The data indicates that West Virginia’s current correctional population has grown in recent years and will continue to grow over the next decade. Report highlights include: (1) West Virginia ranked 40th in the Nation in 2005 with an incarceration rate of 291 per 100,000 residents; (2) commitments to the Department of Corrections grew by 5.6 percent in 2005; (3) in 2005, only 4.1 percent of all parole violators were returning due to the commission of a new crime; (4) excluding assault, violent offenders received the longest sentences in 2004; (5) as of December 2005, West Virginia’s correctional population was over 2 ½ times its size in 1993; (6) nearly half (48.6 percent) of all inmates released in 2005 were granted parole; (7) West Virginia’s correctional population is forecast to increase at an average annual growth rate of 3.3 percent over the next decade; (8) according to the forecast, the DOC can expect to receive approximately 205 additional inmates per year; and (9) the correctional population is expected to reach 6,192 inmates in 2010 and 7,369 in 2015. This report describes the current correctional population in West Virginia and provides policymakers with a 10-year population forecast. The report begins with a description of the State’s current and historical correctional population and growth and concludes with the presentation of the current 2005-2015 forecast projections. Tables and graphs