Rising construction costs will mean the billions of dollars going to new prison and county jail cells in California will buy less. Last year, state lawmakers and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger approved a $7.8 billion plan to build 53,000 cells. The state Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation on Wednesday said that money now will buy 12,400 fewer prison cells and about 3,000 fewer jail cells.Chief Deputy Secretary Deborah Hysen blames high construction costs, particularly for steel and concrete.Corrections Secretary Matthew Cate says the department also decided it needs more traditional cells as opposed to the open dormitories that had been planned. The building program is part of California's attempt to address overcrowding in its prison system. It has become so severe that many aspects of prison operations have been placed under federal oversight.

The Mule Creek State Prison in Ione has had to modify several facilities to make room for an increasing number of inmates. Inmates sit and lay in their bunk beds in a gymnasium that was modified to house prisoners. A panel of three federal judges is looking to put a cap on the California State Prison population after class action lawsuits were filed on behalf of inmates who complained of being forced to live in classrooms, gymnasiums and other non-traditional prison housing. California prisons house nearly 173,000 inmates with over 17,000 of them in non-traditional housing. Recent efforts to expand the Amador County jail have failed as well. This was a huge disappointment,” said Sheriff Martin Ryan. In a TSPN interview exclusive, Sheriff Martin Ryan described the current local jail as “chronically overcrowded.” Amador County’s request includes plans to expand the current 75 bed jail to 165. Amador County has seen a 118% increase in inmates since 2002, most of whom are parole violators. Ryan and Mule Creek officials will be watching the State’s progress with a close eye and hoping for the best.