NCJ Number
134293
Journal
Corrections Compendium Dated: (September 1991) Pages: 8-15
Date Published
1991
Length
8 pages
Annotation
A survey of State and Federal prison systems found that inmates on work release and some employed in correctional industries are contributing to the costs of their imprisonment in at least 37 of the 43 systems that have work/educational release programs.
Abstract
The survey received responses from 46 States, the Federal Bureau of Prisons, and the District of Columbia. Canadian correctional systems were also surveyed. The charges in the United States range from $2 per day in the District of Columbia up to about $15 per day in Maryland and from 15 percent of salary in New Mexico to 50 percent in Louisiana. Of the 15 systems that have private industry programs operating within their institutions, 12 collect a portion of the salaries paid inmates for board and room or program operation. The amounts range from $10 per month in Oklahoma to 45 percent of earnings in Florida. Fourteen systems require that inmates employed in State-operated industries or institutional jobs pay similar costs. Eighteen systems require inmates to pay for transportation to their jobs, and 16 systems require releasees to pay some other costs. Other expenses that inmates of some systems must cover in whole or in part include correspondence courses, college classes, vocational training, family counseling, elective health services, and property destruction at the institution. Some Canadian systems also require payments. Chart