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Click on a state to see how much its incarceration rate has grown, how its spending on prisons and higher education has changed, what proportion of its prisoners are drug offenders, and the racial disparity between its general and prison populations.

Click the "FED" icon to see statistics for the federal prison system. (Local jails are not included in the Incarceration Atlas.)
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National Totals
These graphs show totals for prisons in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and the federal prison system. They do not include local jails, which typically hold inmates awaiting trial or serving sentences of less than one year. For more detailed information, click on the graphs.

Increasing Imprisonment

Incarceration rate per 100,000 inhabitants, 1980-2000
Prisons vs. Education

Percent change in spending per capita on prisons and higher education, 1980-2000*
More Drug Offenders

Percentage of inmates held for drug crimes**
Racial Inequality

Racial and ethnic breakdown, 2000
 White  Black  Hispanic  Other


*does not include federal spending on prisons or higher education
**based on federal estimates
***of 38 states reporting
Methodology Last updated 7/10/01

INMATES IN STATE AND FEDERAL PRISONS, 2000:
1,324,425


INMATES IN LOCAL JAILS, 2000:
621,149


Where States Rank
Click a state for details. For complete rankings, click here.


Increase in Incarceration Rate, 1980 - 2000
1. Connecticut
2. New Hampshire
3. North Dakota
4. New Jersey
5. Idaho


Growth in prison spending per capita, 1980 - 2000
1. Ohio
2. Pennsylvania
3. Texas
4. Michigan
5. New Jersey


Growth in higher education spending per capita, 1980 - 2000
1. Minnesota
2. New Jersey
3. Pennsylvania
4. Ohio
5. Georgia


Highest proportion of drug offenders, 1999***
1. New Jersey
2. New York
3. California
4. Utah
5. Illinois


Greatest disparity between white and nonwhite incarceration rates, 2000
1. Pennsylvania
2. District of Columbia
3. Wisconsin
4. Connecticut
5. Minnesota


Around the world
Nations with highest incarceration rates per 100,000 residents (includes all individuals held in prisons and local jails)

1. USA 702
2. Russia 635
3. Cayman Islands 600
4. Belarus 577
5. Kazakhstan 494
6. Bahamas 478
7. US Virgin Islands 476
8. Kyrgyzstan 462
9. Belize 459
10. Bermuda 447

Source: International Center for Prison Studies















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