Big House Inc.

CSC appears to have tried to play this game at its Phoenix West DUI facility.

Phoenix West can house 445 inmates in eight dormitories, with 55 inmates in each dorm. Each dorm contains three toilets and three showers.

Jackie Mercandetti

CCA's Florence, Arizona, jail.

Bruce Bennett/Palm Beach Post

Inmates stand near razor wire at Pahokee Youth Development Center in Florida.

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Last year, the prison's warden proposed increasing the inmate population of each dorm by 16 people. The warden did not seek legislative approval for the increase, which is required under Arizona law. Recently, inmates at the facility sent a letter to Governor Janet Napolitano protesting the attempts to add inmates to an already overloaded facility.

Rau, the CSC executive, denies his company cuts staff to dangerous levels or overcrowds facilities. And it is not true, he says, that his company makes its profits solely by undercutting wages and slicing staff.

Private prisons are able to turn a profit -- and save taxpayers money -- because they don't have to get bogged down in state regulations when purchasing buildings and equipment, Rau says.

But national data show that any savings generally aren't passed on to states.

Further privatizing prisons "is the worst idea to come along in a long, long time," Masella says. "I don't think Arizonans can completely fathom yet what troubles would follow."

Like Pearce, Rau says such are the concerns of people afraid of change. He insists that companies such as CSC, not public prisons, are Arizona's future.

Rau ends on a high note:

"I love your great state!"

If many state legislators have their way, he may soon love it even more.