In 1999, almost 420,000 inmates-or more than three-quarters of those released from state prisons-were released to community supervision, most frequently parole or probation. ^[1]   Individuals released to parole supervision are supervised for an average of just under two years. ^[2]   In 2002 there were 753,141 individuals on parole, up from 220,000 in 1980. ^[3]   In terms of demographics, most returning prisoners are male (88 percent); their median age is 34; and their median education level is 11th grade. ^[4]   In 1998, just over half of returning prisoners were white (55 percent), and 44 percent were black. Twenty-one percent of parolees were Hispanic (of any race). ^[5]   While it is unclear what percentage of people coming out of jail enter probation supervision, 50 percent of those on probation (nearly 2 million individuals) had received a "split sentence," meaning that they were sentenced to serve a period of incarceration before being released to probation. ^[6]   Most of those individuals-37 percent of all people on probation-had served time in jail just prior to entering probation; another 15 percent had served time in prison. ^[7]   Therefore, the issue of effective postrelease supervision is pertinent to both parole and probation agencies.