Damon Hininger
Analyst · Canaccord. Please go ahead
Thanks, Cameron and good morning to everyone joining our call today. Also joining us is Brian Hammonds, our VP of Finance. CCA is the leading provider of correctional, detention and community corrections real estate and services in the United States. We collaborate with our government partners to provide flexible, timely and cost effective solutions to address their unique needs. At the core of these needs are mission-critical real estate assets that require design and construction management expertise as well as significant capital investment over a multi-year construction period. We provide these services to three departments within the federal government, the Federal Bureau of Prisons, the United States Marshals Service and Immigration and Customs Enforcement as well as many states, including the District of Columbia and a handful of local municipalities. There are many common themes facing government operated correctional systems including significant deferred maintenance on existing prison infrastructure due to budget limitations or shortfalls, a lack of funding for new prison development necessary to replace existing government owned facility that have reached the end of their lifecycle or a lack of funding to add additional capacity to alleviate overcrowding in their existing facilities as a result of population growth, the need for additional resources to provide offenders with academic, vocational and other appropriate developmental and rehabilitative opportunities throughout their period of incarceration and the need to expand community-based reentry services offered to offenders reaching the end of their sentences and returning to their communities, which are often proven to reduce the rate of recidivism. We are well-positioned to be the ideal partner for governments that are actively addressing any or all of these themes in their correctional system. CCA's existing facility portfolio is modern and operationally efficient, allowing our government partners the opportunity to lower their operating expenses when compared to relatively older and less-efficient government-owned facilities. Partnering with us also enables customers to avoid significant upfront capital expenditures required to develop a new facility. CCA has industry-leading experience in the siting, design and construction of correctional and detention facilities, having designed and built more capacity in the last decade than any other organization, public or private. Additionally, our portfolio of currently idle or available beds offer our government partners the opportunity to address current capacity needs without the lead time required for a new construction project, which can be as little as two to three years, but is often much longer in the case of government-led construction projects. Many government-owned facilities from the federal level down to local municipalities have reached or are approaching the end of their useful life cycle. These facilities are expensive to maintain, have designs resulting in inefficient staffing patterns and lack modern security technologies that improve facility’s safety and security. Each of these elements result in an unnecessary waste of taxpayer dollars. Additionally, many government-owned facilities are not on a coordinated maintenance program, resulting in a need for significant deferred maintenance investments in the future. These infrastructure investments are not insignificant and in many cases, represent a multibillion dollar problem for individual states and minions at the local level. CCA provides a compelling value proposition to meet these challenges, whether it’s a full-service solution or a design build and lease opportunity; we are the ideal partner for governments. Our partners are also in need of additional resources to provide meaningful reentry programming to prepare their offender populations to return to their communities. While CCA has always been committed to offer an extensive programmatic and rehabilitative services focused on reentry in our correctional and detention facilities, we have also significantly expanded our capabilities to provide community-based corrections and residential reentry services through our recent acquisitions. CCA is the second largest owner and operator of residential reentry facilities in the United States and we are strategically pursuing additional investments to further grow in this area. In the second quarter, we continued to execute this strategy as we closed two acquisitions, adding eight facilities and more than 700 beds to our portfolio. We expect to make additional investments in our residential reentry platform and have developed a substantial pipeline of acquisition opportunities. These acquisitions position us well to diversify our sources of cash flow and to generate future growth as our government partners have expressed a growing need for these facilities and the services they offer. Our strategy for cash flow and funds from operation growth is focused on three specific areas. Owning and operating correctional facilities and detention facilities, the model that represents a majority of our current portfolio and has been the primary driver of growth through our 33-year history. Second, real estate-only solutions, where CCA provides mission-critical real estate assets leased by government organizations. And finally, expanding our residential reentry facility portfolio through acquisitions, either owned and managed or owned and leased to the third-party operators and increasing the occupancy of existing facilities. In addition to the two acquisitions completed during the second quarter, we have recently received contract awards and are activating new facilities in all three of these growth areas, which supports our view of each of them represent a meaningful avenue for future growth. Beginning with owned and managed facilities, we are currently in the process of activating two new facilities. First, we are currently expanding our Red Rock Correctional Center in Arizona to 2,024, beds, adding approximately 400 beds, which is scheduled for completion in the fourth quarter 2016. As the existing facility has nearly 600 beds occupied under a pre-existing 1,000-bed contract, we began receiving inmates under a new 1,000-bed contract with the state of Arizona in July while the expansion construction is ongoing. As of today, we are housing 1,060 offenders at the facility. Upon completion of this $35 million to $38 million expansion, CCA will be under contract for a total of 2,000 beds with an occupancy guarantee of 90%. Additionally, we are in the process ramping up operations at our Trousdale Turner Correction Center, a 2,552-bed facility in Tennessee, which opened in January. In May, we made the decision to temporarily pause the ramp of the inmate populations in collaboration