U.S. Department of Justice
Office of Justice Programs
Bureau of Justice Statistics
Bulletin

Prisoners in 2006

December 2007,  NCJ 219416
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This file is text only without graphics and many of the
tables. A Zip archive of the tables in this report in 
spreadsheet format (.csv) and the full report including 
tables and graphics in .pdf format are available from:
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/abstract/p06.htm

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This report is one in a series. More recent editions may be
available. To view a list of all in the series go to
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pubalp2.htm#prisoners

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By William J. Sabol, Ph.D.,
Heather Couture and Paige M. Harrison,
BJS Statisticians

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At yearend 2006 Federal and State correctional authorities
had jurisdiction over 1,570,861 prisoners, an increase of
2.8% since yearend 2005.***Footnote 1 State-level prison
population data and other detailed information are available
in Appendix tables on the BJS Website at <http://
www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/pdf/p06.pdf>***.The Federal system
held 12.3% of these prisoners, and States held the remaining
87.7%. The number of prisoners under Federal jurisdiction
increased by 5,428 prisoners, and the number under State
jurisdiction increased by 37,504 prisoners. Jurisdiction
refers to the legal authority over a prisoner regardless of
where the prisoner is held. 

During 2006, the prison population grew at a faster rate than
in the previous 5 years. The 2.8% increase in the number of
prisoners under State or Federal jurisdiction was larger than
the average annual growth rate of 1.9% from 2000 through
2005. It was also larger than the average increase of 2% per
year that occurred in the 3 years prior to 2006 (figure 1).
However, the 2006 growth rate was less than the annual growth
rates of between 3.4% and 8.7% that occurred during the 1990s
(see Prisoners in 2000, 
table 2).

Growth in the Federal prison population slowed while growth
in State prisoners increased

The number of prisoners under Federal jurisdiction during
2006 increased by 2.9%. This increase was less than the
average annual growth of 5.8% per year that occurred from
2000 through 2005. Conversely, the number of prisoners under
the jurisdiction of State authorities increased more rapidly
during 2006 than in the previous 5 years. The State prison
population increased by 2.8% during 2006, compared to an
average annual increase of 1.5% from 2000 through 2005
(figure 2).

During 2006 the prison population increased in 41 States and
declined in the remaining 9 States (table 1). New Hampshire
(10.9%), Nevada (9.5%), and Rhode Island (9.4%) had the
largest percentage increase in the size of their prison
population. South Dakota (-3.0%), Hawaii 
(-2.9%), and Kansas (-2.8%) had the largest percentage
decrease in prisoners.

The growth rate for 30 of the 41 States experiencing an
increase in 2006 exceeded the average annual rate of growth
for the 5-year period from 2000 through 2005. Three of these
States (New Jersey, New York, and Illinois) experienced a
decline in the growth rate during the 5-year period, but had
small increases during 2006.

Eight States had absolute increases that exceeded 2,000
prisoners in 2006: California, Georgia, Florida,
Pennsylvania, Michigan, Ohio, Texas, and Arizona. California
(4,836), Georgia (4,043), and Ohio (3,312) had the largest
absolute increase. Collectively, these 8 States accounted for
66% of the total change in the number of prisoners under
State jurisdiction.

Growth rates accelerated in States with the largest prison
populations

Of the 10 States that had the largest prison populations in
2000, 9 experienced an increase in the size and rate of
growth of their prison populations during 2006. (See Appendix
table 1). These 10 States included Texas, California, New
York, Michigan, Ohio, Illinois, Georgia, Pennsylvania,
Louisiana, and Florida. Florida is the only State among the
10 that did not have an increase in the rate of growth during
2006. Its prison population increased by 3.6% during 2006
which represented a decrease from the average annual growth
rate of 4.7% from 2000 to 2005.

