The 2026-27 Budget: Department of Justice

Feb 11, 2026 - A large portion of the General Fund support is used to support the Armed and Prohibited Persons System (APPS) enforcement teams, which seize firearms from people prohibited from owning or possessing them.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5118

Addressing Chronic Vacancies in Prison Mental Health Care

Feb 23, 2026 - For example, in court documents, CDCR estimated that the staff fill rate for ICF and APP beds in June would have been 98  percent for psychiatrists (instead of 81  percent), 73  percent for psychologists (instead of 52  percent), 105  percent for social workers (instead of 82  percent), and 127  percent for recreational therapists (instead of 101  percent) had all 249  inpatient beds been deactivated that month.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5134

The 2026-27 Budget: California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation

Feb 23, 2026 - For various reasons, including that current CDCR compensation appears to meet or exceed market rates and factors outside of compensation likely play a major role in the state ’s ability to staff mental health positions, we do not find across ‑the ‑board compensation increases to be a cost ‑effective strategy, though more targeted increases could be appropriate.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5137