State Representative Donna McLeod Introduces Legislation to End Private Prisons in Georgia

State Representative Donna McLeod (D-Lawrenceville) recently introduced House Bill 728 to end the use of private prisons in Georgia.

“Taxpayer dollars should not be used to fund private prisons,” said Rep. McLeod. “Our schools are still not fully funded, and we need to ensure that we are finding ways to stop the school to prison pipeline. If our children aren’t reading and writing by grade three, the chances of them going wayward increases. Instead, we can put these state funds towards educational purposes that prevent Georgia children from ending up in prison in the first place.”

House Bill 728 would prohibit private companies from operating detention facilities in the state. Under HB 728, only state agencies and departments would be authorized to operate prisons, jails, immigration detention centers, parole revocation centers, long-term and short-term youth detention centers, boot camps and probation detention centers. This bill would not apply to federal detention centers in Georgia. If this bill is passed by the Georgia General Assembly, the state would still be authorized to complete any contracts with these private entities that began before the bill is enacted into law.

For more information on HB 728, see below or click here.

First Reader Summary for HB728: A BILL to be entitled an Act to amend Title 42 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to penal institutions, so as to provide that no private corporation shall operate a detention facility; to provide for definitions; to provide for federal facilities; to provide for existing contractual obligations; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.

Representative Donna McLeod represents the citizens of District 105, which includes portions of Gwinnett County. She was elected to the House of Representatives in 2018 and currently serves on the Code Revision, Human Relations & Aging, Interstate Cooperation and Science and Technology committees.