The facility universe was developed from the Census of State and Federal Adult Correctional Facilities conducted in 2000. Each state's department of corrections was contacted to identify new facilities and facilities that had been closed since June, 2000. Telephone follow-ups were carried out during 2006. All but one respondent -- the state of Illinois -- participated in the census. Facilities were included in the enumeration if they were: (1) staffed with federal, state, local, or private employees, (2) held inmates primarily for state or federal authorities, (3) were physically, functionally, and administratively separate from other facilities, and (4) were operational on December 30, 2005.
The census included the following types of adult correctional facilities:
Prisons
Prison farms
Reception, diagnostic, and classification centers
Facilities primarily for parole violators and other persons returned to custody
Road camps, forestry camps, and conservation camps
Youthful offender facilities except in California
Vocational training facilities
Drug and alcohol treatment facilities
State operated local detention facilities in Alaska, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Rhode Island, and Vermont
The census excluded the following types of institutions:
Private facilities not primarily for state or federal inmates
Military facilities
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facilities
Bureau of Indian Affairs facilities
Facilities operated by or for local government, including those housing state prisoners
Facilities operated by the United States Marshals Service
Hospital wings and wards reserved for state prisoners
Facilities that hold only juveniles
correctional facility