Facility record · California
California Correctional Institution
CCI · Tehachapi · Kern County
- SecurityLevels I–IV
- Population2,376
- Occupancy158%
Jail411 holds no custody records. A listing here does not mean anyone is held at this address.
California Correctional Institution (CCI) is a state prison in Tehachapi, Kern County, California. By capacity it is the 29th-largest of the 30 state prison records listed for California with a published capacity. It is one of 21 correctional facilities in Kern County, and California operates 30 state prisons in total.
Contact & details
CDCR Infrastructure Master Plan, Appendix 1 (May 2026), period ending 30 April 2026
Finding someone first
Nothing below works without two things: confirmation that the person is at California Correctional Institution, and their CDCR number. Book a visit without them and you will be turned away; post a letter without the number and the mailroom cannot route it.
CDCR's public search covers people in CDCR custody. A disclaimer must be accepted before searching, and CDCR states the tool is informational rather than an official record. County jail populations are held separately.
CIRIS — California Incarcerated Records and Information Search ↗
Visiting California Correctional Institution
This is what the institution publishes, in the order you will meet it: when visits run, how to get approved, how to book, when to arrive, and what you may carry in.
When visits run
Visiting open · 15 August 2026Get approved
You must be approved before booking. The incarcerated person first sends you a signed CDCR Form 106 Visiting Questionnaire. Complete that copy, then mail it directly to CCI’s Visiting office.
Send it to: Mail the completed questionnaire to California Correctional Institution, Attention: Visiting, P.O. Box 1031, Tehachapi, CA 93581. This is CCI’s official institution/staff mailbox.
What not to do: Do not mail the completed questionnaire back to the incarcerated person. Send it directly to CCI’s Visiting office at the institution/staff address above.
Do not use the housing-specific inmate mailboxes for Facilities A–E. P.O. Box 608 is inmate mail for Facility D, not CCI’s Visiting office.Book through the scheduling application
Use VSA for appointments. The request period opens eight days before the visit at 6:30 a.m.; CCI says email requests are not reviewed.
Open the Visitation Scheduling Application ↗
Walking in: Walk-ins are first come, processed only as space becomes available and not guaranteed. Visitors sign up after arriving on institutional grounds.
Non-contact and restricted-housing visitsNon-contact visiting is not a choice — it is what applies while someone is in reception (newly admitted to CDCR, or just transferred between prisons) or is segregated.
Arrive, and report to visitor processing
Arrive within 30 minutes of the scheduled appointment; after that grace period the visitor is treated as a walk-in. CCI also directs visitors to check QuickMap and cancellation notices before travel.
Parking: Use CCI’s marked visitor parking and follow institutional signs to the correct processing point for the person’s current facility. Accessible spaces are marked, but confirm any route accommodation while the A and B elevators are out.
Where to report: Report to CCI visitor processing at 24900 Highway 202 and use the on-site signs for the person’s current facility. Confirm housing in CIRIS before travel; CCI permits only one visit per incarcerated person per day.
Bring the right things, and only those
Allowed in
- Visitors are strictly limited to CDCR's published allowed-item list: limited cash, a small clear bag, two keys, ID, a nonmetallic comb/brush, tissues, prescription glasses, limited photographs/documents, specified baby items, approved medical/religious items, and service animals. Other unauthorized property should not be brought into the visiting area.
Identification: Adults must present valid, current photo identification. Accepted forms listed by CDCR include a state driver's license or DMV ID, armed-forces photo ID, ICE ID, U.S. or foreign passport, or Mexican Consulate photo ID.
How many may visit: General-population in-person visits allow up to five visitors and generally last through normal visiting hours; non-contact visits are limited to three visitors and usually one to two hours.
Bringing a child: A visitor under 18 must be accompanied by an approved adult. CDCR requires a certified birth certificate; legal guardians also need proof of guardianship, and another accompanying adult needs the birth certificate plus an original notarized consent authorization renewed yearly.
Video visits and cost: Weekend video visiting at adult institutions ended July 7, 2023. Incarcerated people with tablets remain eligible for 15 minutes of free video calls every two weeks.
Phone calls, money and mail
Phone calls
You cannot call in. CDCR states that it is up to the incarcerated person to initiate the call, and that calls are limited to 15 minutes. That single fact explains most of what families find confusing: the switchboard will not connect you, there is no voicemail, and a call arriving from an unfamiliar number is normal. What you can do from the outside is make sure the call can reach you — that your number is not blocked by your carrier, that it is not a VoIP or virtual number the system will refuse, and that whatever account arrangement the facility uses is set up and funded before he tries. For anything urgent, a message goes through the institution rather than the phone system.
Putting money on the books
Before anything else you need the person's CDCR number, from California Incarcerated Records and Information Search (CIRIS), and their current location from CDCR's facility locator. CDCR then lists three routes. Electronic funds transfer through one of its vendors: GTL/ConnectNetwork, JPay, or Access Corrections. A lock box deposit, which CDCR states carries no fee when sent by money order, personal check or cashier's check: complete the Money Order Deposit Form with the sender's name and address, make the payment payable to JPay, and mail it to JPay, 2202 South Figueroa St, Box #3001, Los Angeles, CA 90007. CDCR caps this at $999.99 per money order, holds personal checks for ten business days, and warns that any letter or note enclosed with a payment will be discarded. Or send a check or money order to the institution itself. Vendor fees vary by amount and method, so check the vendor's own figure before you send.
