CONTACT: ERIC RESLOCK
(916) 358-1802
eric.reslock@calpia.ca.gov

$16,000 from “Free Venture Program” Dispersed to the California Victim Compensation and Government Claims Board

N.A. Chaderjian Youth Correctional Facility – On February 15th, the Free Venture Program (FVP), a component of the Division of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) that is managed by the California Prison Industry Authority (CALPIA), presented two checks in the amounts of $9,496.62 and $6,625.20 to the California Victim Compensation and Government Claims Board.

“The Free Venture Program mandates that youthful offenders pay 20 percent of their wages to victims of crime,” said Free Venture Administrator Gary Bush. “The program provides youthful offenders with training and real-work job experience, and offers youthful offenders opportunities to obtain meaningful employment upon parole.”

The FVP was created in 1985 and allows youthful offenders to work for private companies in youth correctional facilities and earn a comparable wage. Youthful offenders pay taxes, room and board, and family support. In addition, State and Federal laws require the deduction of 20 percent of the youthful offenders’ net wages to compensate victims of crime.

In Fiscal Year 2009-10, CDCR/CALPIA Joint and Free Venture Programs disbursed more than $94,407.38 to crime victims and crime victim groups statewide.

CALPIA is a self-financed state entity that receives all of its revenue from the sale of products it manufactures. The recidivism rate among CALPIA inmates is more than 25 percent lower than the general prison population, a success attributed to the job skills they receive by working in CALPIA business enterprises.

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