"It is unacceptable for incarcerated people and their loved ones to fund the Department of Corrections' operating expenses and staffing costs through high markups on essential goods," Borgeson said in her testimony in support of SB 474.
She also read a letter from Steve Warren, an inmate at San Quentin, who listed some of the prices that the canteen charges: $10.80 for a case of soup, $3.60 for a stick of deodorant; $2.40 for laundry soap. With inmates earning a minimum wage of $0.08 per hour, he receives about $12.80 per month.
"Overpriced canteen items force me to become a financial burden to my family," the letter stated.
In his testimony to the Assembly Public Safe Committee, Becker noted that the February 2023 price list at San Quentin State Prison shows Aquafresh toothpaste going for $5.50, more than twice of what it would cost at Walgreens, where it retails for $1.83. These markups, he said, "make may produces inaccessible and economically drain over $30 million a year from predominantly low-income families of color."
"We need the BASIC Act, because incarcerated people should not have to choose between basic necessities of food, hygiene products or health supplements," Becker said.
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