Pay-to-Stay Program

We offer a fee-based Pay-to-Stay program for individuals that qualify to serve their sentence in a city jail instead of a county jail. With the approval of the sentencing court, men and women may choose to serve their sentence in the Huntington Beach City Jail as an inmate worker.

General Information

The Pay-to-Stay program is available to qualified men and women who have been convicted and sentenced for a misdemeanor offense of no more than one (1) year to serve time in a city jail. It is an opportunity to work or attend school in the community while serving their sentences on consecutive days, nights and weekends.

Checkout times are established for morning releases and return for check-in evening times are based on the individual sentence. Work release inmates may also participate in court-ordered treatment in the community during their stay.

Pay-to-Stay inmates are housed separately from all other inmates and will have minimal contact with non-sentenced inmates. Pay-to-Stay inmates assist with minor chores during their stay, including but not limited to: sweeping, mopping, laundry, trash, general cleaning, etc.

Pay-to-Stay inmates that are unable or unwilling to follow the rules and instructions given by Jail staff will be transferred to the Orange County Jail.

Application Information

The Huntington Beach City Jail is limited in size and ability to house all types of inmates. To ensure that we are able to meet the inmate’s needs, all interested individuals must submit an application, complete a medical questionnaire, and be interviewed prior to receiving approval to enroll in one of our programs. Once an application is received, Jail staff will contact the applicant and schedule an interview to discuss the programs. There is no fee to apply or to determine eligibility.

Applicants are required to be tested for tuberculosis within 90 days of starting their sentence and be negative for active TB. This test and associated cost is the responsibility of the applicant and must be administered by a licensed medical provider. Written proof is required prior to being accepted to begin serving any sentence.

Applicants that have been approved for the program and are authorized for work release are required to wear a GPS tracking device. Applicants must agree to wear and maintain in good order the device prior to acceptance and being allowed to leave for work.

Fee Information

There is no fee to apply or to determine eligibility.
First day of full-time stay costs $150.00 and $100.00 for each subsequent day for the remainder of the sentence.
Work Release inmates are charged the same as the full-time inmates, plus $10.00 per day for the cost of GPS tracking and monitoring.
Eligible applicants will be required to pay program fees for the first two weeks upon starting the sentence. Inmates with sentences longer than two weeks will be required to make payments on the 1st and 15th of each month until all payments are collected.
Once the sentence is successfully completed and all payments are collected, the Court of origin and the inmate will receive a letter of completion.

To apply for the Pay-to-Stay alternate sentencing programs, select one of the following options:

Downloading the application requires Adobe Acrobat or other PDF reader. Submit the completed application: