The prison population bomb

Prisons are often referred to as "the big house," but "full house" may be a better term. In 1994, 1 million people lived m America's federal and state prisons. Another 3.7 million were on probation or parole, and half a million were confined to locally run jails. The grand total: more than 5.1 million adults were under some form of correctional supervision two years ago. That is more than the population of Wisconsin.
The number of state and federal prisoners has more than tripled since 1980, due in large part to a national wave of tough anti-drug laws. While those laws removed thousands of drug dealers from America's streets, they also created a huge and rapidly growing industry funded by American taxpayers. The private sector is heavily involved in prison management, and prison privatization is one of the country's hottest industries. Some companies manage entire prisons, while others specialize in particular operations such as health or food services. And manufacturers prosper when they provide the many additional necessary items, from uniforms and bedding to surveillance and monitoring equipment.
If current trends continue, the prison population will increase rapidly in the next decade. Even without growth, the current prison population would still be much more expensive to maintain in the future.
Offenders who are in prison for drug-related crimes are more likely to have serious health problems. The prison population is also aging These trends will increase prisons' health-care costs, but they are dwarfed by the continuing consequences of tough sentencing laws. Until drug abuse stops or drug laws change, the prison population bomb will keep ticking away.