Combined, the prison population in these 10 States grew by
3.2% during 2006, a rate that was more than 3 times the 0.9%
average annual growth rate that occurred in these States from
2000 through 2005 (table 2). Among the 10 large States,
prison populations in Georgia (8.3%), Ohio (7.2%), and
Pennsylvania (4.8%) grew fastest during 2006. New York's
prison population increased by 0.9% during 2006, reversing a
5-year decline of 2.2% per year. Illinois' prison population,
which declined by 0.2% per year from 2000 through 2005, also
increased by 0.4% during 2006.

In the 10 States having the largest prison population in
2000, the increase of 24,241 prisoners during 2006 accounted
for 64.6% of the total change (37,504) in the number of
prisoners under State jurisdiction. By comparison, from 2000
through 2005 these 10 large States accounted for 32.7% of the
overall change in the number of prisoners under State
jurisdiction. The increase in California (4,836 prisoners)
and Georgia (4,043 prisoners) accounted for 23.6% of the
total change in State prisoners.

Growth rates in the 10 smallest States (those holding fewer
than 1,100 prisoners in 2000) were higher than growth rates
in larger States. The number of prisoners in the 10 smallest
jurisdictions increased at an average of 3.9% annually
between 2000 and 2005, and by 4.0% in 2006.

Number of female prisoners under jurisdiction rose faster
during 2006 than over the previous 5 years

During 2006 the number of women in prison increased by 4.5%,
reaching 112,498 prisoners (table 3; see also Appendix table
2). This was larger than the male growth rate of 2.7%. The
growth rate for female prisoners during 2006 was larger than
the average annual growth rate of 2.9% from 2000 through
2005. Over the 5-year period, female prisoners increased by
an average of 2,878 inmates per year. In 2006 the number of
female prisoners increased by 4,872 women.

At yearend 2006, females made up 7.2% of the population under
State or Federal jurisdiction, up from 6.7% in 2000. The
largest proportion of women inmates were in Hawaii (12.3%),
followed by North Dakota and Wyoming (both 11.5%). Oklahoma
had the highest female incarceration rate in the Nation (129
inmates per 100,000 women), followed by Louisiana (108) and
Idaho (106).

Eight jurisdictions held more than half of the 112,498 women
under State or Federal jurisdiction: Texas, the Federal
system, California, Florida, Ohio, Georgia, Arizona, and
Virginia. Three jurisdictions--Texas, the Federal system, and
California--collectively held more than a third of the women
under jurisdiction at yearend 2006. These 3 jurisdictions
also held more than a third of the male prison population.

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Total incarcerated population at yearend 2006
At yearend 2006 correctional facilities in the United States
held an estimated 2,385,213 inmates in custody, including
inmates in Federal and State prisons, territorial prisons,
local jails, facilities operated by or exclusively for U.S.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), military
facilities, jails in Indian country, and youth in juvenile
facilities. During 2006 the total incarcerated population
increased by 2.8%, or 64,579 inmates. 

For more information on custody populations, see box on
Inmates in custody in State or Federal prisons or in local
jails on page 4 and box on U.S.  Immigration and Customs
Enforcement (ICE) detainees at yearend 2006 on page 9.
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States increased the use of privately operated facilities by
more than 6% during 2006

A total of 113,791 State and Federal prisoners were held in
privately operated facilities at yearend 2006. This
represented an increase of 5.4% (or 5,851 prisoners) over the
107,940 held in private facilities at the end of 2005. (See
Appendix table 4). 

During 2006, 24 jurisdictions had increases in the number of
prisoners held in privately operated facilities, and 9 had
decreases. The total increase was 6,554 prisoners; the total
decrease was 703 prisoners. Eighteen States had no prisoners
in private facilities on December 31, 2006.

Texas and Colorado had the largest absolute increase in the
number of inmates held in private facilities at yearend 2006.
Indiana more than doubled the number of inmates in private
facilities, reaching 1,290 inmates, and Pennsylvania nearly
doubled, reaching 962 inmates.

