Socimages The number of Americans under correctional control has more than tripled since the 1980s, up to 1 in 31 U.S. citizens. And the U.S. incarcerates six times more of its citizens than many European countries. As you might imagine, this is very expensive. Between 1987 and 2007, the amount spent on corrections increased by 127%. To put this in perspective, the amount spent on higher education has only increased 21%.