In the June 2020 report, Failing Grades: States’ Responses to COVID-19 in Jails & Prisons, the ACLU and Prison Policy Initiative evaluated the actions each state has taken to save incarcerated people and facility staff from COVID-19. We found that most states have taken very little action, and while some states did more, no state leaders should be content with the steps they’ve taken thus far. The table below shows the scores we granted to each state, and our methodology explains the data we used in our analysis and how we weighted different criteria. There is also an Excel version of this appendix table available to download here: https://www.prisonpolicy.org/reports/failing_grades_appendix.xlsx.
Testing in state prisons as of June 10, 2020 (35 points)PPE in state prisons as of June 10, 2020 (30 points)Data availability for state prisons as of June 10, 2020 (30 points)Executive orders as of June 10, 2020 (90 points)Incarcerated population reduction as of June 1, 2020 (300 points)GradeSources
State Staff (15 points) Incarcerated (20 points) Staff (15 points) Incarcerated (15 points) Publicly available (15 points) Disaggregated by race (15 points) Halting jail admissions (30 points) Medically vulnerable releases (30 points) Near-completion of sentence releases (30 points) Statewide jail reduction (1 point per 1% reduction of median jail population) as of June 1, 2020 How many jails do we have data for? Statewide prison reduction (2 points per 1% reduction) from Dec 31, 2019/Jan 1, 2020 to April 30, 2020/May 1 2020 unless otherwise noted in Sources Raw score (out of 485) Normalized score out of 100 points Subtracted points for prison deaths (-1 point for every 5 deaths out of 10,000 people in prison) Final score Letter grade Sources 
Alabama Testing not provided by DOC (0 points) Testing when symptomatic or in contact (0 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated daily (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) Orders the release of people in jail with alleged probation/parole technical violations under custody for more than 20 days wihtout a hearing; release of people in jail with probation/parole technical violations punishable by no more than 45 days (10 points) 18.14 31 7.8 80.94 16.69 0.29 16.39 F+ Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: Fifth Supplemental State of Emergency: Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Alaska Testing when symptomatic or in contact (0 points) Testing only new admissions, when symptomatic, or in contact (0 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated daily (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) Combined prison and jail system n/a 21.9 66.9 13.79 0 13.79 F Testing, PPE, data: DOC website & DOC public statements
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: n/a
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Arizona Commitment to testing all (5 points) Testing when symptomatic or in contact (0 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided only when symptomatic (0 points) Data available and updated regularly (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 7.03 8 5 47.03 9.7 0.34 9.36 F Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Arkansas Testing information provided only in press conferences (0 points) No information on testing (0 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to some (0 points) Data available and updated regularly (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) Consideration of early release for people nearing end of sentence, with specific offense categories excluded (10 points) 41.86 31 4.8 101.66 20.96 0.58 20.38 F+ Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: Modified EPA Updated, June 1, 2020
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
California Commitment to testing all in some facilities (5 points) Testing when symptomatic or in contact (0 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (of note, reports from inside of CDCR facilities suggest that despite this policy, the use of face masks is limited) (15 points) Data available and updated regularly (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 30.63 58 9.8 90.43 18.65 0.28 18.36 F+ Testing, PPE, data: California Dept of Corrections & Rehabilitation website
Executive orders: Executive Order N-36-20
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab & Vera Institute of Justice
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Colorado Testing not provided by DOC (0 points) Testing when symptomatic; one facility had complete testing (5 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated daily (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) Recommends law enforcement minimize arrests and jail intakes, suspend jail transfers, and maximize pretrial diversion and release (10 points) Grants DOC discretion to refer individuals to Special Needs Parole (10 points) Grants DOC discretion to award earned time credits (10 points) 21.84 13 13.1 114.94 23.7 0.33 23.37 D- Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: Temporarily Suspending Certain Regulatory Statutes Concerning Criminal Justice (D 2020 016) & Governor's Guidance To Counties, Municipalities, Law Enforcement Agencies, And Detention Centers
Jail data: Population counts for March 26, 2020 and June 4, 2020 provided by ACLU of Colorado.