Three States housed more than a third of their prisoners in
privately operated facilities: New Mexico (44%), Wyoming
(37%), and Alaska (33%). An additional 7 States housed more
than 20% of their prison population in private facilities.
(See Appendix table 4). 

States increased the use of privately operated facilities
more rapidly than did the Federal system in 2006 (figure 3).
The number of State prisoners housed privately increased by
6.4% during 2006, reaching 86,065 inmates, while the number
of Federal prisoners housed privately increased by 2.5%,
reaching 27,726 prisoners. From yearend 2000 to 2006, the
number of Federal prisoners housed in private facilities
increased 79%; State prisoners, by 15%.

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Inmates in custody in State or Federal prisons or in local
jails at yearend 2006 

At yearend 2006, 2.26 million inmates were in custody in
State and Federal prisons and in local jails. This  was an
incarceration rate of 751 inmates per 100,000 U.S. residents,
or 1 in every 133 residents. 

Custody count includes inmates held in State or Federal
public prison facilities, inmates held in privately operated
facilities, and inmates held in local jails. It excludes
inmates held in U.S. Territories, military facilities, U.S.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities, jails in
Indian country, and juvenile facilities. (See box on Total
incarcerated population at yearend 2006 on page 3.)

During 2006 the number of people in custody increased by
2.9%, up from the average annual growth rate of 2.6% from
yearend 2000 through 2005.

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Number of prisoners held in local jails increased by 6.6%

The number of State and Federal prisoners held in local jails
increased at yearend 2006, from 73,164 to 77,987 (up 6.6%)
(table 4). This increase accounted for 11.2% of the overall
increase in the prison population under jurisdiction.

The Federal system nearly doubled the number of inmates held
in local jails, from 1,044 at yearend 2005 to 2,010 at
yearend 2006 (table 4). Inmates under State jurisdiction held
in local jails increased by 5.3%, a rate faster than the 3.5%
average annual growth from 2000 to 2005.

Thirty-five States and the Federal system held prisoners in
local jails at yearend 2006. Six jurisdictions held more than
20% of their prisoners in local jails, led by Louisiana
(44%), Kentucky (30%), and Tennessee (25%). Louisiana held
the largest absolute number of inmates in local jails
(16,230), followed by Texas (15,091).
 
States expanded prison capacity during 2006 

Jurisdictions provided three measures of their capacity for
yearend 2006:

Rated capacity is the number of beds or inmates assigned by a
rating official to institutions within the jurisdiction.

Operational capacity is the number of inmates that can be
accommodated based on a facility's staff, existing programs,
and services.

Design capacity is the number of inmates that planners or
architects intended for the facility.

Highest capacity is the sum of the maximum number of beds and
inmates reported by a jurisdiction across the 3 capacity
measures, and the lowest capacity is the minimum of these 3
measures within a jurisdiction. Estimates of prison
population as a percentage of capacity are based on the
jurisdiction's custody population. In general, a
jurisdiction's capacity and custody counts exclude inmates
held in private facilities. Some jurisdictions include
prisoners held in private facilities as part of the capacity
of their prison systems. Where this occurs, prison population
as a percent of capacity includes private prisoners.

The Federal system reported capacity of 119,243 beds at
yearend 2006. (See Appendix table 5.) Among States reporting
capacity counts for yearend 2006, the highest capacity was
1,253,261 and the lowest capacity was 1,074,570 (table 5).
Both measures of capacity increased since yearend 2005.
Highest capacity increased by 3.4% and lowest capacity
increased by 2.5% during 2006.

At yearend 2006, 23 States and the Federal system operated at
more than 100% of their highest capacity. Seventeen States
operated at between 90% and 99% of their highest capacity.
The Federal prison system was operating at 37% above its
rated capacity at yearend 2006. 

