Welcome!

The Prison Policy Initiative organized this website to be the starting point for anyone interested in learning more about the problem of prison gerrymandering.

The website's navigation menu is designed to give you an overview of prison gerrymandering: the problem and the solutions. Separately, the menu provides some starting places to take action in your community or at the national level.

The downside to producing so much information is that it can be difficult to find a particular piece of information that speaks to your specific need. This page provides an alternative introduction to the dozens of state-by-state and district-by-district reports, hundreds of articles and fact sheets, and thousands of communications with elected officials spread across both this topical website and our main organizational website.

What's your goal?

Learn the basics:

Guidance for prison gerrymandering reform:

  • States with active campaigns against prison gerrymandering are listed on our take action page. Each state has a frequently-updated list of resources about the problem and organizing in that state.
  • A report on how states implemented their legislation in the 2020 redistricting cycle, with recommendations from lessons learned. By the NCSL (National Conference of State Legislatures).
  • A guide to ending prison gerrymandering for state legislators, released jointly with SiX. Includes lessons from our previous advocacy, detailed policy recommendations, talking points, and more.
  • Legislation page with active legislation, and past legislative efforts.
  • Model legislation for states and counties.
  • Resolutions page for non-binding organizational and legislative statements.
  • 2021 year-end roundup of state reform. Also explains how the different ways states achieved prison gerrymandering reform leads to a different count of states that have "ended prison gerrymandering".

Use data and tools for demographers, redistricting professionals & advocates:

  • Explore all of our data tools, annotated and organized by census decade.
  • Locator (2020) (annotations and correctional facility counts by Census block, searchable by county)
  • Map files (shapefiles and kml) (a national point shapefile with the group quarters — including correctional facilities — populations, and Google Earth files that allow you to view the information available in our Correctional Facility Locator through Google Earth)
  • Democracy Toolkit (training on using our research tools and how to analyze the impact of prison gerrymandering on local governments)

Find data on your state, county or municipality

Find detailed information on a specific issue:

Learn more about the strategy:

Find material (by type) to help you get informed

Find material for redistribution as an introduction to the issue

Litigation materials:



Stay Informed


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