Writing to someone here
Anyone may write to a person in a California state prison. Incoming letters are opened and inspected for contraband, then forwarded. CDCR asks that the envelope carry the person's full committed name and CDC number, the institution name, the P.O. box and housing assignment where known (CDCR states housing is preferable), and the city, CA and ZIP. The housing assignment is the part most people do not have: get it, and the CDCR number, from California Incarcerated Records and Information Search (CIRIS), from the institution's Public Information Officer, or from CDCR's Identification Unit. Note that the address mail goes to is not always the institution's street address, so confirm it before posting anything you cannot replace.
Full committed name · CDCR number · housing
California Correctional Institution (CCI)
Facility A, P.O. Box 1902, Tehachapi, CA 93581
Full committed name · CDCR number · housing
California Correctional Institution (CCI)
Facility B, P.O. Box 1906, Tehachapi, CA 93581
Full committed name · CDCR number · housing
California Correctional Institution (CCI)
Facility C, P.O. Box 1905, Tehachapi, CA 93581
Full committed name · CDCR number · housing
California Correctional Institution (CCI)
Facility D, P.O. Box 608, Tehachapi, CA 93581
Full committed name · CDCR number · housing
California Correctional Institution (CCI)
Facility E, P.O. Box 107, Tehachapi, CA 93581
Getting there, and staying
These Tehachapi properties are planning options, not endorsements. Confirm the drive to CCI, exact room, accessibility features, parking, deposit and cancellation deadline directly. Kern Transit Route 100 stops in Tehachapi and Tehachapi Dial-A-Ride serves its published local service area, but no current official page confirms a routine stop at CCI’s visitor entrance. Confirm both the prison drop-off and return trip before travel.
Confirm the last mile: Kern Transit and Tehachapi Dial-A-Ride: (800) 323-2396. Dial-A-Ride requires an advance reservation; same-day service is not guaranteed.
Where to stay
Winter road conditions can affect both the hotel and prison route. Do not select a nonrefundable rate until the visit and cancellation terms are checked.
Somewhere to eat
| Place | What and when | Phone |
|---|---|---|
| Denny’s847 Magellan Street, Tehachapi, CA 93561 | Official page lists 24-hour service, round-the-clock breakfast and takeout | (661) 823-7380 |
| McDonald’s2000 E. Tehachapi Boulevard, Tehachapi, CA 93561 | Breakfast, drive-through and mobile ordering; confirm same-day opening time | (661) 823-8300 |
| Holiday Inn Express breakfast901 Capital Hills Parkway, Tehachapi, CA 93561 | Free breakfast for registered guests, published 6:00–9:00 a.m. | (661) 822-9837 |
Local planning notes
Confirm the housing unit: Use CIRIS to confirm the person’s current housing before leaving. A visit reservation does not override a housing move, eligibility restriction, processing cutoff or the one-visit-per-day rule.
Road check: Check Caltrans QuickMap and CCI’s live visiting page immediately before departure. Appointment holders receive VSA cancellation notices when road or weather conditions affect access; walk-ins should call first.
Inside the institution
CCI uses Facilities A through E for housing/mail routing, while CDCR says the original minimum facility was deactivated in 2021. Confirm the current facility in CIRIS rather than relying on an old letter or prior visit.
Restricted housing
CDCR’s institution-level reporting identifies a restricted-housing unit at CCI. A person’s RHU or other non-contact status can change booking method, visit length, physical contact and visitor limit; confirm the current assignment with Visiting.
Health care, programs and release preparation
These services differ by institution. The details below describe what this prison reports, not a systemwide promise that every person qualifies for every program.
Health care
The official page identifies Penny Shank as Health Care CEO since May 1, 2025; ISUDT participants are assessed by medical staff and referred to cognitive-behavioral treatment levels.
Education, training and work
Academic offerings include literacy, Adult Basic Education, GED, and ESEA programming for people under 21; vocational programs include computer/cabling, office services, HVAC/refrigeration, automotive, welding, auto body, and building maintenance.
Preparing for release
CCI publishes ISUDT cognitive-behavioral treatment pathways, vocational training and self-help groups including substance-use recovery, anger management, veterans support, writing and conflict-resolution programs.
Planning note: The public CCI page does not publish a facility-specific release-planning contact. The incarcerated person should use their counselor/case team for eligibility and release steps; families can call the main line for the correct institutional office.
Reported figures
These are the institution’s own returns to the state, and every group is dated. They have to be: the figures come from separate documents on separate cadences, and reading the whole set as one snapshot would be wrong.
Capacity and population
as at 30 April 2026How the population is housed
as at 30 June 2024Staffing
as at 30 June 2024Education and training
as at 30 June 2024CDCR Infrastructure Master Plan, Appendix 1 (May 2026) (Public record) · California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, SB601 Reporting (CC BY 4.0)
Guides that go wider than this institution
These cover the same ground across every facility in the directory, which is what you want if the person may be moved, or if you are helping someone in a different state.