By Sarah Payne — The United States’ prison population is currently the second highest globally, falling closely behind China at just over 1.5 million individuals incarcerated.[1] This means the United States accounts for approximately 25% of the world’s prison population, despite accounting for just 5% of the world’s population overall.[2] Furthermore, the average cost of incarceration in the United States of America sits at approximately $80 billion per year for the taxpayer,[3] while corporations within the private prison industry are estimated to bring in an estimated $374 million annually.[4] Given the disproportionate number of incarcerated individuals in the United States of America, the private prison industry is opportunely positioned to make a profit from cheap prison labor. The labor, however, is exploitative not only to incarcerated individuals, but also to taxpayers. At play within this legal situation is the profit of corporations complicit in the prison industry, the well-being of incarcerated individuals, and the financial implications for the taxpayer. This paper offers an alternative approach to the carceral system that deprioritizes corporate profit margins to better prioritize the incarcerated community and taxpayers.