Taft Correctional Institution

Taft Correctional Institution, or CI Taft, is a privately owned minimum-security facility for male inmates located in Taft, Kern County, California, that is owned by the Bureau of Prisons and operated by Management and Training Corporation. It has a maximum capacity of 2,187 inmates, and they are housed in dormitories which are divided into cubicles.

According to the Federal Bureau of Prisons, contract prisons are secure institutions operated by private corporations, and the majority of inmates are sentenced criminal aliens who might be deported when they complete their sentence.

In August 2016, the Justice Department announced that the BOP would phase out the use of private contracted facilities because they provided less safe and less effective services with no financial benefits. However, in 2018, Attorney General Jeff Sessions reversed the decision.

Prison Insights

This prison does not publicize their visiting hours or rules. So, if you want to visit an inmate at CI Taft, you need to give the facility a call to get specific visiting information or get the information from your incarcerated loved one.

Here are some general guidelines for visiting inmates at a federal prison:

Getting on the Approved Visit List

Authorized visitors who can visit an inmate include family, friends, and associates. You can't visit an inmate unless he puts you on the visiting list.

Everyone must fill out a visitor form, and they must have a relationship with the inmate prior to incarceration. If a potential visitor does not have a prior relationship with the inmate, their request will be reviewed by the warden.

Once the inmate requests to add someone to their visit list, a correctional counselor will provide them with a visiting form, and the inmate is responsible for mailing these out and letting the potential visitor know that they need to fill out the form and return it to the institution staff.

The unit team will do a background check and determine if a visitor application is approved. They make their decision based on constructive and security factors. The process takes about a week, and the unit staff will notify the inmate when the requested visitor is approved or refused.

It is the inmate’s responsibility to notify the visitor of the decision, and the process is the same for both adult and minor visitors.

Basic Visit Procedures and Rules

All visitors are subject to a visual and pat search by an officer. You will also be scanned by a metal detector.

Visitors 16 years of age or older must have a current government-issued photo ID like a driver’s license, state ID, military ID, or passport. A birth certificate is not a proper form of ID.

Any item you bring into the facility will be opened and searched by a staff member, and anyone who refuses a search of themselves or their property will not be allowed to visit with the inmate.

All visitors must be dressed in an appropriate manner. Any visitor who arrives inappropriately dressed will be denied the privilege of visiting.

Visiting in an extremely important family function, and dress code requirements are necessary to maintain the dignity of those involved. All visitors will be properly dressed when coming to visit at the institution.

The attire worn must be appropriate for a courtroom environment (i.e. conservative and professional). In addition, visitors are prohibited against wearing camouflage clothing, khaki colored clothing, hospital scrubs, shorts or Capri style pants whose length is more than 2 inches above the knee cap.

Visitors are prohibited against wearing shorts with a length that does not reach the middle of the wearer’s thigh. No low cut, or see-through clothing, tube or tank tops, backless clothing, low cut (e.g., V-neck) shirts or dresses, sleeveless, halter tops, crop tops, cap sleeves, break away pants, open toe shoes, swimsuits, sweat suits, or any other apparel of a suggestive or revealing nature (e.g., skin-tight clothing, etc.).

If a visitor chooses to wear a dress, the length of the dress will not be shorter than the natural break of the wearer’s leg, at the back of the knee. This requirement includes any type of slit or cut in the dress.

With the exception of religious headgear, hats may not be worn during visits.

No gang related attire or fashions will be allowed in the visiting room, this includes sagging of the pants. Shirts must also be tucked in if deemed excessively long.

Sundresses, jackets, overcoats and excessive jewelry are not permitted.

Visitor purses, coats, car keys, cell phones, cameras, recording devices, watches, jackets, headgear, etc., must be secured in the lockers provided or taken to your vehicle.

Visitors are authorized to bring the following items into the visiting room:

1) Clear change purse
2) $20.00 (bills, no larger than five dollar bills) per adult visitor to use in the vending machines
3) Items need for an infant (diapers, baby food, baby wipes, etc…)

There is no limit on the amount of mail that inmates receive, but all correspondence must have the inmate’s complete name, registration number, facility name, and address.

