Newport Beach considers outsourcing city jail

The city of Newport Beach is taking preliminary steps toward outsourcing the operation of the city jail to a private company.

The city has requested bids from providers who could operate the jail.

Police Chief Jay Johnson told the Daily Pilot that the move could reduce the jail's $1-million annual budget by 30% to 40%.

The jail, located at Police Department headquarters in Newport Center, would not move from the area as part of the outsourcing proposal, and no police personnel would be laid off, Johnson said.

The city is searching for some operation to run the 27-bed jail, possibly as soon as the city gets a viable bidder and the City Council approves the change, according to a copy of the bid, which Johnson confirmed.

Recently, Costa Mesa took a similar measure, approving a contract with international company G4S Security Solutions, paying it $743,329 a year to run the city jail.

Newport Beach initially floated the idea of partnering with a neighboring city to share jail costs, but the complications of location and jail capacity kept that idea from being a viable solution.

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-- Lauren Williams, Times Community News