In part 3 of MuckRock’s look at private prison contracts, we point out the add-ons and hidden costs that keep companies comfortably within government standards.

What is the government looking for when it decides it wants a private prison? In part 2 of our look at private prison contracts, we take a step back to the Request for Proposal, the government’s opening invitation for bidders to throw in their offers.

Private prisons operate in dozens of towns and cities across America - today, we kick off a four-part series looking at the lucrative government contracts designed to keep them there.

If you’re interested in a public company, their Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings are an easy, obvious place to look for information. That said, SEC filings can be pretty drab, and even those of private prison companies CCA and GEO Group aren’t so different on the surface - but inside this unappetizing letter-number salad, as much can be made of what’s going on behind our national system as can be made of what’s on the forms.

The word cloud of prison privatization has two standouts: CCA and GEO. They stand on the stock exchange, some believe as a demonstration of nefarious American ties between justice and capitalism. But ticker symbols and federal filing one-liners are just formal summations of one side of the pipeline. The word cloud shows more dimly the individuals, whole communities, and states that are tethered to them.

Three private prison corporations own the field of for-profit corrections. Are they running their game in your state? If you live in the South, the answer is yes.

Texas is currently home to thirty-five facilities operated by the “big three” private prison companies, doubling the number in the next closest contender, California.

Public Advocate De Blasio blasted private prisons for their lack of transparency. Now what will Mayor De Blasio do about the one operating across the street from JFK?

As part of MuckRock’s ongoing Private Prisons project, Freedom of Information Act requests have been submitted to federal agencies for every one of their private facilities. Track them via our interactive map, and if you follow them from their request page, you’ll be updated when as documents come in.

Do private prisons “cherry pick” inmates, leaving state Corrections departments saddled with offenders in need of more expensive care? While it’s not quite selecting from a line up, they do set the guidelines for who’s in or out.