Of the 12,133 hearings involving eligible inmates, 8,327 (69 percent) were issued certificates prior to their initial board; 2,819 (23 percent) were denied certificates and 987 (8 percent) were determined to noncertifiable for earned eligibility at the time of review. Inmates issued certificates were substantially more likely to be granted parole than inmates denied certificates or those granted noncertifiable status. During the period, 79 percent of inmates issued certificates were granted parole, compared to 35 percent of inmates denied certificates and 50 percent of inmates granted noncertifiable status. Based on the previous 50 percent release rate at initial hearings, 6,067 initial releases were projected for the period between October 1992 and March 1993. The actual number of initial releases totaled 8,037, an additional 1,971 releases above the projected level. A followup study found that the return rate of inmates released with certificates was significantly lower than the return rate of a comparison group. 6 tables