By comparison, in 1995 States operated at 114% of their
highest capacity and 125% of their lowest reported capacity.
The Federal system was operating at 26% over reported
capacity in 1995. 
Prison incarceration rate for sentenced prisoners reached 501
per 100,000 residents in 2006

About 96% of prisoners under State or Federal jurisdiction
(or 1,502,179 prisoners) were sentenced to more than 1 year
in prison (table 6). During 2006 the sentenced prison
population increased by 2.7% or 39,313 prisoners, accounting
for 92% of the overall increase in the jurisdiction prison
population.

The incarceration rate for prisoners sentenced to more than 1
year was 501 per 100,000 U.S. residents. This rate equaled
about 1 in every 200 U.S. residents serving a prison term of
more than 1 year on December 31, 2006.

Among the States, the incarceration rate for prisoners
sentenced to more than 1 year ranged from a high of 846 per
100,000 persons in Louisiana to a low of 151 per 100,000 in
Maine.

White women made up almost half of sentenced female prisoners
in 2006; number of black women has decreased

Of the 103,100 female prisoners sentenced to more than 1 year
in State or Federal prison, nearly half (48% or 49,100
prisoners) were white females (table 7). Black women (an
estimated 28,600 inmates) made up 28% of all sentenced female
prisoners, and Hispanic women, 17%. 

Since 2000 the number and percentage of white women among
sentenced female prisoners have increased. Over the same
period, both the number and percentage of black women among
sentenced female prisoners declined. At yearend 2000, the
estimated 33,300 white women accounted for 40% of sentenced
female prisoners, while the estimated 32,000 black women
accounted for 38% of sentenced female prisoners. 

Women ages 35 to 39 made up the largest percentage of
sentenced female prisoners overall (19%). This age group also
made up the largest percentage of all 3 groups of sentenced
female prisoners  white, 18%, black, 19%, and Hispanic,18%.
(See Appendix table 7.)

Number of black men among sentenced male 
prisoners declined slightly since 2000

Black men represented the largest proportion of sentenced
male inmates at yearend 2006 (38%); white men made up 34%;
and Hispanic men, 21%. 

Black men ages 25 to 29 made up nearly one-fifth (19%) of
sentenced black male prisoners, followed by black men ages 30
to 34 (17%). The largest percentage of sentenced Hispanic
male prisoners were also in these two age groups (21% for
Hispanic men ages 25 to 29 and 18% for those ages 30 to 34).
White male prisoners were older than black and Hispanic men. 
Eighteen percent of white men were ages 45 to 54 and 16% were
ages 40 to 44.
 
From 2000 through 2006, the number of sentenced black male
prisoners increased slightly, from an estimated 528,300 to
534,200. The percentage of black men among all sentenced male
prisoners declined to 38% from 43%. Among all sentenced male
prisoners, Hispanic men increased from 20% in 2000 to 21% in
2006.
 
Declining percentage of blacks among sentenced prisoners

Comparisons of changes in the racial composition of prison
populations over time are constrained by new data collection
methodologies. Following guidelines provided by the Office of
Management and Budget, beginning in 2005 BJS estimated racial
composition of the prison population separately for persons
identifying with one race (97%) and those identifying with
two or more races (3%). These guidelines have reduced the
number and percent of persons identified as non-Hispanic
white and non-Hispanic black prisoners. In addition,
administrative data on the race and Hispanic origin of
prisoners reported to BJS by corrections officials also
overstate the number of non-Hispanic white and black
prisoners and understate the number of Hispanics and persons
of two or more races.***Footnote 2 Some jurisdictions are not
able to report Hispanics or persons of two or more races as a
separate category as requested under OMB guidelines***.

Both administrative and estimated data indicate an overall
decline among black prisoners from 2000 through 2006.  The
2006 administrative data show a decline from 46.2% to 41.6%,
while the estimated data indicate a decline from 42.4% to
37.5% (table 8).

