California Code of Regulations › Title 15 - Crime Prevention and Corrections › Division 3 - Adult Institutions, Programs and Parole › Chapter 1 - Rules and Regulations of Adult Operations and Programs › Subchapter 2 - Inmate Resources › Article 4 - Mail › Section 3134.1 - Processing of Publications

Current through Register 2024 Notice Reg. No. 28, July 12, 2024
(a)
					 Publications. Inmates may subscribe to, purchase, or have items sent in to them such
					 as newspapers, periodicals, magazines or books. If subscriptions or books are
					 purchased for the inmate by a third party or donated to an inmate, they must be
					 mailed directly from a book store, book distributor, or publisher. Personal
					 correspondents cannot mail books, periodicals, or other publications directly to
					 inmates and state that they are a donation. There shall be no "Approved Vendor
					 Lists" for any publications.
(b)
					 Processing and Inspection of Incoming Magazines and Newspapers. All magazines and
					 newspapers shall be inspected prior to issuance to ensure that they comply with
					 sections 3006,
					 3134, and
					 3135. Attached free CD's and packaged
					 samples of perfume, lotion, moisturizers, stickers, or any item deemed to be
					 contraband, contained in magazines shall be removed; notification of such to the
					 inmate is not required. No other items shall be removed from a magazine or other
					 publication in order to issue it to an inmate.
(c) Processing and Inspection of Incoming Books.
					 All incoming paperback and hardback books and any enclosures within them shall be
					 inspected prior to issuance to ensure they comply with sections
					 3006,
					 3134, and
					 3135. For hardback books staff shall
					 allow the inmate to determine whether to accept the book with the cover removed or,
					 if that option is declined, decide how the book is to be disposed of per section
					 3191(c). If the inmate
					 chooses to accept the book, staff shall insure the book does not violate any other
					 departmental regulation, and then shall remove the entire cover in front of the
					 inmate. Should such removal render the book unstable, staff shall take measures to
					 ensure the book remains intact.
(d)
					 Notifications, to Publisher, to the Inmate, and to the Division of Adult
					 Institutions (DAI) for Disapproval of Publication. When incoming books, magazines,
					 or publications to an inmate are withheld or disallowed on a temporary basis by the
					 institution pending approval from DAI, a letter shall be sent by the institution to
					 the publisher explaining why the item was denied. A book, magazine, or publication
					 denied to an inmate(s) based on a violation of departmental regulation or policy,
					 and that is not included on the current Centralized List of Disapproved Publications
					 (Centralized List) pursuant to subsection
					 3134.1(e), shall only
					 require one notification letter per institution to be sent to the publisher. At a
					 minimum the letter must include the reason why the book, magazine, or publication
					 was denied, the names and CDCR number for all inmates, the applicable CCR section
					 that the publication violates, and a notice to the Publisher of their right to
					 appeal pursuant to subsection
					 3137(c). The letter
					 must be sent within 15 calendar days of the determination to disallow the book,
					 magazine or publication, with a copy of the notification letter and supporting
					 documents to be retained by the facility for a minimum of seven years. Concurrent to
					 the letter to the publisher, when incoming or outgoing publications addressed to or
					 being sent by an inmate are withheld or disallowed, the institution shall also
					 notify the inmate addressee via CDCR Form 1819 (Rev. 07/18), Notification of
					 Disapproval-Mail/Packages/Publications, which is incorporated by reference. The CDCR
					 Form 1819 shall include the reason, disposition, name of official disallowing the
					 publication, and the name of the official to whom a grievance can be directed.
The institution shall also concurrently notify DAI and request
						that DAI affirm or deny the withholding of the temporarily disallowed publication.
						DAI shall provide the decision within 30 calendar days of receiving the request. If
						DAI affirms the withholding of the publication, disallowance of the publication
						shall become permanent. If DAI denies the withholding of the publication, the
						institution shall deliver the publication to the inmate within 15 calendar days,
						upon receipt of DAI's decision.
For periodicals, as defined in subsection
						3133(a)(3), the DAI
						may include a periodical on the Centralized List, in accordance with subsection
						3134.1(e), provided
						that all issues of the publication for twelve consecutive months violate
						departmental regulation or policy. However, an institution may disallow individual
						issues of a periodical in accordance with this subsection. The disallowance of
						individual issues of a periodical shall become permanent, as to those issues only,
						if DAI affirms an institution's decision to temporarily withhold or disallow the
						individual issues. If the DAI denies the institution's decision to temporarily
						withhold individual issues of a periodical, the institutional shall deliver those
						issues to the inmate within 15 calendar days upon receipt of DAI's
						decision.
