As the Legislature enacted tougher sentencing laws, Oklahoma’s prison population increased for a third consecutive year in 2025.

The Department of Corrections reported a population of 23,498 on Dec. 22, including pending county jail transfers. That’s a 1.7% uptick from December 2024, when 23,109 people were under the agency’s jurisdiction.

From Reform Leader to Rising Numbers

Oklahoma dropped its title of top incarcerator in the U.S. in 2019, when the Legislature made State Question 780 retroactive and more than 500 people were released from prison in a single day. Delays in criminal proceedings prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic contributed to reductions in 2020 and 2021.

Most states have experienced a post-pandemic rebound in imprisonment rates. From 2022 to 2023, state prison populations increased 2.5%, according to the most recent data from the Bureau of Justice Statistics. That report listed Oklahoma as having the nation’s fourth-highest incarceration rate, trailing Mississippi, Louisiana and Arkansas.

Legislative Shift Toward Tougher Penalties

This year the Legislature shifted much of its focus from criminal justice reform to toughening penalties for violent offenders. Several laws enacted in 2025 mandate additional prison time for certain crimes, including accessory to murder and shooting into a dwelling.

Medical Parole Controversy

Recent reform discussions have centered on the role of the Pardon and Parole Board to facilitate the release of aging prisoners, a population that’s costly to incarcerate and has more than doubled since 2009.

While lawmakers updated the state’s medical parole statute in 2021 with the goal of expanding eligibility, the statute has had an opposite effect, with just six medical paroles granted since 2021.

Critics say resistance from the Department of Corrections is keeping some eligible candidates from receiving a medical parole hearing. The Pardon and Parole Board requested an attorney general’s opinion on the prison agency’s role in the medical parole process in early October, which remains pending.

Proposed Legislative Solutions

One measure filed ahead of the 2026 legislative session, Senate Bill 1244 by Dave Rader, R-Tulsa, would require the Pardon and Parole Board to recommend medical parole if evidence suggests a person does not pose a substantial public safety risk. It also authorizes the board to consider parole for older prisoners convicted of a violent or sexual offense.

Michael Olson, the policy counsel for Oklahomans for Criminal Justice Reform, said prison admissions have remained flat despite the population increase. He said Oklahoma’s abnormally long prison sentences are likely the main contributor.

Olson said allowing the parole board to consider more aging prisoner cases, as proposed in SB1244, could help alleviate population growth. The board would retain its discretion to consider the circumstances of the crime, and the governor would be required to sign off on release for violent offenders.

“And that’s where this population of individuals is important, because they cost a lot more than everyone else and are less likely to reoffend,” Olson said.

Looking Ahead

The debate over Oklahoma’s incarceration policies reflects a tension between public safety concerns and fiscal realities. As the 2026 legislative session approaches, lawmakers will face pressure to address both the rising prison population and the substantial costs associated with incarcerating an aging prison population.

With Senate Bill 1244 on the horizon and an attorney general’s opinion pending on medical parole procedures, the coming year could prove pivotal in determining whether Oklahoma returns to its reform trajectory or continues down a path of increased incarceration.