with the Tennessee Department of Corrections, pushing the expected completion of the ramp, scheduled from the end of the second quarter into the third quarter. A safe and secure operational ramp is our number one priority, and reresumed the ramp of the inmate populations, only after we were satisfied that these priorities would be met. As of today, we're housing 1,972 offenders at this facility. In New Mexico, during the second quarter, we were awarded a new contract as a successful responder to an RFP issued by the state. Due to changing partner needs, the inmate population at our New Mexico women's correctional facility will be transitioned to a male population in the coming months. To reflect the change of the facility’s mission, it has been renamed the Northwest New Mexico Correctional Center. The new contract for the male population has a heavy programmatic focus on offender reentry, which is further affirmation of the high-quality residential reentry service offering that CCA can provide. As for real estate-only solutions, in May, we successfully negotiated a lease with the state of Oklahoma for our North Fork Correctional facility, which has been idled in November 2015 following the reduction in California's utilization of out-of-state beds. At 2,400 beds, North Fork was our largest vacant facility in our portfolio. The initial lease term is five years and the average annual rent during the initial term is $7.3 million, including annual rent in the fifth year of $12 million. The lease agreement includes unlimited two-year renewal options following the initial term, which will be based on the rent during the fifth year, plus an adjustment for CPI. Given the state's significant budget shortfalls, due in large part to the persistent downturn in the oil and gas industry and its impact on the state’s economy, we worked with the state to develop a flexible solution, which allow the lease agreement to be budget neutral and the state’s current fiscal year that began on July 1, while the Department of Corrections utilizes the new capacity to realign their inmate populations and close older inefficient facilities. In addition, we recently signed an extension of our contracts with the state -- for the state, for our owned and managed Cimarron and Davis correctional facilities, which have 2 1-year renewal options remaining and our three Oklahoma residential facilities through June 30, 2017. We are proud of our long-standing and growing partnership with the State of Oklahoma and will pursue additional opportunities should they arise. Staying with real estate-only solutions, during the quarter, we also announced a lease extension with California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation for our California City Correctional Center through November 30, 2020 with unlimited 2-year renewal options, which is indicative of the state's ongoing need for this type of in-state capacity solutions we can provide through this real estate-only model. We also had multiple exciting developments in our residential reentry portfolio during the second quarter. In early April, we acquired CMI, or Correctional Management Incorporated, a residential reentry service provider, owning seven facilities, representing 605 beds in Colorado, which we discussed on our first quarter conference call in May. In June, we acquired a 112-bed residential reentry facility in Long Beach, California that is triple-net lease to Community Education Centers to provide residential reentry services for the State of California. Following these acquisitions, CCA owns or controls 25 residential reentry facilities in 6 states, representing approximately 5,000 beds. Subsequent to the end of the second quarter, we received a new 120-bed contract award from California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation at our 120-bed CAI-Boston Avenue residential reentry facility that commenced on August 1. In anticipation of this new contract of California, we had previously consolidated resident populations from the Federal Bureau of Prisons that had been housed at the CAI-Boston Avenue facility in to our 483-bed CAI-Ocean View facility. The Ocean View facility continues to house resident population from the BOP and from the County of San Diego. The average compensated occupancy of the facility was only 65% during the first half of 2016. So the decision to consolidate BOP populations should lead to improve occupancy at the Ocean View facility. When coupled with the new contract at CAI-Boston Avenue, occupancy across the two CAI facilities is expected to increase and have a very positive impact to the cash flows generated under previous contractual arrangements. As you can see from recent developments, we are executing on all three primary growth strategies, owned and managed facility growth, increasing the number of leased facilities providing real estate-only solutions and expanding our residential reentry platform. Each area for growth provides an opportunity for CCA to deliver a customized value proposition to address specific customer needs, while drawn on our core areas of expertise. We are having a number of discussions with potential partners that are looking for additional bed capacity, both in-state and out-of-state or are looking to replace dated capacity and we are well positioned to deliver meaningful solutions that will drive our future growth. Now, before I turn the call over to Dave for a financial overview, I would like to provide a brief update on other recent business developments. Last week, we received word from the BOP that they intend not to renew our contract at the 1,129-bed Cibola County Correctional Center, which is set to expire on September 30 of 2016. Of course, we are disappointed with the Bureau's decision not to renew, but the federal inmate populations have declined by nearly 25,000 in the last three years, resulting in reduced overcrowding in BOP operated facilities. Today, the BOP is operating at approximately 117% of their rate of capacity, down from a roughly 140% three years ago. We are committed to work with the BOP through the transition of Cibola and continue to operate three additional correctional facilities on behalf of the BOP. Following the transfer of populations, we will idle this facility. We are actively marketing the facility and believe there are multiple potential partners that could utilize the facility to address needs within their correctional systems. I would also like to provide an update on developments at our South Texas Family Residential Center. In the second quarter, Immigration and Customs Enforcement or ICE solicited proposals for one or more family residential centers for the housing and care of families. At the same time, ICE engaged CCA to consider modifying the contract for services currently performed at the South Texas Family Residential Center with the intent