State Aid to Local Governments for Corrections Programs

• NCJ Number: 120799
• Author(s): M A Fabricius; S D Gold
• Date Published: 1989
• Length: 14 pages
• Sponsoring Agency: Ford Foundation; National Council on Crime and Delinquency; Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA)
• Sale Source: National Institute of Justice/; NCJRS Photocopy Services
• Publication Type: Survey
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: Criminal Justice Paper #1

Annotation

State government aid for local corrections programs totaled $932.5 million in fiscal year 1987, based on U.S. Census Bureau data, or nearly four times more aid than that provided in 1980.

Abstract

Corrections aid represented less than 1 percent of all State aid to local governments which amounted to $139 billion in 1987. Total State spending for corrections was $11.7 billion in 1987, while local governments spent $5.9 of their own funds for corrections. Because counties accounted for 78.4 percent of local funding, they were the major recipients of State aid. There are only six States where virtually all corrections spending is done by the State government (Alaska, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Rhode Island, and Vermont). Wide differences exist among the other 44 States in terms of how responsibilities for particular corrections functions are assigned. An important issue is the extent to which State prisoners are incarcerated in local facilities, a situation that has occurred in many areas due to a shortage of State prison beds. If a State reimburses localities for taking care of these prisoners, it is counted as State aid, even though it may be merely reimbursement for services rendered. The seven major categories of State corrections aid to local programs are prisoner reimbursement, community corrections, probation, parole, juvenile programs, construction programs, and technical assistance and training. State corrections aid is provided at different levels by the State. Twenty States provide at least $1 of aid per capita, with Virginia providing the most aid, more than $27 per capita. State-local corrections spending patterns and State aid programs are described, and a State-by-State analysis of aid for corrections is presented. Innovative corrections programs in Georgia, Minnesota, Tennessee, and Virginia are discussed, along with a framework for analyzing intergovernmental corrections aid. Statistics on State corrections spending and aid for fiscal year 1987 are appended. 4 references, 7 tables.