Local Spending on Jails Tops $25 Billion

Jail costs rose even as crime and admissions to jail fell. As of the end of 2017:

A 20% decrease in crime and a 19% drop in jail admissions since 2007 had not led to reduced jail spending.
The portion of local budgets spent on jails did not correlate with state crime rates.
Small localities spent more per capita on jails than most other jurisdictions, despite having lower crime rates.

Pew Trusts

https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/issue-briefs/2021/01/local-spending-on-jails-tops-%2425-billion-in-latest-nationwide-data

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Local Spending on Jails Tops $25 Billion

Jail costs rose even as crime and admissions to jail fell. As of the end of 2017:

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