Financial Contingency Planning: Sources of Funding Essay

California has the largest prison population in the United States and some countries around the world. For over 40 years, the incarceration levels have risen. The prison rates have risen 700 percent since 1970, today it is estimated that one in 100 adults are incarcerated. Who pays the bill for this large increase, tax payers have and will continue until the Department of Justice and government have a solid plan to reduce the overwhelming criminal justice deficient. The taxpayers are not only paying to house the prisoners but to feed them and all their medical needs. One plan that was pass by the Supreme Court was to reduce the prison population, they gave California two years to do this (Henrichson, 2012). Revenue is big for state prisons; most states rely on taxpayers to foot the bill. Around the mid 1980’s is when prisons were financed by the pay as you go method and bonds there were $9.6 billion in construction costs. In the late 1990’s the expenditures were up to $ 22 billion dollars, this was over half the debt it cost to finance prisons. The general obligation bond was another way to pay for prisons, but this was financed by tax revenues and back by government credit. Getting prisons built pressured the Governor at the time, Mario Cuomo, he tried to use the Urban Development Corporation (UDC), and this fund was for oversight for low-income housing. This was shot down at the state supreme court. The lease revenue bonds became a way to pay for prisons. An entity or agency was created to build the prisons, they this agency would lease it to the government. In turn the taxpayers would pay back the loan, it was done this way because it did not require the government to ask the voters (â€Å"Public Bonds†, 2004). The Department of Justice (DOJ), just like most organizations has a contingency plan. The Antideficiency Act regulates what can and will not be paid for if the contingency plan is put into action. There are certain programs that will  always keep going; they are Diversion Control, Health Care fraud and abuse control, debt collection, asset forfeiture fund, and federal prison industries. According to â€Å"United States Department Of Justice† (2013), â€Å"Also, the Bureau of Prisons’ (BOP) Buildings and Facilities and Commissary accounts have multi-year authority and have adequate carryover funding to meet expenses during a lapse in appropriations †. In the event, the California prison system would need to activate their contingency plan the Bureau of Prison Buildings and Facilities and the Prison Industries and Commissary funds would carry over to meet any expenses. The employees, including medical staff are except from any finical constraints. (U.S. Department of Justice Contingency Plan). Public prisons became a drain on the budget since the mid 1990’s, and only getting worse. With the cost of living going up so does the cost of medical and psychiatric car. Also, another big stressor is the overcrowding in public prisons, with more inmates there is a need for more officers on duty, this results in more overtimes and hiring more officers. A way to lessen this burden is privatized prisons. There are several investors in the public stock market. Privatized prisons have investors that fund them. Miller (2012), â€Å"Private prisons can be defined in one of the following manners: a transfer of public facilities to a private organization; a contract to design and operate new prisons; and a contract to provide other services to public prisons such as transportation, medical care, food, and maintenance â€Å"(The Drain of Public Prison Systems and the Role of Privatization: An Analysis of State Correctional Systems). Private prisons do not have ties to the government , they are funded privately, however, and they may enter into a contract with the government. These contracts could be to house inmates and the government helps regulate private prisons. The public prisons use the private prisons to house many of the overcrowded prisons and the government has the power to place limitations and regulations on the organizations. AB 109 is a bill passed by the U.S. Supreme Court that ordered California to fix the overcrowding. This required California to reduce the prison population to 137.5 percent capacity. When the U.S. Supreme Court ordered California in May to fix its overcrowded prison problem, citing constitutional protections against cruel and unusual punishment, the court  rejected California’s bid for more time and upheld a two-year deadline to drastically cut inmate population in its 33 prisons to 137.5% of capacity by May 2013. To get there, there are several major steps, including a reduction of 10,000 inmates by November 28 to reach 167% of capacity. One idea California has is to use more community base programs for those non-violent prisoners who are released early. Some of the programs include transitional housing, jobs, and medical and mental health services. A poll was taken to see how the community felt about the early release of non-violent, non-sex, and non-serious offenders back into the community, they were in favor of them being released and managed within the community (Krisberg, 2011). The new parolees are supervised by the Post-Release Community Supervision program, about 104,00 are already living within the community. These changes would slowly take place. There are