The rate of incarceration increased for white women, declined
for black women

White women were about one-third as likely as black women to
be incarcerated and slightly more than half as likely as
Hispanic women. There were 48 sentenced white female
prisoners under State or Federal jurisdiction per 100,000
white women in the general population at yearend 2006 (table
9). Black women were incarcerated at a rate of 148 per
100,000, and Hispanic women at a rate of 81 per 100,000.
  
The incarceration rate for black women declined from 175 per
100,000 at yearend 2000 to 148 per 100,000 at yearend 2006.
At the same time, the rate for white women increased from 33
per 100,000 to 48 per 100,000, and the rate for Hispanic
women increased from 78 per 100,000 to 81 per 100,000. The
decrease in the black female incarceration rate occurred as
the number of sentenced black female prisoners decreased
(from 32,000 to 28,600). The number of white and Hispanic
females both increased.

The changes in incarceration rates were associated with
changes in the relative rates of incarceration. Black
womenwho in 2000 were 5.3 times as likely as white women to
be incarceratedwere 3.1 times as likely as white women to be
incarcerated at yearend 2006 (table 10). The incarceration
rate for Hispanic women relative to white women declined
slightly from 2.4 in 2000 to 1.7 at yearend 2006.
 
Black males ages 30 to 34 incarcerated at the highest rate

Nearly 8% of black men ages 30 to 34 were incarcerated as
sentenced prisoners under State or Federal jurisdiction at
yearend 2006. (See Appendix table 7.) This rate was the
highest rate for males among the estimated age, race, and
Hispanic origin groups. Among white men, those ages 30 to 34
also had the highest incarceration rate. About 1.2% of white
men in this age group were incarcerated. Among Hispanic men,
those ages 25 to 29 were incarcerated at the highest rates
(about 2.5%).

Overall, black men had an incarceration rate of 3,042 per
100,000 black men in the United States at yearend 2006 (See
Appendix table 8). About 1 in every 33 black men was a
sentenced prisoner. For white men, the incarceration rate for
2006 was 487 per 100,000 (or about 1 in every 205 white men).
For Hispanic men, the rate was 1,261 per 100,000 (or 1 in
every 79 Hispanic men). 

Violent offenders made up more than half of all sentenced
inmates in State prisons at yearend 2004

At yearend 2004 (the most recent data available for
estimating offense distributions by gender and race) more
than half (52%) of all sentenced inmates in State prisons
were sentenced for a violent offense (table 11) (See Appendix
tables 9 and 10). Property offenses were the most serious
charge for 21% of State prisoners, and drug offenses, 20%.
 
Offense distributions differed between sentenced male and
female State prisoners. More than half of males (53%) were
sentenced for violent offenses, compared to 34% of females.
Among State prisoners, sentenced females were more likely
than sentenced males to be sentenced for property (31% vs.
20%) and drug offenses (29% vs. 19%). 

There were also differences in offense distributions at
yearend 2004 by race and Hispanic origin. A majority of black
(53%) and Hispanic (54%) prisoners were sentenced for violent
offenses, compared to about half (50%) of white prisoners.
Blacks and Hispanics were more likely than whites to be
sentenced for drug offenses (23% of blacks, 21% of Hispanics,
and 15% of whites). Whites were more likely (26%) than blacks
(18%) or Hispanics (18%) to be sentenced for property
offenses.

Drug, weapons offenders accounted for nearly three-quarters
of the increase in Federal prisoner since 2000

On September 30, 2006, (the latest available data from the
Federal Justice Statistics Program on offenses of Federal
prisoners) drug, weapons, and immigration offenders made up
more than three-quarters (78%) of the 176,268 sentenced
Federal prison population (table 12). Drug offenders made up
more than half (53%); weapons offenders, 14%; and immigration
offenders, 11%.
 
From 2000 to 2006, the number of sentenced offenders in
Federal prison increased by more than a third, from 131,739
to 176,268 in 2006. The number of weapons offenders more than
doubled; immigration offenders increased by 43%; and drug
offenders, by 26%. These three offense categories accounted
for 87% of the growth in Federal prisoners.
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Detainees held by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
(ICE) increased 41% from 2005 to 2006

At yearend 2006, 27,634 detainees were under the jurisdiction
of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). This
represented a 41% increase (or 8,072 detainees) from yearend
2005.