of identifying cost-reduction opportunities for ICE for both the various policy changes that have occurred since September of 2014, but also with the operation graduating from an emergency short-term requirement to a longer-term need. As a reminder for our investors, ICE approached us in the summer of 2014 to deal with the unprecedented crisis that they were facing on the southern border with families from Central America crossing the U.S. border. So like FEMA, dealing with the natural disaster and working with the private sector, we were asked by ICE to get a residential center that was safe, humane and appropriate for these families up and running within 90 days. And we did that with a major investment of resources for this high-risk complex operation that must comply with significant amount of standards and regulations. The complexity, risk and compliance of various standards haven't changed for this center, but there have been some adjustments to the operational requirements and also the emergency nature of the operation has dissipated that makes it for cost savings. So that is where we find ourselves today and we take it as a positive sign for the continued need of this center by ICE engaging us now. As mentioned in the press release, contract discussions with ICE are in preliminary stages and therefore, we are not in a position to comment on the potential impact of any modification to the existing contract. However, we continue to receive positive feedback from ICE on the quality of operations taken place at the center and we are well-positioned to provide a compelling proposal, given our strong operational track record and because the center is the only of its kind in the United States to be specifically designed for this unique mission. I'd also like to provide an update on the litigation between the government and attorneys, representing a class of minors at ICE custody, including minors at our residential center in South Texas related to a 1997 settlement agreement, commonly referred to as the Flores settlement agreement. In July, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against most of the government's appeal, seeking to overturn the lower court's ruling that the stipulation set forth in the Flores settlement agreement should apply to ICE held minors and family residential centers. ICE has yet to publicly comment on their legal strategy related to this matter. However, there continued to be multiple avenues available to ICE to seek review of the court's decision. But one important point on this recent development with this case. This ruling by no means, prohibits ICE from the housing of families at our South Texas Family Residential Center. It does require South Texas operation that has to comply with the Flores settlement agreement, which, during an influx of minors at the southern border, requires that ICE release minors expeditiously as possible. It's important to keep in mind that when ICE takes a minor, whether accompanied or not, into custody, ICE has important legal processes it has to complete to ensure the safety to both the minor and the public. These processing steps take time. We worked closely with ICE to streamline the operation so as to allow for shorter state by families. And to give you a sense of the short-term nature of the operation, the average length of stay at the Center for Families during the month of July was 11.2 days. Additionally, as we discussed on first quarter conference call, we are actively pursuing a childcare license to be issued by the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services for our South Texas Family Residential Center following the completion of the rules promulgation process by the State of Texas during the first quarter. In early May, the state faced legal challenges to their authority to issue a child care license to family residential centers. On June 1, a Texas district court judge issued a temporary injunction prohibiting Texas Department of Family and Protective Services from issuing a childcare license to our South Texas Family Center. As a result, a childcare license cannot be issued to our South Texas Family Residential Center until a full trial is held to evaluate the merits of the case and determine whether the state has the authority to license family residential centers. The trial is preliminarily scheduled to begin on September 26, 2016. And to be clear, this case does not concern ICE's ability to use the center to process and meet the urgent needs of apprehended families as it is currently doing with its clearances on keeping families together. As mentioned earlier, on the Flores settlement, during the influx of minors at the Southern Border, it requires that ICE releases minors as expeditiously as possible, which is the requirement today. However, licensor is of interest of ICE and we will work with them towards the goal of obtaining their license. Finally, going back to California. Dave is going to highlight our current assumptions on California populations in his comments as it relates to our updated guidance. However, I did want to comment on a ballot initiative that is being evaluated by the voters in California this coming November. Called Prop 57 or the Public Safety and Rehabilitation Act of 2016, if passed, it would allow for the following. First, authorized parole consideration for people with nonviolent convictions who complete their full sentence for their primary offense. Second, have incentives for people in prison to encourage them to participate in and complete rehabilitation and education programs. Third, require the sector correction to certify that the regulation is implementing these policies, protect and enhance public safety. And finally, allow judges to decide whether youth as young as 14 years old should be tried as an adult. The state’s Legislative Analyst’s Office or LAO, issued a report, which was released last week on Prop 57. Prop 57 would give significant leeway to CDCR Secretary and parole Board and how each implements the measures, so it's hard to be precise on actual impact. However, the LAO report put the approximate cost savings in the tens of millions of dollars annually on CDCR’s annual budget of $10.6 billion. And as a reminder, our facilities in Mississippi and Arizona are all sales housing versus dormitory housing. This type of housing is suitable for higher custody inmates, which has been very attractive to California since they are limited on this type of capacity within the state. In fact, the nearly 4,900 Californian inmates housed in our facilities in Mississippi and Arizona, over 85% of them are level 3 or level 4 inmates, which classifies them as medium security or higher custody. Now I'd like to turn the call over to Dave to cover our second quarter financial performance and review the primary drivers of our updated financial guidance for 2016. Dave?