County jails are a fundamental responsibility of county government in Kentucky, mandated by state law (KRS 441.025). This law requires counties to provide for the incarceration of individuals arrested within their county.

Counties have three main options for fulfilling their legal obligation to house inmates:

• Operating their own county jail,
• Establishing a regional jail with one or more additional counties, or
• Contracting with another county to use its jail facility.

County jails are vital to public safety and operate as an essential component of the state's justice system.

Counties are responsible for:

• Holding individuals immediately after arrest.
• Incarcerating pre-trial felony detainees
• Housing misdemeanor inmate pre-trial and post-sentencing.

The state of Kentucky also relies on county jails to house state inmates serving sentences for certain felony offenses. State law requires most Class D felony and some Class C felony inmates to serve their sentence in county jail (KRS 532.100).

Some counties also contract to house inmates for federal agencies.

Despite their critical function, jail costs are the number one financial issue facing most Kentucky counties due to growing expenses and limited revenue sources.

Current Kentucky county jail landscape

There are currently 77 county jails in Kentucky: 70 full service, 4 regional and 3 life safety.

Full service: Jails that may house state prisoners pursuant to KRS 441.055 and that meet the standards established by 501 KAR Chapter 3.

Life safety: Any county jail operated by and under the supervision of a governing authority that does not house state prisoners pursuant to KRS 532.100.

Regional: A jail which is owned and operated by two or more counties through a regional jail authority as provided in KRS 441.800.

Closed: Jail is not in operation and does not house inmates.

Counties without a jail (closed jail counties)

More than a third of Kentucky counties do not operate their own jail facility. These counties must contract with another county to house their inmates and are commonly referred to as "closed jail counties."

Since 2019, three counties—Lewis, Lincoln and Union—have closed their former full-service jails. Even when a county closes its jail, they remain financially responsible for the incarceration of individuals arrested within their county. This responsibility includes:

• Paying a negotiated fee to the contracting county for housing their inmates.
• Covering the costs of prisoner transportation, including providing vehicles, transportation officers, and guards.