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Connecticut Commitment to testing all (5 points) Commitment to testing all (5 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated regularly (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) Combined prison and jail system n/a 21.5 76.5 15.77 1.28 14.5 F+ Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: n/a
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Delaware Testing some (0 points) Testing some (0 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to some (0 points) Data available and updated regularly (15 points) State DOC provided data by race to the Marshall Project (15 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) Combined prison and jail system n/a 21.5 66.5 13.71 0 13.71 F Testing, PPE, data: DOC website & the Marshall Project's report, Is COVID-19 Falling Harder on Black Prisoners? Officials Won’t Tell Us
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: n/a
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Florida No information on testing (0 points) Testing some (0 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) No information on PPE (0 points) Data available and updated regularly (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 8.52 64 7.2 45.72 9.43 0.39 9.04 F Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab & Vera Institute of Justice
Executive orders: n/a
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Georgia Testing not provided by DOC (0 points) Testing some (0 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated daily (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 24.76 142 6.9 76.66 15.81 0.75 15.06 F+ Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab & Vera Institute of Justice
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Hawai'i No information on testing (0 points) Testing some (0 points) Masks provided to some (0 points) Masks provided to some (0 points) Data available and updated daily (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) Combined prison and jail system n/a 35.5 50.5 10.41 0 10.41 F Testing, PPE, data: Dept of Public Safety, Corrections Division website
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: n/a
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Idaho No information on testing (0 points) Testing when symptomatic or in contact (0 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated daily (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 17.26 14 8.7 70.96 14.63 0 14.63 F+ Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Illinois n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a This report does not provide a grade to Illinois because some of the relevant data is the subject of pending litigation. n/a 
Indiana No information on testing (0 points) Testing when symptomatic or in contact (0 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated daily (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 28.29 92 4.1 77.39 15.96 1.42 14.53 F+ Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab & Vera Institute of Justice
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Iowa Testing some (0 points) Testing some (0 points) Masks provided to some (0 points) Masks provided to some (0 points) Data available and updated regularly (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) Grants DOC and parole board authority to suspend incarceration for parole revocations (10 points) No order (0 points) Grants DOC and Parole Board authority to authorize early parole (10 points) 11.33 16 8.3 84.63 17.45 0 17.45 F+ Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: Department Of Corrections – COVID-19 Response
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Kansas No information on testing (0 points) Testing when symptomatic; one facility had complete testing (5 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated daily (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 30.77 22 8.6 89.37 18.43 0.82 17.61 F+ Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Kentucky Testing when symptomatic (0 points) Testing when symptomatic or in contact (0 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated daily (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) Ordered early release and commutations for 186 people who met specific medical vulnerability and offense criteria (10 points) Grants commutations to 697 people "convicted of nonvioelnt, non-sexual offenses" with sentences expiring on or before 9/30/2020 (10 points) 34.43 69 17.4 116.83 24.09 0.19 23.9 D- Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: Conditional Commutation Of Sentence, 2020-278 & Conditional Commutation Of Sentence, 2020-267
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Louisiana No information on testing (0 points) Testing when symptomatic; two facilities had complete testing (5 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated daily (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) DOC creation of a temporary furlough review panel those within 6 months of sentence completion and convicted of "nonviolent and nonsexual crimes" (10 points) 16.78 60 12.2 83.98 17.32 1.01 16.3 F+ Testing, PPE, data: Dept of Public Safety & Corrections website
Executive orders: DOC Creates A COVID-19 Furlough Review Pane
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Maine No information on testing (0 points) Testing when symptomatic; one facility had complete testing (5 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated daily (15 points) State DOC provided data by race to the Marshall Project (15 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 30.5 All jail facilities 7.4 102.9 21.22 0 21.22 D- Testing, PPE, data: DOC website, the Marshall Project's report, "Is COVID-19 Falling Harder on Black Prisoners? Officials Won’t Tell Us," ME Public Radio article on PPE
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: Data for January 4, 2020 and May 30, 2020 retrieved from DOC reports
