehabilitation Center (Riverside County) — Closing Fall 2026
The California Rehabilitation Center in Norco, Riverside County, was announced for closure in Fall 2026. The closure is projected to save approximately $150 million per year in operating costs. CRC has historically been associated with drug treatment programming, and its closure has raised questions about where those programming resources will be concentrated as the state consolidates. CDCR has committed to maintaining drug treatment capacity system-wide.
AB 2178: Mandated Empty Bed Reduction
In 2024, Assemblymember Phil Ting authored AB 2178, which directed CDCR to develop a plan to reduce the number of empty beds from approximately 11,300 to 2,500 by 2030. The legislation reflects a legislative consensus that the state should not continue to maintain full staffing and overhead for thousands of unused beds. The 2030 target implies additional closures or significant population reductions beyond what has already been announced.
What Closures Mean for Incarcerated Californians
When a CDCR facility closes, all incarcerated people housed there must be transferred to other facilities. These transfers are determined by CDCR based on classification, security level, proximity to family, and available bed space. Transfers are not voluntary — incarcerated people do not choose their new facility — and can result in people being moved farther from their families, losing access to programming they were enrolled in, or being placed in facilities with longer waiting lists for education, vocational training, or treatment programs.
If your loved one is at a facility that has been announced for closure, their case manager should notify them of the transfer plan. Families can contact the CDCR Office of Correctional Education and Family Services for information about how closures affect transfer procedures. It is also worth noting that the receiving facility may have different visiting procedures, different approved vendor lists, and different phone system providers — families should verify these details after any transfer.
The Budget Context
CDCR's 2025-26 budget was approximately $13.9 billion — down $149 million from the prior year, reflecting the savings from recent closures. The state's long-term fiscal projections assume continued population decline and further facility reductions. Advocacy organizations have argued that the savings should be redirected to community-based services, reentry programs, and social services that address the root causes of incarceration.