currently 65,000 current prisoners that fall under the AB 109 bill. These number will change as new people go to prisons and others are patrolled. A concern of the counties is funding, with the influx of offenders they worry how the communities will afford the large amount of people (Krisberg, 2011). Prison bonds are a fixed income security called lease revenue bonds (LRBs). These bonds are used to finance prisons. There are different types of bonds, traditional revenue bonds and lease revenue bonds. Traditional revenue bonds help repay the debt, the down side to these bonds is prisons do not generate revenue. The state treasury had to figure out how to create them, their solution was to have a private agency build the prison and then leases it to the state. The state takes money from one entity to pay another, a lot of the time it is taken from the general fund. These bonds are also tax except. The downfall to these bonds is the state can raise taxes to repay these obligations (Anderson, 2014). California has the largest prison population in the United States. Some of the questions asked about reducing the population are will this alter rates of incarceration, probation, supervision, and community programs. The state was giving a grant totaling $650.000 dollars from the National Institute of Justice (NIJ), the James Irvine Foundation, and the Public Welfare Foundation; this grant funded the Stanford Criminal Justice Center (SCJC) to  conduct the research. The SCJC was asked to effectively help California undertake and assess the realignment. This research this grant will provide will not only help California, but other states to reduce their prison population as well (â€Å"Stanford University†, 2013). There is another program called Fund for Nonviolence. This program is having several grants under the justice with dignity program. The total grants for 2013 were $372,500 and had 13 different grants that were awarded. Most of them were directed toward inmates who re leased back into the community; these grants were to help them to start over (â€Å"Fund For Nonviolence†, n.d.). It is predicted that in the two years over 3,700 more beds will be added to prisons. The state of California faces being held in contempt if they fail to meet their deadline of overcrowding. This brings up more costs for the state to have to fight this matter in court. Three judges orders 34 prisons to be downsized. The state faces two class-action lawsuits because the overcrowding has led to deaths. A report released by the correction’s department shows there is a $500 million dollar expansion project that would allow for two more prisons to be built, that means more officers, more health care staff, and more beds, just to 26,000. California passed the three strikes law and there has been a 36% increase in admissions. The three strikes law increased the prison population by 34,000. This is a record high for California (â€Å"Governing The States And Localities†, 2014). One answer California has to help offset the budget constrains is legalizing marijuana. The idea would be to use the excise tax, which could yield $770-900 million per year and the sales tax, another $240-360 million a year to reduce the states swelling budget. If the state was to legalize marijuana this would save over $200 million prosecution, arrest, trial, and prison time (Gieringer, 2009). The state of California is faced with a big challenge, how to reduce prison size and keep the re-entry rate low. The three strikes law has not helped with lowering the numbers. The Supreme Court passed AB 109, which told California they had two years to lower the prison population. California is faced with two on ongoing law suits that claim wrongful death suits. The state government has gone over how to reduce the budget and be able to find revenue to make the deficit lower. One thought was to legalize marijuana; this would not only bring a large  revenue but also save on costs from arrest, court, and jail time. Another approach was to build two more prisons to increase the population by 34,000. Also, the state could use more private prisons, they are funded by private entities but are still backed by the state. The prediction is the prison population will steadily increase, there for the need for more beds and more staff is apparent. References Anderson, A. (2014). Forbes. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/2008/10/22/prison-correctional-bonds-pf-ii-in_aa_1022fixedincome_inl.html Eaton, K. (2002-2011). BI. Retrieved from http://blog.bi.com/industry-news/ab-109-what-is-it-and-what-does-it-mean-to-california-counties Fund for Nonviolence. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.fundfornonviolence.org/index.html Gieringer, D. (2009). California NORML. Retrieved from http://www.canorml.org/background/ca_legalization2.html GOVERNING The States and Localities. (2014). Retrieved from http://www.governing.com/news/headlines/california-prison–overcrowding-its-going-to-get-worse.html Henrichson, C. (2012). VERA Institution of Justice. Retrieved from http://www.vera.org/sites/default/files/resources/downloads/Price_of_Prisons_updated_version_072512.pdf Krisberg, B. (2011). Berkeley Law University of California. Retrieved from http://www.law.berkeley.edu/files/REALIGNMENT_FINAL9.28.11.pdf Miller, D. (2012). Pro Quest A discovery guide. Retrieved from http://www.csa.com/discoveryguides/prisons/review.pdf