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Maryland Testing not provided by DOC (0 points) Testing when symptomatic; reportedly increasing asymptomatic testing (0 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated regularly (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) Grants early mandatory supervision for those with planned release to superivison within 120 days; expedited release to home detention for all those eligible; and accelerated parole for parole eligible people at least 60 years old (10 points) No order (0 points) 23.97 24 No prison data available 78.97 16.28 0 16.28 F+ Testing, PPE, data: Dept of Public Safety & Correctional Services website
Executive orders: Implementing Alternative Correctional Detention And Supervision
Jail data: ACLU of Maryland
Prison data: Data from January 1, 2020 provided in Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report, no population count found for April/May 2020
Massachusetts Completed testing of all (15 points) Completed testing of all (20 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available from ACLU of MA and updated regularly (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 20.17 All jail facilities 10.4 110.57 22.8 1.8 20.99 F+ Testing, PPE, data: DOC website & documents filed by the DOC with the Supreme Judicial Court
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: April 7, 2020 and June 1, 2020 jail populations retrieved from ACLU of Massachusetts https://data.aclum.org/sjc-12926-tracker/
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Michigan No information on testing (0 points) Completed testing of all (20 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated daily (15 points) State DOC provided data by race to the Marshall Project (15 points) Order to suspend incarceration in jail for parole violations unless authorized by DOC (10 points) Order to "strongly encourage" early release for older people, medically vulnerable people, and those with behavioral health problems who can be safely diverted (10 points) Order to "strongly encourage" early release for those held for traffic violations and failure to appear or failure to pay (10 points) 27.48 9 5.6 143.08 29.5 3.68 25.82 D- Testing, PPE, data: DOC website & the Marshall Project's report, Is COVID-19 Falling Harder on Black Prisoners? Officials Won’t Tell Us
Executive orders: Executive Order 2020-62
Jail data: DOC website
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Minnesota Commitment to testing all (5 points) Commitment to testing all (5 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated regularly (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 38.39 50 19.7 113.09 23.32 0 23.32 D- Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: January 1, 2020 population data retrieved from the DOC Adult Prison Population Summary and April 30, 2020 population count provided to the Prison Policy Initiative by the DOC.
Mississippi Testing not provided by DOC (0 points) Testing when symptomatic or in contact (0 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated regularly (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 6.25 14 9.4 60.65 12.51 0.22 12.29 F Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Missouri Commitment to testing all (5 points) Commitment to testing all (5 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated daily (15 points) State DOC provided data by race to the Marshall Project (15 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 19.27 45 7 96.27 19.85 0.08 19.77 F+ Testing, PPE, data: DOC website & the Marshall Project's report, Is COVID-19 Falling Harder on Black Prisoners? Officials Won’t Tell Us
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab & ACLU of Missouri
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Montana Commitment to testing all (5 points) Commitment to testing all (5 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated regularly (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 3.57 14 8.5 67.07 13.83 0.75 13.08 F Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report & DOC correspondence
Nebraska Testing not provided by DOC (0 points) Commitment to testing all (5 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated regularly (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 25.91 7 4 79.91 16.48 0 16.48 F+ Testing, PPE, data: Department of Correctional Service website
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Nevada Commitment to testing all (5 points) Commitment to testing all (5 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Offenders are not allowed to wear masks unless they are specifically ordered to by a medical provider and authorized by a warden, and are housed in controlled isolation"(0 points) Data available and updated regularly (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 7.87 3 12.6 60.47 12.47 0.16 12.3 F Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
New Hampshire Testing not provided by DOC (0 points) Testing when symptomatic or in contact (0 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated daily (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) DOC policy to streamline administrative-home-confinement (AHC), additional 5 points awarded as policy is applied broadly (15 points) No jail data 0 8.8 68.3 14.08 0 14.08 F+ Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: DOC policy to streamline AHC from correspondence between DOC and ACLU-NH
Jail data: n/a
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
New Jersey Commitment to testing all (5 points) Commitment to testing all (5 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated regularly (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) Orders that DOC shall identify and refer people to both a newly established Emergency Medical Review Committee nad Parole Board those who are 60 years or older with medical vulnerabilities (10 points) Orders release eligibility for those nearing the end of their sentence, with specific offense criteria (10 points) 35.31 8 11.8 122.11 25.18 5.25 19.93 F+ Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: Executive Order No. 124
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
