State inmates are prisoners convicted of a felony and under the jurisdiction of the Kentucky Department of Corrections (DOC). Convicted felons typically served their sentence in state prisons until 1992, when state law was changed to require most Class D felony and some Class C felony inmates to serve their sentence in county jail (KRS 532.100).
There are currently 74 county jails housing state inmates: 70 full service and 4 regional jails. For more information on jail classifications, click here.
Counties receive a $35.34 per diem reimbursement from the state for the incarceration of state inmates beginning on the day of sentencing; $33.19 for housing and $2.15 for medical costs.
Jails housing state inmates report their jail population to the Kentucky Department of Corrections (DOC) on a weekly basis. These reports can be found here.
From Jan. 1 – Nov. 14, 2024, the average weekly state inmate population in county jails was 7,513. As of November 2024, 36% of state inmates in Kentucky were housed in county jails.
State inmate breakdown
Class D felony inmates are required to serve their sentence in county jail, except those convicted of a sexual offense carrying a sentence of two years or more (KRS 532.100). Class D felonies carry a sentence of one to five years and include offenses such as theft of property $1,000 or more but less $10,000.
On average, there are 4,155 Class D felony inmates housed in county jails in 2024.
Class C felony inmates may be housed in county jail if they are classified as community custody and were not convicted of a sexual offense that carries a sentence of two years or more (KRS 532.100). Class C felonies carry a sentence of five to ten years and include offenses such as theft of property $10,000 or more but less than $1 million.
On average, there are 1,267 Class C felony inmates housed in county jails in 2024.
Counties also house controlled intake inmates, which are state inmates awaiting classification and placement by DOC after sentencing. According to KRS 532.100(8), state prisoners (except for Class D and some Class C felons) must be transferred from a county jail to a state-run facility within 45 days of final sentencing. State budget language currently requires that inmates not eligible for serving their sentence in the county jail be transferred to a state institution within 90 days of sentencing, if the county jail does not object to the additional 45-day window.
On average, there are 1,401 controlled intake inmates housed in county jails in 2024.
State inmates in county jails also include parole violators and alternative sentencing participants sentenced to a county jail. In 2024, there are 293 alternative sentence inmates and 397 parole violators in county jail on average.
Trends over time
The state inmate population in county jails has significantly decreased since 2019. There were 11,500 state inmates in county jail in 2019, compared to 7,513 in 2024. The largest decreases in inmates have been Class D (-1,898) and controlled intake (-954) inmates. However, every type of state inmate in county jails has declined since 2019.
Some of the decline can be attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic. From 2019 to 2020, there was a 19% decline in the state inmate population in county jails largely due to non-violent, non-sexual offenders being released early to limit the spread of COVID-19 in congregate settings.
Post-pandemic, the state inmate population has continued to decline. From 2023 to 2024, there has been a 14% decrease in state inmates housed in county jails.
This trend is largely driven by a decrease in the controlled intake population, from 2,126 in 2023 to 1,401 in 2023 – a 34% decrease in one year.
A large portion of this population is moving from county jails to state prisons or halfway houses after classification. The state inmate population in state prisons has increased by 8% from 2023 to 2024, from 10,777 inmates to 11,673 inmates on average.
Class D and Class C inmates have also decreased in county jails, with 430 fewer inmates in 2024 compared to 2023, a 7% decrease. The decline in this inmate population is greater than the 2% overall decline in the total state inmate population, including inmates in county jails, state prisons, and halfway houses.
