Costs of Community Corrections

Individuals who are in charge of creating and paying for community corrections programs and policies need to be aware of the economic costs of these programs and the potential benefits that society will enjoy as a result. In traditional community corrections, there are three types of fiscal sanctions: restitution, community service, and fines. However, in recent times, the economic benefits of community corrections have gone far beyond court-mandated sanctions to include treatment programs, services, education, employment training, and more. To estimate the costs of these programs, researchers must use different statistical techniques. The three main techniques are cost-benefit analysis, which weighs the price of a program compared to the benefit or the economic return; cost-effectiveness analysis, which determines whether a program is working in a fiscally responsible way; and cost-savings analysis, which determines whether a program is saving costs and, if so, how much.

Institutional corrections have been expensive for several decades now, and their costs continue to increase. Criminal justice spending on correctional facilities is outpacing the amount of money being spent on education, healthcare, and natural resources. Therefore, increased incarceration does not seem like the long-term fiscal answer to managing these rising costs.

In order to determine the economic costs of community corrections accurately, it is necessary to determine the annual cost of institutional corrections. In 2001, the United States spent nearly $30 billion on adult correctional systems. The average daily cost was $22,650 per offender. This amount constituted approximately 77 percent of states' correctional budgets. The remaining 23 percent was spent on juveniles, administration, and finally community corrections. The amount of money being spent each year on corrections, mainly prisons and jails, is increasing. Now more than ever, it is necessary to determine the economic costs and benefits of community corrections.

A few major evaluation studies have been conducted on the economic benefits of community corrections programs. The first is the Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Initiative (SVORI). Ironically, this program found no significant cost difference between the treatment group and the comparison group. This finding may result from the fact that more services, costing more money, were given to the treatment group. However, in each of the other studies there was a financial return of at least $1.13 for every dollar spent, with the highest return being $7.14 for every dollar spent. A new form of economical community corrections program has been created at restitution centers. These centers combine traditional community corrections with more modern methods. Restitution centers are designed to allow individuals to be gainfully employed but reside at the center until their debt is paid in full.