(e) Centralized List Of
					 Disapproved Publications. The Division of Adult Institutions shall distribute to
					 each institution a Centralized List of Disapproved Publications that are prohibited
					 as contraband. Examples of publications that would be included on the Centralized
					 List would include, but not be limited to, publications that contain, obscene
					 material as described in subsection
					 3006(c)(15), sexually
					 explicit images that depict frontal nudity as described in subsection
					 3006(c)(17)(A) warfare
					 or weaponry, bomb making instructions, or STG written materials or photographs, as
					 described in subsections
					 3378.2(b)(5)-(6).
					 Publications that are enumerated on the Centralized List are not allowed in any
					 institution. Local institutions may not add items to the Centralized List. When a
					 publication is placed on the Centralized List, the Division of Adult Institutions
					 shall send a letter to the publisher explaining why the publication was excluded. At
					 a minimum, the letter must include the reason why the publication is excluded, the
					 applicable CCR section that the publication violates, and a notice to the Publisher
					 of its right to complain per CCR subsection
					 3137(c). The letter
					 must be sent within 15 calendar days of the determination to disapprove the
					 publication, with a copy of the notification letter and supporting documents to be
					 retained by the facility for a minimum of seven years.
1. New section
						filed 7-17-2008; operative 7-17-2008 pursuant to Government Code section
						11343.4
						(Register 2008, No. 29).
2. Amendment of subsections (d) and (e) filed
						4-30-2015; operative 4-30-2015 pursuant to Government Code section
						11343.4(b)(3)
						(Register 2015, No. 18).
3. Amendment of subsection (d) and NOTE filed
						10-20-2016; operative 10-20-2016 pursuant to Government Code section
						11343.4(b)(3)
						(Register 2016, No. 43).
4. Amendment of subsections (d) and (e) filed
						3-25-2020 as an emergency; operative 6-1-2020 (Register 2020, No. 13). Pursuant to
						Penal Code section
						5058.3, a
						Certificate of Compliance must be transmitted to OAL by 11-9-2020 or emergency
						language will be repealed by operation of law on the following day.
5.
						Emergency filed 3-25-2020 and operative 6-1-2020 extended 60 days pursuant to
						Executive Order N-40-20 and an additional 60 days pursuant to Executive Order
						N-66-20 (Register 2020, No. 42). A Certificate of Compliance must be transmitted to
						OAL by 3-9-2021 or emergency language will be repealed by operation of law on the
						following day.
6. Amendment of subsections (d) and (e) refiled 2-25-2021
						as an emergency; operative 3-10-2021 (Register 2021, No. 9). Emergency expiration
						extended 60 days (Executive Order N-40-20) plus an additional 60 days (Executive
						Order N-71-20). A Certificate of Compliance must be transmitted to OAL by 10-8-2021
						or emergency language will be repealed by operation of law on the following
						day.
7. Amendment of subsections (d) and (e) refiled 10-4-2021 as an
						emergency; operative 10-8-2021 pursuant to Government Code section
						11346.1(d)
						(Register 2021, No. 41). A Certificate of Compliance must be transmitted to OAL by
						1-6-2022 pursuant to Government Code section
						11346.1(h)
						or emergency language will be repealed by operation of law on the following
						day.
8. Certificate of Compliance as to 10-4-2021 order, including
						amendment of CDCR Form 1819 (incorporated by reference) and further amendment of
						subsection (d), transmitted to OAL 12-7-2021 and filed 1-5-2022; amendments
						operative 1-5-2022 pursuant to Government Code section
						11343.4(b)(3)
						(Register 2022, No. 1).
Note: Authority cited: Section
						  5058, Penal Code.
						  Reference: Sections
						  2601 and
						  4570, Penal Code;
						  Procunier v. Martinez (1974) 416
						  U.S. 396; and Bell v. Wolfish (1979)
						  441 U.S.
						  520.
The amended version of this section by
						Register
						2024, No. 28, effective 7/1/2024 is not yet
						available.