New Mexico Completed testing of all (15 points) Testing some (0 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available, no specific frequency of updates (5 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) Grants commutations to people with a release date within 30 days, parole plan in place, and who meet specific offense criteria (10 points) 22.03 11 4.9 86.93 17.92 0.3 17.62 F+ Testing, PPE, data: Corrections Dept website
Executive orders: Commuting The Sentences Of Incarcerated Individuals Who Meet Certain Criteria And Instructing The DOC To Release Those Individuals From Its Facilities
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
New York No information on testing (0 points) Testing when symptomatic or in contact (0 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated daily (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) DOCCS identifies "low-level technical parole violators detained in jails" and reviews for release (10 points) 21.62 53 15 91.62 18.89 0.78 18.11 F+ Testing, PPE, data: Department of Corrections & Community Supervision website
Executive orders: COVID-19 Jail Reduction - DOCCS
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab & Vera Institute of Justice
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
North Carolina Testing available, but not required (5 points) Commitment to testing all (5 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to some (0 points) Data available and updated daily (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 21.79 38 9.9 71.69 14.78 0.3 14.48 F+ Testing, PPE, data: Dept of Public Safety website
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
North Dakota No information on testing (0 points) Testing when symptomatic or in contact (0 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) No information on PPE (0 points) Data available and updated regularly (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 14.29 7 37.1 81.39 16.78 0 16.78 F+ Testing, PPE, data: Dept of Corrections & Rehabilitation website
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Ohio Testing not provided by DOC (0 points) Testing when symptomatic; some facilities committed to complete testing (5 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated regularly (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 21.78 26 5.3 77.08 15.89 3.26 12.63 F Testing, PPE, data: Dept of Rehabilitation & Correction website
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Oklahoma Testing not provided by DOC (0 points) Testing some; testing all who are scheduled to be released within one week (5 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated regularly (15 points) State DOC provided data by race to the Marshall Project (15 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 3.51 14 6 74.51 15.36 0 15.36 F+ Testing, PPE, data: DOC website & the Marshall Project's report, Is COVID-19 Falling Harder on Black Prisoners? Officials Won’t Tell Us
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Oregon Testing not provided by DOC (0 points) Testing when symptomatic or in contact (0 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated regularly (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 40.85 25 17.8 103.65 21.37 0.14 21.23 D- Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Pennsylvania Testing not provided by DOC (0 points) Testing when symptomatic or in contact (0 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated daily (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) Grants reprieve of sentence to people who are medically vulnerable and meet specific offense criteria (10 points) Grants reprieve of sentence to people who are within 12 months of release eligibility and who "do not pose a risk" to public safety (10 points) 21.12 40 8.8 94.92 19.57 0.41 19.16 F+ Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: Order Of The Gov. Of Penn. Regarding Individuals Incarcerated In State Correctional Institutions
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab & Vera Institute of Justice
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Rhode Island Commitment to testing all (5 points) Commitment to testing all (5 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) No information on PPE (0 points) Data available and updated daily (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) DOC established process for early release and awarding good time that may have been lost (10 points) Combined prison and jail system n/a 25.2 75.2 15.51 0 15.51 F+ Testing, PPE, data: DOC website, DOC facebook page, correspondence between DOC and ACLU of Rhode Island
Executive orders: Report from Providence Journal citing interview with DOC
Jail data: n/a
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
South Carolina Testing not provided by DOC (0 points) Testing when symptomatic or in contact (0 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated regularly (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 25.74 20 4.8 75.54 15.58 0 15.58 F+ Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
South Dakota Testing not provided by DOC (0 points) Testing when symptomatic or in contact (0 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated daily (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) Orders suspension of jail admissions for people on parole with positive urinalysis test for controlled substance (10 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) -3.7 5 6.6 57.9 11.94 0 11.94 F Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: Executive Order 2020-14
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Tennessee Commitment to testing all (5 points) Completed testing of all (20 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated regularly (15 points) Disaggregated by race (15 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 31.4 94 12.8 129.2 26.64 0.29 26.35 D- Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab & Vera Institute of Justice
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Texas Testing some; some facilities committed to complete testing (5 points) Testing when symptomatic; some facilities committed to complete testing (5 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to some (0 points) Data available and updated regularly (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 2.43 44 9.7 52.13 10.75 0.71 10.03 F Testing, PPE, data: Dept. of Criminal Justice website
