At the start of March 2026, SCI Rockview and Quehanna Boot Camp officially had zero inmates and zero employees. This affected many families in the community because there is a large group of Central Pennsylvania citizens who worked in these two facilities. 

Talks of the closings of these two facilities started many months prior to the actual closings. The state had many decisions to make, not just about the facilities but also about the inmates and the employees. Inmates were transferred to other facilities based on their sentence, personal needs, and healthcare. Employees were given a choice between a variety of other facilities that had the same job and salary. This helped out the families that were affected by the changes because they didn’t have to worry about trying to find a completely new job and going through the complete process of applying for jobs. This also helped the families financially because they didn’t have to worry about not making enough money during the times of transition. Employees at the two facilities could visit similar facilities to determine whether the transition would benefit them. 

One reason for these closures is that it would save the Pennsylvania government over $100 million dollars in the years to come. Some would say that this is controversial because of all the disruption many families are going through throughout this process. As previously stated, however, the disruption was lessened due to the job sites that they were able to transfer to. 

Another reason for these closures is that they have higher maintenance fees. Rockview alone has needed an estimate of about $74 million dollars in repairs in the last five years. This is a big reason why the state decided to close this facility, because of the amount that it would take to keep sustaining it.

West Branch senior Emma Petriskey, whose family has been affected by the closure of Quehanna Boot Camp, shared, “The closing caused stress and uncertainty in my family, especially for my dad. It was definitely a change for all of us when he got transferred to a different facility.”

The problem now is what will happen to the land and the buildings that are being left empty. It will most likely take money to sustain these facilities before they are bought and used for other purposes. This would still require funding from the state, even though they closed them due to cost. Only time will tell whether these decisions will benefit the state as intended or if they will fall short of expectations.