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  • BUREAU OF JUSTICE STATISTICS
    Contact: Kara McCarthy
  • Phone: (202) 307-1241
  • TTY: (781) 308-3696

STATE PAROLE AGENCIES REPORTED 65,000 FULL-TIME AND 2,900 PART-TIME EMPLOYEES AT MIDYEAR 2006

WASHINGTON – State parole supervising agencies reported an estimated 65,000 full-time and 2,900 part-time employees at midyear 2006, the Justice Department’s Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) announced today. The average caseload was about 38 parolees under active supervision for each full-time equivalent staff position devoted to direct supervision.

The BJS study of state adult parole supervising agencies, conducted in 2006, collected information from 52 state agencies that included 2,287 separate administrative, regional, and other offices. These agencies reported that they supervised 660,959 parolees or about 83 percent of the 798,202 parolees under supervision on December 31, 2006.

Most agencies (38) were located in a department of corrections (DOC), while 11 were independent and 3 were other types. Thirty-five state parole supervising agencies also supervised 1,200,570 adult probationers.

Nearly all full-time workers (94 percent) and about half of part-time workers (47 percent) were on the payroll. Among part-time workers, 40 percent were non-payroll staff; and 13 percent were contractors. Men (51 percent) and women (49 percent) made up nearly equal proportions of full-time employees. Women were 58 percent of part-time employees.

Two-thirds of parolees under supervision on June 30, 2006 were required to have face-to-face contact with a parole officer at least once a month, including 14 percent who were required to have weekly face-to-face contact. Seventeen percent of parolees were required to meet with their parole officer less than once per month or to maintain contact by mail, telephone or other means; 13 percent were no longer required to meet on a regular basis.

Half of parole supervising agencies had a role in releasing prisoners to parole, setting the conditions of supervision, or conducting revocation hearings. Thirteen parole supervising agencies reported that during the 12 months ending June 30, 2006, they considered 126,641 prisoners for release and released 57,850 — a rate of 46 prisoners released per 100 considered.

Fifty agencies reported testing parolees for illegal drug use. In the 12 months ending June 30, 2006, eight agencies that had detailed information reported having returned to incarceration from less than 0.5 percent to 16 percent of parolees at risk of re-incarceration as the result of a drug violation detected during agency testing.

At midyear 2006, 46 agencies reported they had parolees enrolled in a self-help or drug awareness program, and 47 reported that they had parolees enrolled in a drug treatment program run by a formally trained drug treatment professional. Four percent of parolees were enrolled in a sex offender treatment program at midyear 2006 in the 26 agencies that reported information.

Among the state parole agencies that provide data, 20 reported they had some type of housing assistance program for parolees on June 30, 2006; 25 agencies reported having some type of employment assistance program.

The report, Characteristics of State Parole Supervising Agencies, 2006, (NCJ 222180), was written by BJS statistician Thomas P. Bonczar. Following publication, the report can be found at http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/index.cfm?ty=pbdetail&iid=549.

For additional information about the Bureau of Justice Statistics’ statistical reports and programs, please visit the BJS Web site at http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/.

The Office of Justice Programs (OJP) provides federal leadership in developing the nation’s capacity to prevent and control crime, administer justice and assist victims. OJP has five component bureaus: the Bureau of Justice Assistance; the Bureau of Justice Statistics; the National Institute of Justice; the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention; and the Office for Victims of Crime. Additionally, OJP has two program offices: the Community Capacity Development Office, which incorporates the Weed and Seed strategy, and the Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering and Tracking (SMART) Office. More information can be found at https://ojp.gov.

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