NYC jail population, length of stay, and per-inmate costs
At $175K/year per inmate, NYC's jail costs are among the highest in the nation. For comparison, per-pupil education spending is ~$30K/year — roughly 18x less than incarcerating one person. The DOC's $1.2B budget covers approximately 6.7K daily inmates across the city's jail system.
Average length of stay has increased ~48% since 2016, from 42 to 266.1 days, driven by court backlogs and bail reform impacts.