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Environmental and Health Issues and Recommendations  Responsible Manufacturers:
- The Prison Industry Authority (PIA) strives to operate all of its manufacturing, service, and agricultural enterprises in a responsible, green manner. PIA's efforts help to conserve resources, reduce waste, control global warming, and prevent pollution. PIA products and services can be purchased by governmental entities.
- By providing inmates with real world work experience, PIA helps to prepare them for successful re-entry into society. In this sense, PIA is the ultimate recycler. PIA provides inmates with the training and experience necessary to recycle these inmates from their prior lives into productive citizens.
 Recycled Content:
Many PIA products are produced with recycled content.
Recycled-content certification for all PIA products is available through PIA's Web site.  Prevents Waste:
Some PIA enterprises refurbish or remanufacture obsolete PIA products, such as remanufactured office panel systems and refurbished institutional mattresses.  Less Hazardous:
PIA uses less hazardous raw materials in the production of finished products (such as office furniture) and this reduces human exposure to these substances in both the production process and product use.
See the Introduction for complete descriptions of these environmental and health issues.
What is the Prison Industry Authority?
The Prison Industry Authority (PIA) is a California state agency under the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. The primary function of PIA is to rehabilitate inmates and facilitate their successful re-entry into society.
PIA provides work assignments for approximately 6,000 inmates and operates over more than 60 service, manufacturing, and agricultural industries at 22 prisons throughout California. The organization is self-supporting and does not receive an annual appropriation from the Legislature. PIA's revenue comes from the sale of its products and services.
PIA benefits society in many ways
Environmentally Preferable Manufacturing and Finished Products
PIA has more than 60 enterprises, so the methods used to improve environmental performance vary depending on the nature of each individual enterprise. Practices may include using less hazardous raw materials in the production of finished products, manufacturing processes and finished products which conserve energy, production techniques that prevent waste, contributing to clean air by operating within all applicable air quality requirements, developing green office furniture products that have low volatile organic compounds (VOC), conserving water in the production process, as well as using end-of-life management processes for some products. These efforts help to conserve resources, reduce waste, control global warming, and prevent pollution.
What types of products are available from PIA?
PIA provides a wide range of products and services. In some cases, products are produced for a specific customer and are not available for general sales, e.g., license plates sales are restricted to the Department of Motor Vehicles. Listed below are the major categories:
- Bakery " Bindery Products
- Boots and Shoes
- Cabinets and Wardrobes
- Century Systems Modular Office Furniture
- Cleaning Products
- Coffee Roasting
- Dairies and Farms
- Dental Lab Services
- Detention and Institutional Metal Products
- Digital Services
- Egg Processing
- Files and Vertical Shelf Files
- Flags
- Food Packaging
- Freestanding Screens
- Gloves
- Gun Clearing Tube/Bullet Traps
- Industrial Metal Shelving
- Laundry Services
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- Library Furniture
- License Plates
- Mattresses and Mattress Refurbishing
- Meat Cutting
- Metal and Mesh Signs
- Metal Lockers
- Miscellaneous Fabric Products
- Nomex® Firefighter Clothing
- Office Furniture
- Optical Products
- Pillows
- Poultry Processing
- Printing Services
- Residential Furniture
- Residential Loft Systems
- Seating
- Silk Screen Decals
- Stainless Steel Food Equipment
- Wardrobe Cabinets
- Women's and Men's Clothing
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Enabling Legislation
Enabling legislation for the PIA is found in Penal Code (PC) section 2800, et seq.
Who may purchase from PIA?
California PC section 2807 authorizes PIA to provide products and services needed by the State, or any political subdivision thereof, or by the federal government, or any department, agency, or corporation thereof, or for any other public use. In essence, PIA may sell to governmental entities. This includes, federal, state, county, city, special districts, or political subdivisions. In addition, products may be purchased by state agencies to be offered for sale to inmates of the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, and any other persons under the care of the state who reside in state-operated institutional facilities. Fresh meat may be purchased by food service operations in state-owned facilities and sold for on-site consumption.
California PC section 2807(b) mandates that all things produced by PIA shall be purchased by the State or any agency thereof. It further requires that state agencies make maximum utilization of such products and consult with PIA to develop new products and adapt existing products to meet their needs. State agencies may be granted waivers by the PIA to procure products from other sources when justified. PIA's waiver process for state agencies to follow has been revised as of June 1, 2004 and is available on-line.
California PC section 2814 authorizes PIA to sell products and byproducts of agricultural and animal husbandry enterprises, except nursery stock, to private persons, at public or private sale.
California PC section 2815 authorizes PIA to sell to foreign governments, corporations for distribution in foreign countries, and private persons or their agents in markets outside the United States and in countries which permit the importation of prison-made goods.
What are the benefits of purchasing from PIA?
While PIA strives to produce a variety of environmentally preferable products and services, PIA's primary purpose is to improve public safety. By providing inmates with real world work experience, PIA helps to prepare them for successful re-entry into society. In this sense, PIA is the ultimate recycler. PIA provides inmates with the training and experience necessary to recycle these inmates from their prior life into productive citizens.