Epic Works Essay

Epics by definition are long narrative poems, that are grand in both theme and style (Webster 417). They usually involve actions of great glory and are typically centered around historical or legendary events of universal significance. Most epics deal with the deeds of a single individual, however, it is not uncommon to have more than one main character. Epics embody several main features including: supernatural forces, sometimes the deity of the time, that shape the action; battles or other forms of physical combat; and a formal statement of the theme of the epic. Everyday details of life are commonplace and intricately woven into the background of each story in the same palatial style as the rest of the poem. Epic poems are not merely entertaining stories of legendary or historical heroes; they summarize and express the nature or ideals of an entire nation at a significant or crucial point in its history. I have chosen for comparison the Odyssey, The Divine Comedy, and Paradise Lost. The Odyssey, attributed to Homer is about Odysseus, the king of Ithaca, who sailed with his army to take part in war against Troy. After ten years of war, victory is declared and the armies of Odysseus have sailed for home. As the Odyssey begins, an additional 10 years have passed since the fall of Troy and Odysseus still has not returned to his home. The noblemen have converged on his palace seeking the hand of his lovely wife, Penelope. However, Penelope refuses their advances choosing to remain faithful to Odysseus. During the ten years of his absence since the fall of Troy, Odysseus has traveled the world undertaking many unbelievable adventures and trials set upon him by the god Poseidon. Throughout his travels he along with his men  sailed to many strange lands. These great adventures included tricking Polyphemus a Cyclops by being ‘nobody’ (Norton 320), sailing to the end of the world and descending into Hell (Norton 340), successfully battling Scylla, a six-headed monster that devoured passing seamen (Norton 361) and finally, passing safely around a terrible whirlpool (Norton 366 – 367). During his descent into Hell, Odysseus meets a sear who foretells that his wanderings would not end until peace is made with Poseidon. This sear also tells him that he will return home and re-establish himself as king. Finally as the Odyssey concludes, Odysseus does return home to a house and country in turmoil. His wife is besieged by suitors, his son is now a grown man and his country is facing certain civil war. In the final acts, order is restored with the assistance of the goddess Athene. In Dante’s epic, The Divine Comedy, he tells of a journey through hell, purgatory, and heaven. This epic is divided into three sections. In each of the sections he meets with mythological, historical, and contemporary individuals. Each individual encountered during the journey represents a religious or political symbol of fault or virtue. In addition, specific punishments and rewards are associated with each fault and virtue. Dante uses each punishment and reward to illustrate the larger meaning of human actions in the universal plan. Paradise Lost is considered by some to be one of the greatest poems in world literature and most certainly John Milton’s masterpiece. In its 12 cantos Milton tells the story of the fall of Adam and the loss of Paradise. Satan has been expelled from heaven with his fallen angels. In Hell, Satan formulates a plan to find the new creations God has made – man and woman. Meanwhile, God tells his Son that Satan will be successful in corrupting man. But because, man was tricked by Satan, man will be given grace if someone in heaven will die for man’s sin. To fulfill his plan, Satan tempts Eve in a dream. The next morning Eve suggests that she and Adam work separately that day. Gradually she is  persuaded by Satan, who has taken the form of a serpent, to eat of the Tree of Knowledge. Realizing her folly, Eve shares the fruit with Adam, who also eats it. This is considered the fall of man. In Heaven God tells of the final victory of the Son over Sin and Death. This epic is told in a context of extensive drama using profound speculations. Milton’s main goal was to ‘justify the ways of God to men.’ (Norton 2179) All three works are long narrative poems that are grand both in theme and style fulfilling the basic definition of an epic. Of the three epics only the Odyssey involved actions of great glory by the central hero. In the Divine Comedy and Paradise Lost, the main characters are not fighting monsters or outwitting Cyclops. Dante walks through Hell, and views the fate of man, Adam and Eve are manipulated by God and Satan but are not gods nor do they have god-like qualities. The influence of the supernatural is an outside force in the Divine Comedy and Paradise Lost. In the Odyssey, Odysseus possesses many god-like qualities himself. The central theme of each epic is somewhat different. In the Odyssey, the central theme seems to be Odysseus against the world. He stands the test through opposition by the gods, other men, and the forces of nature. In the Divine Comedy, Dante, a normal man, takes a walk through the many levels of hell, expressing the faith of medieval Christianity. Paradise Lost, by Milton is simply a representation of the ideals of mediaeval Christian rational. Though each work is classified as an epic, they share only a few of the basic traits of an epic poem. However, more than anything each provides insight into the thoughts and beliefs of people in our history. These epic works take us on an imaginary voyage; one through the amazing journeys of a single man, one through an imaginary trip through hell in which the political and philosophical thought of the time can be experienced, and one through an account of a religious thought for that day. All of these epics serve to remind us that no matter how far mankind has come, we still have a long way to go in our journey be it spiritual or earthly. Works Cited ‘Epic.’ Webster’s Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary. 1983 ed. Homer. ‘The Odyssey.’ Norton Anthology of World Masterpieces. Ed. Maynard Mack. 6th ed. 2 vols. New York: Norton, 1992. Milton, John. ‘Paradise Lost.’ Norton Anthology of World Masterpieces. Ed. Maynard Mack. 6th ed. 2 vols. New York: Norton, 1992.

