Contracting relieves public administrators of daily hassles, allowing them to plan, set policy, and supervise. Security a. Contracting may enhance public and inmate safety through increased staff training and professionalism. Liability a. Contracting may decrease the risks for which government remains liable, through higher quality performance and through indemnification and insurance. Accountability a. Contracting increases accountability because market mechanisms of control are added to those of the political process. Contracting increases accountability because it is easier for the government to monitor and control a contractor than to monitor and control itself.
Contracting promotes the development and use of objective performance measures.
Contracting can help enforce adherence to procedures and limit or control discretion in the discipline of inmates. Contracting motivates vendors to serve as watchdogs over their competitors. Contracting will encourage much broader interest, involvement, and participation in corrections by people outside of government. Contracting pits the profit motive against other, less benign motives that can operate among those whose job it is to punish criminals. Dependence a. Contracting can increase the number of suppliers, thus reducing dependence and vulnerability to strikes, slowdowns, or bad management.