Amended in Senate September 3, 2013

Amended in Assembly May 24, 2013

Amended in Assembly March 21, 2013

California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 999

Introduced by Assembly Member Bonta

February 22, 2013

An act to add Chapter 10.9 (commencing with Section 6500) to Title 7 of Part 3 of the Penal Code, relating to prison inmates.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 999, as amended, Bonta. Prisoner Protections for Family and Community Health Act.

Under existing law, the Secretary of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation is responsible for the administration of the state prisons. Existing law makes it a crime to engage in sodomy while incarcerated in a state prison and existing regulation prohibits inmates from participating in illegal sexual acts.

This bill would require the department to develop a 5-year plan to extend the availability of condoms in all California prisons. The bill would require, commencing January 1, 2015, and contingent upon the receipt of donations begin insert by the depa end insert begin insert rtment end insert , that no less than 5 prisons be incorporated into the program each year, and would require a comprehensive plan to include every prison in the state by the final year. The bill would begin delete make implementation of the program contingent upon the receipt of sufficient donations by the department and would end delete require all nonadministrative costs of the program, including the dispensers and condoms, to be paid for through donations. begin insert The bill would allow the department to decline to implement the program at a prison after specifying the reason in an addendum to the comprehensive plan if the department demonstrates that implementation of the program at a particular prison would be unsafe end insert begin insert . end insert The bill would make related findings and declarations.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

This act shall be known, and may be cited, as the
Prisoner Protections for Family and Community Health Act.

SEC. 2.  

The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:

(a) Assembly Bill 1334 of the 2007-08 Regular Session would
have required the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
to allow nonprofits and health agencies to enter department
institutions to provide sexual barrier protection devices, including
condoms, to state prisoners.

(b) In his October 14, 2007, veto message for Assembly Bill
1334, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger noted that, although it is
illegal to engage in sexual activity while incarcerated, providing
access to condoms is “consistent with the need to improve our
prison healthcare system and overall public health.”

(c) The veto message directed the department to determine the
risk and viability of such a program by identifying one state prison
facility for the purpose of allowing nonprofits and health agencies
to distribute sexual barrier devices.

(d) To accomplish the Governor’s directive, a pilot program
was implemented in Solano State Prison, Facility II, for one year,
from November 5, 2008, through November 4, 2009. Several
agencies covered all costs for the program and volunteered their
staff time and expertise.

(e) The Center for Health Justice, a nonprofit organization,
purchased the condom dispensing machines and condoms,
monitored and refilled the dispensers throughout the pilot period,
and provided education for staff and inmates.

(f) Researchers from the Division of Correctional Health Care
Services, Public Health Unit, and the State Department of Public
Health, Office of AIDS, and the Sexually Transmitted Diseases
Control Branch, provided evaluation services and finalized their
conclusions in a September 2011 report entitled: Evaluation of a
Prisoner Condom Access Pilot Program Conducted in One
California State Prison Facility.

(g) The report concluded that there was no evidence that the
availability of condoms created an increased risk of breaches of
safety or security, or resulted in injury to staff or inmates, in a
general population prison facility setting.

(h) The report also stated that its findings may not be
begin delete generalizable end delete begin insert generalized with regard end insert to other settings, for
example, because of higher security or in a setting dedicated to
inmates with mental health problems. Additional pilot studies may
be warranted in these other settings.

(i) The report concluded that providing condoms from
dispensing machines similar to those used in the pilot program is
feasible and of relatively low cost to implement and maintain.

(j) Estimates of the in-prison HIV and STD transmission rates
are not available. However, given the relatively low cost of
providing condoms relative to the cost of treating HIV, and that
very few HIV infections would need to be prevented to cover the
costs of the program, it is likely that providing condoms could
reduce department medical costs.

SEC. 3.  

Chapter 10.9 (commencing with Section 6500) is added
to Title 7 of Part 3 of the Penal Code, to read:

 

Chapter  10.9. Prisoner Protections for Family and
Community Health Act

 

6500.  

(a) Based on the recommendations contained in the
“Evaluation of a Prisoner Condom Access Pilot Program
Conducted in One California State Prison Facility” report, and in
light of the successful pilot project conducted at California State
Prison, Solano, the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
shall develop a five-year plan to expand the availability of condoms
in all California prisons.

(b) Commencing January 1, 2015, no less than five prisons, as
determined by the department, shall be incorporated into the
program each year, with the final year yielding a comprehensive
plan that includes every prison in the state.

(c) In developing the plan, the department shall consider all of
the following recommendations that were made in the report:

(1) Initiate and incrementally expand a program to provide
inmates with access to condoms while continuing to monitor the
safety and acceptability of the program.

(2) Consider additional pilot studies in settings that may pose
a serious health or safety risk, for example, higher security facilities
or housing for inmates with serious mental health problems.

(3) Mount dispensers in discreet locations to provide confidential
access and increase accessibility by minimizing inoperability due
to vandalism. Dispensers with solid steel construction and protected
locks are available that are more tamper resistant than those used
in the pilot study.

(4) Consider making condoms available confidentially upon
request during a medical or mental health visit, in addition to
dispensing machines.

(5) Provide information to staff and inmates describing findings
from the current study demonstrating that safety and security were
not impacted by the distribution of condoms.

(6) Include inmate peer educators, begin delete inmates’, end delete begin insert inmates’ end insert men’s
and women’s advisory counsels, and medical, public health, and
custody staff in local institutional condom program planning and
implementation.

(d)  begin insert (1) end insert begin insert   end insert The implementation of this program is contingent upon
begin delete the receipt of end delete sufficient donations begin delete by end delete begin insert being made to end insert the department.
All nonadministrative costs of the program, including the
dispensers and condoms, shall be paid for through donations.

begin insert

(2) If the department demonstrates that implementation of the
program at a particular prison would be unsafe for a reason that
is unique to that prison, the department may decline to implement
the program at that prison after specifying the reason in an
addendum to the comprehensive plan prepared pursuant to
subdivision (b) that explains why the reason overcomes the findings
contained in the “Evaluation of a Prisoner Condom Access Pilot
Program Conducted in One California State Prison Facility”
report.

end insert