Journalist: Lina Quinones (TCC)
Oklahoma has one of the highest incarceration rates in this country.
This rate is 905 per 100,000 people, this is one of the highest percentages of incarceration than any independent Democratic country. (Prison Policy).
This rate does include prisons, jails immigration detention, juvenile justice facilities as well.
This incredibly high rate of those incarcerated is horrible. The Prison Policy states that 22,000 residents are in state prisons, local jails 8,900 and for federal prisons 3,800.
This is such an incredibly high number of citizens within the state’s criminal legal system.
This cost Oklahoma so much money. According to World Population Review World Population Review an average spending per prisoner is 28.37 now times that of those just in state prisons. That price alone is $624,140.
This is incredibly expensive. It does not help that every year in Oklahoma this population increases.
This is both due to the racial disparities within Oklahoma. As well as the economic differences that cause those in lower economic backgrounds to lead to crime. Another reason for this is how many prisoners are elderly. Oklahoma Watch states that “Nearly one in six Oklahoma prisoners was 55 or older as of Dec. 31st”
This again causes more cost to Oklahoma because the elderly are prone to more health issues. In the 2025 fiscal budget, the Department of Corrections allotted $111 million to Health Services.
Now compare that to how much they spent in 2015, which was $58 million this increase is 91%. Oklahoma’s budget made such a significant jump just in 10 years alone.
Oklahoma needs to fix this issue. This is costing Oklahoma’s money that could go to other programs.
Most of these costs are going to housing alone. It is about 80% of the budget.
Leaving 20% for everything else. This does not even help better Oklahoma’s prisoners.
If it did it would help with the reoffending rate. which would lower the population helping Oklahoma better our citizens, better prisons and save Oklahoma money.