151st International Training Course Visiting Experts’ Papers Overview of Correctional Programs in the U.s.a

Some of the complexity of the correctional system is due to our system of government. Correctional programs and facilities can be found at the federal, state, and local levels of government. For example, the Federal Bureau of Prisons — part of the U.S. Justice Department — operates prisons at the federal level. Federal probation is operated by the federal courts. Every state operates a prison system; however, several large cities, such as New York and Philadelphia also run prison systems. Correctional programs within and outside of prisons can be managed by the public sector or private providers. For example, in many prisons and jails some programs are provided by government staff, while others may operate through contracts with private providers. The same is true in community corrections. It is not uncommon for some probation or parole agencies to provide some services internally, while others are contracted or paid for by the offender. There are even some misdemeanor probation agencies that are operated by private providers. Figure 2 shows the percentage of probation and parole agencies that provide service by type of service.