Corrections, prison health and public‑safety asks feature in budget briefing

The committee spent substantial time on mandatory public‑safety spending and court‑ordered costs. Ben Henderson told the panel the governor's budget "does include 24,400,000.0 general fund ongoing to make sure that those 7,000 correctional officers do not receive a pay cut of $2,000." He also said the budget includes a $118,300,000 one‑time general fund item to meet court‑ordered prison health‑care staffing requirements.

Members asked about the cost of a receivership and whether the state could afford it. Henderson warned that receivership "is very, very expensive," noting that California's receivership increased spending by $3.1 billion while reducing prison population; he said that would remove appropriation authority from the legislature.

The budget also proposes $10.5 million ongoing for the state's share of county probation costs, $5.1 million one‑time to expand in‑prison body‑worn cameras (Henderson cited reductions in staff assaults and use‑of‑force incidents) and $9.0 million for anti‑fentanyl efforts that combine general‑fund, National Guard and other funds.

Committee members asked for additional detailed, written cost information over the administration's three years and pressed for clarity on which items are baseline obligations and which are discretionary. The committee did not vote on any corrections items and asked the executive office to provide follow‑up figures.