Four border States (Arizona, California, New Mexico, and
Texas) contributed to 67.2% of this growth. The largest
growth occurred in New Mexico and Texas. New Mexico nearly
doubled the number of detainees, increasing from 429 in 2005
to 1,035 in 2006. The detainee population in Texas increased
76% (or 3,261 detainees). California and Arizona had similar
growth rates (32% and 31%, respectively) and ranked third and
fourth in detainee growth. 

Of ICE detainees, 3,881 said their country of origin was in
Central America, specifically El Salvador, Guatemala, and
Honduras. Another 2,643 individuals said they had Mexican
citizenship. These groups collectively contributed to 81% of
the growth from yearend 2005 to 2006.

Over half (50.7% or 14,015) of the detainees were held on
immigration law violations, 40% were held for criminal
offenses, and the remaining 9.3% were pending charges or
disposition. From yearend 2005 to 2006, the percentage of
detainees held for immigration law violations increased by
79%. Comparatively, the number of detainees held for pending
charges increased 62% and the number of detainees held for
criminal offenses increased 8.9%.
    
Methodology

National Prisoner Statistics

Begun in 1926 under a mandate from Congress, the National
Prisoner Statistics (NPS) program collects statistics on
prisoners at midyear and yearend. The Census Bureau serves as
the data collection agent for BJS. BJS depends entirely upon
the voluntary participation of State Departments of
Corrections and the Federal Bureau of Prisons for NPS data.
 
The NPS distinguishes between prisoners in custody and
prisoners under jurisdiction. To have custody of a prisoner,
a State or the Federal system must hold that prisoner in one
of its facilities. To have jurisdiction over a prisoner, a
State or the Federal system must have legal authority over
the prisoner. Some States are unable to provide both custody
and jurisdiction counts.

The NPS jurisdiction counts include inmates held within a
jurisdiction's facilities, including prisons, penitentiaries,
correctional facilities, halfway houses, boot camps, farms,
training/treatment centers, and hospitals. They include
inmates who are:

*temporarily absent (less than 30 days), out to court, or on
work release
*held in privately-operated facilities, local jails, other
State or Federal facilities

*serving a sentence for a responding jurisdiction and another
jurisdiction at the same time.
 
The NPS custody counts include all inmates held within a
responding jurisdiction's facilities, including inmates
housed for other jurisdictions. The custody counts exclude
inmates held in local jails and in other jurisdictions. With
a few exceptions for several responding jurisdictions, the
NPS custody counts exclude inmates held in privately-operated
facilities.

The NPS counts also include all inmates in State-operated
facilities in Alaska, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Rhode
Island, and Vermont  which have combined jail-prison systems.
Since 2001, NPS prisoner counts have excluded inmates held by
the District of Columbia, which as of yearend 2001 operated
only a jail system. Prisoners sentenced under the District of
Columbia criminal code are housed in Federal facilities. For
more information about the NPS data collection instruments,
see: <http://www.ojp. usdoj.gov/bjs/correct.htm#Programs>.

Military Corrections Statistics

BJS obtains yearend counts of prisoners in the custody of
U.S. military authorities from the Department of Defense
Corrections Council. In 1994 the Council, comprised of
representatives from each branch of military services,
adopted a standardized report (DD Form 2720) with a common
set of items and definitions. This report obtains data on
persons held in U.S. military confinement facilities inside
and outside of the continental United States, by branch of
service, gender, race, Hispanic origin, conviction status,
sentence length, and offense. It also provides data on the
number of facilities and their design and rated capacities. 

