The 2025-26 Budget: California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation

Feb 25, 2025 - The mental health care provided at the prisons is subject to the oversight of a Special Master appointed as part of the Coleman v. Newsom federal court case, which ruled in 1995 that CDCR was not providing constitutionally adequate mental health care.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4986

The 2025-26 California Spending Plan: Other Provisions

Oct 16, 2025 - Control Sections 90.00 and 90.01 During the special session called by the Governor, the Legislature added Control Sections 90.00 and 90.01 to the 2024-25 Budget Act providing up to $2.5  billion one-time from the General Fund for response and recovery costs related to the January 2025 Southern California wildfires.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5081

The 2024-25 Spending Plan: Judiciary and Criminal Justice

Sep 10, 2024 - In addition, the budget package includes language that would allow the Department of Finance to make payments from the General Fund for any fines related to staffing vacancies in the Coleman v. Newsom court case related to the provision of prison mental health care.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4924

Assessing Community College Programs at State Prisons

Jul 1, 2024 - Given that the results of the recommended data and studies have the potential to notably improve legislative decision ‑making on prison postsecondary education policy and programs moving forward, we believe the added administrative workload is warranted.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4913