PIA provides inmates with job opportunities which have been shown to reduce prison idleness and violence by offering inmates training and career enhancing job skills. PIA's job assignments are voluntary-inmates are not required to work; however, inmates are generally eager to participate, as waiting lists are common for many PIA assignments.
Listed below are some of the specific benefits:
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PIA programs assist inmates in learning how to work. Many PIA inmate workers have never held a job or learned the value of work. PIA staff train inmates to behave appropriately in the job environment, do quality work, report to work on time, and follow all federal and state health, safety, and occupational regulations.
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PIA inmate work assignments provide productive activity, thereby reducing idleness and prison violence. In 1998, the Department of Corrections completed an internal study which found that inmates assigned to PIA had a lower rate of reported serious incidents than inmates with other assignments.
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PIA helps to reduce recidivism. This reduction of recidivism reduces prison costs and contributes to public safety.
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Up to 40 percent of an inmate's wages may be deducted for court-ordered restitution/fines and is transferred to the Crime Victims' Restitution Fund. In fiscal year 2003-04, over more than $500,000 of PIA inmates' earnings were deposited. Since fiscal year 1992-93, $5.2 million have been deposited in the Crime Victims' Restitution Fund.
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A study in 2002 by the University of California, Berkeley calculated PIA's contribution to California's economy. The study found that through its production and sales as well as the purchase of supplies from the private sector, PIA has a positive effect on the State's economy. PIA's impact consequently produced an increase in jobs and sales in California's private sector.[1]
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PIA further enhances the ability of inmates to obtain private sector jobs upon release through its Inmate Employability Program. This program documents inmate skills, experience, and positive work habits while assigned to PIA's enterprises. Inmates are also encouraged to participate in a variety of training programs which can lead to formal job skill recognition through industry-accredited certification programs.
Whether we want to think about it or not, most inmates return to society and are likely to commit new crimes. PIA works to prepare inmates to "hit the street" ready to obtain employment; therefore being less likely to re-offend. PIA is more than a program that provides work skills and job training - it is an investment in public safety.
Where can I get recycled-content certification for PIA products?
PIA provides recycled-content certification from its Web site. Customers may access the recycled-content certification from the right side of the home page or throughout the electronic catalog on each product page. If a product's recycled content is not included in the database, customers may contact Customer Services at (916) 358-2733.
How can I purchase from PIA?
Customers may purchase from PIA by mailing or faxing a purchase order to PIA, by ordering through the electronic catalog, or by phoning in a credit card order.
To purchase with a purchase order, mail your agency's purchase order to:
Prison Industry Authority
Attn: Customer Service
560 East Natoma Street
Folsom, CA 95630-2200
Purchase orders may also be faxed to PIA at (916) 358-2660. Please do not fax orders or any documents which include credit card information.
All purchase orders must include the following:
- ship-to and bill-to addresses
- authorized signature to encumber funds, or credit card authorization
- agency funding source: fund, agency, fiscal year, reference (State agencies only)
- agency contact person and public telephone number including area code
- bid number, if applicable
- complete 12-digit style number
- specific colors, finishes and options
Customers may visit PIA's electronic catalog. After completing your shopping, you may pay for electronic catalog orders through an online version of an agency purchase order or by using an agency credit card.
Credit card orders may only be submitted through the electronic catalog or as a telephone order. To submit a credit card phone order, please call (916) 358-2751.
How do I contact PIA?
Email: info@pia.ca.gov
Phone: Customer Services (916) 358-2727, Sales Manager (916) 358-2753
Web site: PIA's electronic catalog
Success Stories
Listed below are just a few of PIA's environmental successes:
- PIA's Century Systems modular office furniture meets all of California's extremely stringent green standards as well as receiving Greenguard's environmental certification. In 2003, the East End Project in Sacramento won a Governor's Environmental and Economic Leadership Award in recognition of its status as a green building. PIA's Century Systems furniture was featured throughout much of the East End Project.
- PIA actively works to use recycled raw materials whenever possible. For example, all steel products use 70 percent recycled metal; recycled aluminum is used to produce license plates and metal signs,; recycled paper is available in print operations;, and recycled fabrics are available on seating and upholstered products.
- PIA laundries are designed to conserve water wherever possible. This is particularly important because many prisons are located in remote locations with limited water supplies. The reduced use of water reduces waste water and helps ensure the availability of fresh water for other uses.
- PIA recycles cotton core mattresses for all Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation institutions. This process provides sanitized, remanufactured mattresses at a lower price while reducing the burden on California's landfills.
- PIA works to protect ground water around its dairy operations. In addition, PIA is currently investigating the feasibility of creating a co-generation facility run from the methane gas byproduct.
Resources
[1] George Goldman, Ph.D. and Vijay Pradhan, Ph.D., The Economic Impact of California's Prison Industries, University of California Cooperative Extension, University of California, Berkeley, 2002.
Special Note: Portions of the Environmentally Preferable Purchasing Best Practices Manual were borrowed or adapted from the Environmentally Preferable Purchasing Guide published by the Solid Waste Management Coordinating Board of Minnesota.
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