Other inmate counts

In 1995 BJS began collecting yearend counts of prisoners from
the Departments of Corrections in the U.S. Territories
(American Samoa, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands) and U.S.
Commonwealths (Northern Mariana Islands and Puerto Rico).
These counts include all inmates for whom the Territory or
Commonwealth had legal authority (jurisdiction) and all
inmates in physical custody (held in prison or local jail
facilities). The counts are collected by gender, race,
Hispanic origin, and sentence length. In addition, BJS
obtains reports on the design, rated, and operational
capacities of these correctional facilities.
 
BJS obtains yearend counts of persons detained by U.S.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), an agency within
the Department of Homeland Security. Formerly the U.S.
Immigration and Naturalization Service, ICE holds persons for
immigration violations in Federal, State, and locally
operated prisons and jails, as well as in privately operated
facilities that are under exclusive contract and in
ICE-operated facilities.

Data on the number of inmates held in the custody of local
jails are from the BJS Annual Survey of Jails (ASJ). The ASJ
provides data on inmates in custody at midyear. For more
information about the ASJ, see Methodology in Prison and Jail
Inmates at Midyear 2006.

Data on the number of juveniles held in residential placement
facilities were obtained from the Office for Juvenile Justice
and Delinquency Prevention, which conducts a Census of
Juveniles in Residential Placement (CJRP). In this report,
CJRP data have a reference date of March 29, 2006.

Data on Federal prisoners are obtained from BJS' Federal
Justice Statistics Program (FJSP). The FJSP obtains from the
Federal Bureau of Prisons individual-level records of
prisoners in Federal facilities as of September 30. The FJSP
provides counts of sentenced Federal inmates by gender, race,
Hispanic origin, and offense.

Estimating age-specific incarceration rates

Estimates are provided for the number of sentenced prisoners
under State or Federal jurisdiction by gender (within genders
by age group), race (non-Hispanic white and non-Hispanic
black), and Hispanic origin. The detailed race and Hispanic
origin categories exclude estimates of persons identifying
two or more races. For 2000 and 2006, estimates were produced
separately for inmates under State and Federal jurisdiction
and then combined to obtain a total estimated population.
State estimates were prepared by combining information about
the gender of prisoners from the NPS with information on
self-reported race and Hispanic origin from the 2004 Survey
of Inmates of State Correctional Facilities.

For the estimates of Federal prisoners, the distributions of
FJSP counts of sentenced Federal inmates by gender, age,
race, and Hispanic origin on September 30, 2006, were applied
to the NPS counts of sentenced Federal inmates by gender at
yearend 2006.

Estimates of the U.S. resident population for January 1,
2007, by age, gender, race, and Hispanic origin, were
generated by applying the July 1, 2006 age distributions
within gender, race, and Hispanic origin groups to the
January 1, 2007 population estimates by gender. The
population estimates were provided by the U.S. Census Bureau.
 
Age-specific rates of incarceration for each demographic
group were calculated by dividing the estimated number of
sentenced prisoners within each age group by the estimated
number of U.S. residents in each age group, multiplying the
quotient by 100,000, and then rounding to the nearest whole
number. Totals by gender include all prisoners and U.S.
residents regardless of racial or Hispanic origin, while
incarceration rates for detailed race and Hispanic origin
groups exclude persons identifying two or more races.

---------------------------------------------------
This report in portable document format and in
ASCII and its related statistical data and tables
are available at the BJS World Wide Web Internet
site:
<http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/abstract/p06.htm>.
---------------------------------------------------
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The Bureau of Justice Statistics is the statistical
agency of the U.S. Department of Justice. Jeffrey
L. Sedgwick is the director.

BJS Bulletins present the first release of findings
from permanent data collection programs.

This Bulletin was written by William J. Sabol,
Ph.D., Heather Couture, and Paige M. Harrison. Lara
Allen verified the report. Tina Dorsey produced and
edited the report, and Jayne Robinson prepared the
report for final printing, under the supervision of
Doris J. James.

December 2007, NCJ 219416.
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End of file
11/19/2007 JR