The U.S. Sentencing Commission provided data on 267,178 offenders sentenced between January 1, 1984 and June 30, 1990. During this period, the U.S. Sentencing Commission implemented sentencing guidelines, and Congress enacted mandatory minimum sentencing statutes for drug offenders. Sentences got higher for large- and small-scale drug offenders, except those involved with opiates and those above age 45, for whom average sentences decreased. The strength of the relationship between sentencing and type of drug remained moderate for large-scale offenders and strong for smaller-scale offenders. For both groups, cocaine replaced opiates as the most severely sanctioned drug, and the impact of drug amount on sentencing increased from moderate to strong. The sentencing impact of prior convictions, which was already strong for smaller-scale offenders, grew even stronger; for large-scale offenders, it grew from moderate to strong. The effect of possession or use of a weapon grew from mild to strong. The impact of offender role in the offense remained within the strong range for both groups, despite a decline for lesser-scale drug offenders. Leniency toward young offenders disappeared. The moderate gender gap in sentencing continued, although among smaller-scale offenders it diminished somewhat. The mild tendency for blacks to receive higher sentences became moderate among large-scale drug offenders, and very strong among smaller-scale offenders. Appendix, 36 footnotes