Information System in business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Information System in business - Essay Example The health club leveraged upon the technology and other software’s which increased its productivity, efficiency and ultimately the profitability. Technology has transformed the overall business environment; the processes that had been traditionally manual are now automated. The way communication is done and mediums of communication have been transformed as well thus transformation can be felt in every business practice today. The concept of information systems in business environment is often termed as management information system; this concept was coined in the 1960s and ever since has been integrating the computer technology and the systems to data processing in business. It was also evident in the 60’s that the computer was serving as a solution to the business manual, clerical tasks. The systems was able to provide information on past, present and also helped in future projections for the business or organizational purposes, thus providing the right information to the right people at the right time (Various Advantages of Information Management Systems). Although information systems have been around for a while however they are continually evolving thus offering many possibilities for the business operations. ... ific function or specific purpose, however the changing dynamics of the business and due to increase in market competition and customer expectation, the businesses need to adopt a more value-added customer oriented service, reduction in time to market new product and services, to manage the operational costs and ultimately adoption of work method that are compliant with the ever changing business needs. Thus to increase the operational efficiency the use of Information systems is required by the businesses (Pappa & Stergioulas, 2008) Innovative Information Technology applications give several advantages to the business for its operations to remain competitive in the business environment, thus serving as a direct strategic advantage for the business. Inclusion of information systems in the business allow better management of resources, while having complete control over the offices/locations, having speedy communication and give better decision making ability by providing all the info rmation in a readily timely manner. Moreover the business is likely to establish partnerships and links with all the partners associated with the business in an efficient and effective way. Another important factor that information systems provide the business in order to remain competitive is the competitive business intelligence. This keeps the business up-to-date in all respects by analyzing the information about the services, products, competitors and the changes in the business environment. Thus, making use of the information can help the business take the first movers advantage and have an edge over the competitors (Laudon, 2008). Information systems also provide differentiation opportunity (Goessl, 2008) to the business, thus making it stand out from the competition. Thus the

What is sociology, anyway Why bother to study it Essay

What is sociology, anyway Why bother to study it - Essay Example The official and the most likely reason for the US war on Iraq is not aligned with the author’s claim that war occurs because a lack of understanding of each other’s behavior. There was also no justification for what Hitler’s and his Nazi party was doing prior to World War II, thus not understanding the Nazi culture was not a justifiable excuse for the US and its allies not to have gone to war with Germany. Sociology can be defined as the scientific study of human society and social behavior (NesSmith, pg. 5). The author of the article had a lot of good ideas about the importance of sociology to our society. An innovation that has helped the global society connect more has been the internet. The internet allows for instant communication from people from different parts of the world and provides its users with a vast database of information that can be used to learn about other people’s culture. The culture of each nation across the world is different, but these differences are what make the planet a unique and interesting place to live

