California spent nearly $21 billion on incarceration and crime in 2015

IONE, CA - AUGUST 28: Inmates at the Mule Creek State Prison interact in a gymnasium that was modified to house prisoners August 28, 2007 in Ione, California. A panel of three federal judges is looking to put a cap on the California State Prison population after class action lawsuits were filed on behalf of inmates who complained of being forced to live in classrooms, gymnasiums and other non-traditional prison housing. California prisons house nearly 173,000 inmates with over 17,000 of them in non-traditional housing. The Mule Creek State Prison has had to modify several facilities to make room for an increasing number of inmates. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Despite recent reforms, the state and county spent $15 billion on incarceration and nearly $6 billion responding to criminal acts.

California has made several reforms to its criminal justice system over the past two decades. Programs like realignment in 2011 made lower-level felons eligible for parole.

The ultimate goal was simple: cut crime rates and reduce the number of people in the state's correctional facilities.

But a new report out from the California Budget and Policy Center says that, despite those efforts, the state spent nearly $21 billion dollars on crime last year.

That's billion with a B.

Scott Graves is director of research at the Center. He helped analyze the money for Take Two.

Click the blue audio player above to hear the full interview.