Jails - Rated Capacity

State or local rating officials define "rated capacity" as the maximum number of beds or inmates that may be housed in a jail. In 2003 U.S. jails added 22,572 beds to total jail capacity, bringing it to 736,471, according to Harrison and Karberg in Prison and Jail Inmates at Mid-year 2003. (See Table 3.4.) This was the smallest annual increase since 1995. Capacity utilization had dropped to 90% in 2001 but increased to 94% in 2003. During that period the number of beds increased but not at the same rate as inmates.

TABLE 3.4
Rated capacity of local jails and percent of capacity occupied, 1990 and 1995–2003
SOURCE: Paige M. Harrison and Jennifer C. Karberg, "Table 11. Rated Capacity of Local Jails and Percent of Capacity Occupied, 1990 and 1995–2003," in Prison and Jail Inmates at Midyear 2003, Bureau of Justice Statistics, May 2004, http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/pdf/pjim03.pdf (accessed April 2, 2005)

Year	Rated capacitya	Amount of capacity addedb	Percent of capacity occupied
2003	736,471	22,572	94%
2002	713,899	14,590	93
2001	699,309	21,522	90
2000	677,787	25,466	92
1999	652,321	39,541	93
1998	612,780	26,216	97
1997	586,564	23,593	97
1996	562,971	17,208	92
1995	545,763	41,439	93
1990	389,171		104
Average annual increase, 1995–2003	3.8%	23,839
aRated capacity is the number of beds or inmates assigned by a rating official to facilities within each jurisdiction.
bThe number of beds added during the 12 months ending June 30 of each year.
cThe number of inmates divided by the rated capacity times 100.

TABLE 3.5
Jail occupancy as a percent of capacity, 2002–03
SOURCE: Paige M. Harrison and Jennifer C. Karberg, "At Midyear 2003, 94% of Jail Capacity Occupied," in Prison and Jail Inmates at Midyear 2003, Bureau of Justice Statistics, May 2004, http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/pdf/pjim03.pdf (accessed April 2, 2005)

	Percent of capacity occupied
Size of jurisdiction*	2003	2002
Total	94%	93%
Fewer than 50 inmates	67	68
50–99	90	89
100–249	92	93
250–499	94	95
500–999	99	98
1,000 or more	96	95
*Based on the average daily population in the year ending June 30.

At midyear 2003 jail systems with 500 to 999 beds reported the highest occupancy rate, 99%. (See Table 3.5.) The occupancy rate was 96% in jail systems with an average daily population of one thousand or more inmates, higher than in 2002, when the rate was 95%. All jurisdictions with fifty or more beds had occupancy rates of at least 90%. Jurisdictions with fewer than fifty inmates had a 67% capacity experience, down slightly from a rate of 68% the year before.