The General Accounting Office (GAO) conducted a review of women's correctional facilities from September 1979 through June 1980 at the Federal Bureau of Prisons, National Institute of Corrections, and the National Institute of Justice in Washington, D.C.; State departments of corrections in California, Minnesota, North Carolina, New Hampshire, Texas, and Vermont; and at numerous jurisdictions in those States. Also visited were Federal, State, and local correctional institutions where both men and women were incarcerated. Also visited were projects that were established as alternatives to incarceration and community corrections programs. The review found that inequitable treatment is most prevalent at the State level, but it also exists at the Federal and local levels. Correctional systems have not been aggressive in providing programs and services to females due to the relatively small number of women prisoners, and because many officials feel that women do not need the same type of training and vocational skills as men. Women are beginning to use the courts to demand equal treatment. An increasing number of suits on behalf of women inmates are demanding that correctional officials extend to women the same type facilities and other opportunities provided to men; courts are frequently deciding in favor of female inmates. Alternatives exist which would provide for more equitable treatment without duplicating existing services and programs. These alternatives include shared facilities; community corrections; joint venture, a concept of pooling resources at the Federal, State, and local levels to use incarceration facilities more effectively; and private industry involvement in providing work opportunities for inmates. GAO recommends that the Attorney General provide the same level of resources and opportunities to women inmates as are provided to men. To accomplish this, the Bureau of Prisons, in conjunction with the National Institute of Corrections, should develop a strategy for dealing with inequities in female corrections. This strategy should include all levels of corrections on a regional, metropolitan area, or statewide basis to achieve equitable conditions and at the same time provide for more efficient use of existing and future facilities and staff resources. Tables, footnotes, and agency comments are included. A list of related GAO reports and data on the number of female and male inmates in prisons are appended. (Author abstract modified)