You can only send cards or letters to these addresses. Paperback books, newspapers, and magazines must come directly from the publisher via a subscription or mail order.

How to Call an Inmate

Federal inmates are not allowed to have cellphones and they can't receive inbound calls. They can make outbound calls during approved hours, and they must pay for them with the money that is on their personal account or call collect.

Inmates will use TRULINCS or JPAY to call to both landline and cell phones. This is also how inmates are able to send and receive emails. Your number must be added to the contact list for approval.

All phone calls are limited to 15 minutes, and will be monitored and recorded.

How to Send Money

Sending money is one of most important things you can do for an inmate. The prison will issue each prisoner the minimum amount of clothing and hygiene items, and provide them with three meals a day. But, it is extremely difficult for prisoners to have any level of comfort when living with just the items that are prison-issued.

Inmates can receive outside funds while incarcerated that are deposited into their commissary accounts.

The following methods are the traditional ways to send money to inmates incarcerated in a federal prison. However, since CI Taft is a private facility, they may not accept all of these methods. Please contact the facility or talk to an inmate to get information on the specific ways to send money to this facility.

Postal Service

For federal prisoners, you can send money through the United States Postal Service by MONEY ORDER to the following address:

Federal Bureau of Prisons
Inmate Name
Eight-Digit Register Number
Post Office Box 474701
Des Moines, Iowa 50947-0001

Western Union

If you would like to see a sample Western Union form click here. On their website, they have a special form for sending money to inmates, and you go directly to it by clicking here.

You will need to know the inmate’s full name and number, and you can pay with a debit or credit card at westernunion.com.

JPay

One of the newest ways to send money to federal inmates, JPay is an online service that partnered with MoneyGram so you can send money through the JPay app, website, or in-person at a MoneyGram agent location.

1. Know your loved one’s Federal inmate ID (BOP Register Number) and the accurate spelling of their first and last names. You can find their BOP Register Number using the BOP inmate locator

2. Once you have that information, click HERE.

3. On the new webpage, type your loved one’s first and last names, and enter their BOP Register Number in the “Inmate ID” field.

4. You’ll then be redirected to create a JPay account or log into your current account.

5. Then you can begin sending money!

Remember, any time you send money to an inmate you must always include their name and registration number on everything.

There are a few things that inmates can spend their money on. This includes phone calls, emails, and commissary.  The commissary is the prison store, where inmates can buy things like beverages, meals and snacks, OTC medications, stationary, personal hygiene items, clothing, electronics, or other miscellaneous products.

Please be aware that prisoners have their own economy inside the prison walls just like we do in the real world. Inmates that have a lot of money can do a lot of things both legal and illegal. Prisoners can potentially use the money in their account to buy things for other inmates in exchange for drugs and paraphernalia. This activity is illegal and can get an inmate in a lot of trouble.

Is important to keep track of how much money you are sending your incarcerated loved one, and watch out for any suspicious behavior.

​Programs For ​Inmates

• Choice and Change
• Victim Impact
• Anger Management
• Thinking For Good
• Alcoholics Anonymous
• Narcotics Anonymous
• Non-Residential Drug Abuse Program (NR-DAP)
• Foundations for a Drug Free World
• GED
• English as a Second Language (ESL)
• High School and Post-Secondary Education (Paid Correspondence Courses)
• Parenting
• Computer skills training
• Truck Driving Courses
• Adult Basic Education
• Advanced courses through Marion Tech College
• English as a Second Language
• Basic Conversational English Class
• Basic Spanish
• HIV/AIDS Education
• INEA
• International Economics
• Introduction to Literature
• Merging Two Worlds
• Music Appreciation
• Peer Education
• Sociology
• Wall Talk
• Multiple Vocational Programs
• Life Skills and Therapy Programs

More information about the programs available at CI Taft can be found on the MTC Website.

Pictures of Taft Correctional Institution

Careers at Taft Correctional Institution

If you are interested in pursuing a career with this private facility, you can find available positions at CI Taft by visiting the MTC website. They offer a team-oriented environment with great pay and benefits.