Since 2017, Californian taxpayers have seen a large portion of public funds go toward trangender surgeries and treatments for inmates. Specifically, the state spent $4 million so that 157 inmates could change their gender, according to The Washington Free Beacon, which obtained records showing that authorities have received about 1,000 requests from prisoners.
Of that total number of prisoners who benefited from the measure, four of them are sentenced to death.
Regarding the expense used by California for these practices, lawyer Harmeet Dhillon, legal representative for several state inmates, described it as "experimental" and "unjustified" that taxpayer money is spent on trans surgeries.
California allocates $2.5 million to vaginoplasties
Among the trans surgeries or treatments most requested by prisoners, vaginoplasties comprise a significant portion. The state allocated around $2.5 million to this procedure. More than $180,000 was spent on other procedures such as breast implants, while 40 prisoners decided to have their breasts removed, which cost more than $1 million.
Two inmates decided to undergo facial feminization surgeries, at a total cost of around $185,000. California spent $224,000 of taxpayer money on laser hair removal for 69 men.
