State prisons

Who oversees California's state prisons

California runs its state prisons through the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR). County jails are a separate system, run by elected county sheriffs, and are documented at sheriffoversight.org/ca. This page maps the bodies that oversee the state prison system.

There is no single overseer. Oversight is layered, and the layers have different legal characters. Status described as of July 2026.

Tier 1. Statutory independent

Office of the Inspector General

Independent state office (California Penal Code 6125 et seq.) that inspects CDCR medical care, reviews use of force, monitors staff discipline, and handles sexual-abuse complaints. It monitors and reports; it does not direct CDCR. 604 reports on file.

California Correctional Health Care Services

The California state organization that delivers prison medical care. Its medical operations are run under a federal court receivership (Plata v. Newsom). As of July 2026, medical operations have been delegated back to CDCR at all state institutions.

Tier 2. Federal courts

Federal courts hold the most far-reaching oversight of California prisons. These are court instruments, not state agencies. Status of these court proceedings described as of July 2026.

  • Plata v. Newsom (medical): a court-appointed Receiver held operational control of prison medical care; it is winding down.
  • Coleman v. Newsom (mental health): a court-appointed Receiver took control effective September 1, 2025, alongside a Special Master who monitors compliance.
  • Armstrong v. Newsom (disability rights): a court expert oversees ADA compliance and staff-misconduct remedies.
  • Three-judge court: sets the prison population cap at 137.5% of design capacity (Brown v. Plata).

Tier 3. Fiscal and program

  • California State Auditor
  • Legislative Analyst's Office
  • California Rehabilitation Oversight Board (C-ROB)

Tier 4. Specialized

  • PREA auditors (DOJ-certified, external)
  • Cal/OSHA (worker safety)
  • State Fire Marshal (fire and panic safety in state institutions)

Two commonly misunderstood points

The Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) inspects local jails and juvenile facilities. It has no jurisdiction over state prisons. The CDCR Secretary's seat on the BSCC board does not extend BSCC's authority into CDCR institutions.

CDCR's Office of the Ombudsman and Office of Internal Affairs are internal to CDCR, not independent oversight bodies. The Office of the Inspector General independently monitors the internal-affairs discipline process.

State institutions

30 state prisons are currently open. Report counts link into the Inspector General's records for each institution.

Of the 604 Inspector General reports, 327 are statewide or systemwide and are not tied to a single institution. The rest concern specific institutions and are counted below. A report naming more than one institution is counted under each.

InstitutionCountyStatus OIG reports
Avenal State Prison Kings Open 8
California City Correctional Facility Kern Closed 3
California Correctional Center Lassen Closed 6
California Correctional Institution Kern Open 9
California Health Care Facility San Joaquin Open 4
California Institution for Men San Bernardino Open 10
California Institution for Women San Bernardino Open 8
California Medical Facility Solano Open 7
California Men's Colony San Luis Obispo Open 7
California Rehabilitation Center Riverside Closing 8
California State Prison, Corcoran Kings Open 16
California State Prison, Los Angeles County Los Angeles Open 8
California State Prison, Sacramento Sacramento Open 9
California State Prison, Solano Solano Open 9
California Substance Abuse Treatment Facility Kings Open 11
Calipatria State Prison Imperial Open 7
Centinela State Prison Imperial Open 7
Central California Women's Facility Madera Open 9
Chuckawalla Valley State Prison Riverside Closed 7
Correctional Training Facility Monterey Open 7
Deuel Vocational Institution San Joaquin Closed 7
Folsom State Prison Sacramento Open 9
High Desert State Prison Lassen Open 10
Ironwood State Prison Riverside Open 8
Kern Valley State Prison Kern Open 7
Mule Creek State Prison Amador Open 7
North Kern State Prison Kern Open 5
Pelican Bay State Prison Del Norte Open 7
Pleasant Valley State Prison Fresno Open 7
Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility San Diego Open 9
Salinas Valley State Prison Monterey Open 14
San Quentin Rehabilitation Center Marin Open 7
Sierra Conservation Center Tuolumne Open 9
Valley State Prison Madera Open 9
Wasco State Prison Kern Open 8

County jails are separate

County jails hold people awaiting trial or serving shorter sentences and are run by elected county sheriffs, not CDCR. Their oversight is documented at sheriffoversight.org/ca.