Amador County - 10th District Assemblymember Alyson Huber is seeking support for a bill she introduced last week that would halt the planned closure of Preston Youth Correctional Facility.
Assembly Bill 8 was the first piece of legislation Huber introduced after taking the oath of office for her second term. Shortly after its introduction, Huber said the bill “would prohibit the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Division of Juvenile Facilities from closing any youth correctional facility during the six-month period following the effective date of the legislation.” It also directs that activities levels at any facility will remain at effectively the same levels as when the closure of Preston was first announced.
The closure will affect over 400 staff and at least 200 juvenile wards. Most of the wards would be transferred to nearby facilities in Stockton. The closure will also impact city and county revenues, businesses, school revenue, and potentially reduce the value of area homes.
At a special meeting called by Huber and the Amador County Board of Supervisors last week, Huber urged the capacity crowd in attendance to “write letters, make calls” and “do what it takes” to urge the legislature to approve the bill. She said the bill includes findings she feels are “incontrovertible.” Word spread Monday among concerned citizens that Huber seeks at least 2000 letters in her office to protest the bill. She plans on taking these letters into committee when she presents her bill in the coming weeks, a tactic she has used when introducing several past bills.
Said Huber last week: “This bill will put a temporary halt to the process that CDCR seems intent on barreling forward without clear regard of the impact of the decision. It will give the Legislature and Governor the time necessary to look deeper into how CDCR is making decisions about how to meet the needs of a dwindling youth offender population and a shrinking budget.”
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