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Utah Testing not provided by DOC (0 points) Testing when symptomatic or in contact (0 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated daily (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 16.17 9 19.8 80.97 16.69 0 16.69 F+ Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Vermont Commitment to testing all (5 points) Completed testing of all (20 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated regularly (15 points) Disaggregated by race (15 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) Combined prison and jail system n/a 29.7 114.7 23.65 0 23.65 D- Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: n/a
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Virginia Testing not provided by DOC (0 points) Commitment to testing all (5 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated daily (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) Authorizes consideration for early release for those who meet specific offense criteria and medical vulnerability criteria (10 points) Authorizes consideration for early release for those who meet specific offense criteria and are within 1 year of end of sentence (10 points) 13.64 25 2.56 83.64 17.25 0.63 16.62 F+ Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: DOC COVID-19 Response Inmate Early Release Plan
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: DOC website
Washington Testing not provided by DOC (0 points) Testing when symptomatic or in contact (0 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated daily (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) Grants commutations to those who are charged with "nonviolent/nonsexual offense" and a release date prior to 6/29/2020 (10 points) 35.82 37 2.7 93.52 19.28 0 19.28 F+ Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: Emergency Commutation In Response To COVID-19, 20-50 Reducing The Prison Population, & 20-35 Department Of Corrections - Community Custody Violations
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Data from Dec 31, 2020 and March 31, 2020 from DOC Fact Cards. In correspondence, the DOC reported that there were 16,531 people incarcerated in state prisons on April 30, 2020, but that this count excludes those held for technical violations and is therefore incompatible with the population count provided for Dec 31, 2020. 
West Virginia Completed testing of all (15 points) Completed testing of all (20 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated daily (15 points) State DOC provided data by race to the Marshall Project (15 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 11.99 10 7.4 114.39 23.59 0 23.59 D- Testing, PPE, data: Division of Corrections & Rehabilitation website, the Marshall Project's report, "Is COVID-19 Falling Harder on Black Prisoners? Officials Won’t Tell Us," & WV MetroNews article on PPE
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: ACLU of West Virginia
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Wisconsin Commitment to testing all (5 points) Commitment to testing all (5 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Data available and updated daily (15 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 15.65 21 10.6 81.25 16.75 0 16.75 F+ Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report
Wyoming No information on testing (0 points) Testing when symptomatic or in contact (0 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Masks provided to all (15 points) Some data available (5 points) Not disaggregated by race (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) No order (0 points) 2.52 4 2 39.52 8.15 0 8.15 F Testing, PPE, data: DOC website
Executive orders: n/a
Jail data: NYU Public Safety Lab
Prison data: Vera Institute of Justice's People in Prison, 2019 report"

Sources and methodology

Staff (15 points)
Does the state Department of Corrections provide COVID-19 testing for all staff?
Incarcerated (20 points)
Does the state Department of Corrections provide COVID-19 testing for all incarcerated people?
Staff (15 points)
Does the state Department of Corrections provide personal protective equipment for all staff?
Incarcerated (15 points)
Does the state Department of Corrections provide personal protective equipment for all incarcerated people?
Publicly available (15 points)
Does the state Department of Corrections publish accessible and up-to-date data on COVID-19 in prisons?
Disaggregated by race (15 points)
Is the data provided by the Department of Corrections diaggregated by race?
Halting jail admissions (30 points)
Did the governor issue an executive order (or did the Department of Corrections enact a policy) to halt jail admissions?
Medically vulnerable releases (30 points)
Did the governor issue an executive order (or did the Department of Corrections enact a policy) to release the medically vulnerable from prisons?
Near-completion of sentence releases (30 points)
Did the governor issue an executive order (or did the Department of Corrections enact a policy) to release people from prisons who were near the end of their sentences?
Statewide jail reduction
What has the median jail population percentage change been across the state as of June 1, 2020? (1 point per 1% reduction of median jail population)
How many jails do we have data for?
How many local jails had data available for this analysis?
Statewide prison reduction
By what percentage has the state's prison population changed from Dec 31, 2019/Jan 1, 2020 to April 30, 2020/May 1 2020 (unless otherwise noted in sources)? (2 points per 1% reduction)
Raw score
Sum of points for testing, PPE, data, executive and DOC orders, and population reduction (maximum 485 points)
Normalized score out of 100 points
Raw score normalized by dividing by 4.85 (maximum 100 points)
Subtracted points for prison deaths
Subtracted one point for every 5 prison deaths per 10,000 people in the state’s prison system

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