The New York Times reports that a new study from the Pew Center on the States reveals that "for the first time in the nation’s history, more than one in 100 American adults is behind bars."

"Nationwide, the prison population grew by 25,000 last year, bringing it to almost 1.6 million,"the New York Times continues. "Another 723,000 people are in local jails. The number of American adults is about 230 million, meaning that one in every 99.1 adults is behind bars."

"Incarceration rates are even higher for some groups. One in 36 Hispanic adults is behind bars, based on Justice Department figures for 2006. One in 15 black adults is, too, as is one in nine black men between the ages of 20 and 34.

In addition state budgets are being stretched to the max by draconian federal laws which dictate mandatory sentencing and thus increased costs, a legacy of the twisted Rockefeller laws of the 1970s.

"In 2007, according to the National Association of State Budgeting Officers, states spent $44 billion in tax dollars on corrections," the Times reports.