Theoretical Perspective on Secure Attachment Essay

Theoretical Perspective on Secure Attachment - Essay Example He claims that the infant's primary or original bond is with its mother, which then become the basis for all the forthcoming loves he will be feeling. He also claims that infants only have the desire in his mother's arms simply because the infant has already established that his mother will satisfy and provide for his needs without delay. However, Freud's more significant theory to the development of infant attachment is his drive reduction theory. He used the basic biological drives that are innate in human as the basis for this theory. He explains this by stating that when an infant is driven, an example of which is when he cries, he will then experience pleasure by receiving food resulting to the restoration of balance. (Freud, 1964) Another theory was introduced by Erik Erikson, called the Psycho-Social Theory also known as the Pschodynamic Theory. He was the first to propose that there are different stages of human development that lasts throughout the entire life span. His idea s were a huge influence that led to the study of personality development His theory also accounts for the term "identity crisis." He introduced eight stages to human development and later on added a ninth stage in his book entitled â€Å"Life Cycle Completed.† The first two stages pertain to the infant attachment theory, which he called the stage of hope and the stage of will. He claims that on the hope stage, between 0 to 12 months, an infant is trying to make a choice between trust versus mistrust as he tries to weigh whether his primary caregiver is reliable or not. The will stage on the other hand, is the stage of autonomy versus shame and doubt. He claims the will stage as the stage wherein the infant's need to explore the world, which may or may not be hindered by a caregiver's utter neglectfulness or over-protectiveness. (Cole, 2009) Though Freud instigated the infant attachment concept, John Bowlby was known as the father of the attachment theory after making the firs t and commonly known view on attachment theory. Bowlby believes that there are a number of innate control systems pertaining to behavior are a necessity for surviving as well as procreation. He also believes that attachment begins at infancy, continuing on throughout life. According to Blowby, an infant initially establishes a strong attachment with its primary caregiver and will become the infant's base of exploration. It is innate behavior for an infant to want to explore new things, however, when a child reaches away to explore and then faced with danger or feels scared, its secure protection base will be with the primary caregiver. Bowlby dedicated an extensive research to the concept of infant attachment, which he described as a "lasting psychological connectedness between human beings" (Bowlby, 1988). He also shared the psychoanalytic view that early experiences in childhood are important influences affecting development and behavior which may be seen later in life. Based on h is theory, our early attachment styles are established in childhood through the relationships between infants and primary caregivers. In addition to this, Bowlby was also of the belief that attachment had an evolutionary factor wherein it aids in survival stating that "the propensity to make strong emotional bonds to particular individuals is a basic component of human nature" (Bowlby, 1988). Bowlby also categorized different characteristics of attachments and are as follows: Safe Haven: When the child feels

Leading a turnaround Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Leading a turnaround - Essay Example Another change made was to reinvest savings back into the business; this had the knock-on effect of raising the company’s EPS. However, perhaps the most successful change was to instill a new corporate culture that respected leadership; this was important if Loren was going to be able to pick the company up because he needed respect of his subordinates. After five years of Loren in charge, the company’s reputation and value grew enormously, with double-digit earnings growth year-on-year. In January of 2005, Loren stepped as CEO of the company and handed over the reins to Steven Alesio (this was planned for two years before it actually took place). For the few months following that move, Loren remained as chairman; he stepped down from this role in May of 2005 and was replaced once again by Steven Alesio. With the company heading in the right direction, it was the right time for Loren to retire and leave the company in the capable hands of someone who he has specifically chosen for the

The UK and The European Union Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

The UK and The European Union - Essay Example The core values of the union are human dignity, democracy, democracy, equality, freedom, rule of law and respect for human rights. What began as an economic union has slowly evolved into an organization spanning different policy areas, such as development aid, environment among others. It was initially called European Economic Community, but its name changed to the present one, which is the European Union. The rule of law guides the EU in all matters and everything is based on treaties that Europe. are democratically and voluntarily agreed upon by all member states (European Union, n.d.). The EU has managed to come up with a single currency, the Euro that is used among the member states, help raise the living standards of the member states citizens, and has brought stability, peace and prosperity. Through the standardized system of law, the EU has established a single market that is used by all member states. It has also removed border controls among EU nations which have made people travel freely among them. Additionally, it has made it easy to live and work among the nations when one is a citizen of one of the nations. EU membership means the residents of existing EU states have the rights and privileges to live and work in the UK (Manners and Whitman, 2000). Countries however have the option of placing transitional limits on migration from other countries to the EU. During one of the recent council meetings, there was a divide about the UK’s relationship with the EU. Niblett states that it showed the growing division between UK’s approach to its membership in the EU (2012). Since the council meeting, the disparity has widened rather than narrowing down. The Eurozone members that have joined the single currency period are joining forces to create and establish a new structure of financial and political integration that seeks to establish a Euro that is more stable. However, the UK is not part of this. In fact, the UK has never shared the same kind of