SACRAMENTO, CA –Senator Melissa Hurtado (D-Sanger) today announced a deal between the California Department of Correction and Rehabilitation (CDCR) and the City of Shafter to return the unoccupied Shafter Modified Community Correctional Facility back the city’s control.

Shafter Mayor Says Facility “can become a symbol of hope and future

prosperity” for Shafter

“This was a bipartisan team effort, I’d like to thank the Governor and CDCR, as well as Senator Shannon Grove for working with my office to return the facility to Shafter,” said Senator Hurtado. “California has been so focused on criminal justice reform, that many rural communities have been forgotten. The closures of these facilities creates an injustice, with vulnerable rural communities losing their jobs and economy along the way. As the state continues to move forward, we must ensure other injustices are not created. Securing this agreement is one step towards justice for the City of Shafter.”

“The settlement agreement terminated between the City and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) makes it a great day in Shafter,” said Shafter Mayor Cathy L. Prout. “On behalf of the Shafter City Council, we want to thank Senator Hurtado for her support with this endeavor. It was a team effort and a partnership with the State of California to accomplish what we have succeeded. Without the termination of this agreement, this would have created a financial burden on the City.  Shafter now has the opportunity to pursue and expand education programs and possibly economic development possibilities that create jobs at the former MCCF facility.”

The City of Shafter and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) executed a settlement agreement in 1996 to resolve certain lawsuits between the city and the department. The City of Shafter took ownership of the Shafter Return to Custody Facility, which is now known as the Shafter Modified Community Correctional Facility. This agreement granted CDCR ninety-nine one-year lease options to use the facility. CDCR agreed to cease operations at the facility effective October 31, 2020, however the City of Shafter was required to maintain the facility at $120,000 annually.  

The cessation of operations at the facility led to many employees laid off, and impacted Shafter businesses. Like many cities, Shafter was hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, and the cost of facility maintenance would have created an additional financial strain. By relinquishing the lease for the now-vacant Shafter Modified Community Correctional Facility, the city can re-purpose the facility to meet the community’s needs.

Media Contact: Michelle.Sherwood@sen.ca.gov

About Senator Melissa Hurtado

Senator Melissa Hurtado represents a new generation of Latina leaders as the youngest woman ever elected to the California State Senate and a product of immigrant parents. Senator Hurtado represents the 14th Senate District and focuses on rural community issues that often go unheard — access to clean air and water, food insecurity and poverty, inequities in environmental policies, agriculture and access to health care. In July 2020, she was appointed to the national Biden Latino Leadership Committee alongside former Labor Secretary and current Los Angeles County Supervisor Hilda Solis – the only two California Latinas on the Committee.

For more information, visit Senator Hurtado’s Website here or find her on Twitter at @Senator_Hurtado

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