Carbon County's inmate population is hovering close to full capacity, officials report.

During the county prison board meeting on Wednesday, Warden Timothy Fritz said that the inmate population at the 223-bed county prison has been fluctuating recently from anywhere between 220 to as high as 230 on weekends."On weekends we have anywhere between six to eight more than during the week," Fritz said. Those inmates are scheduled to serve their sentences only on the weekends. These inmates sometimes utilize temporary beds when there are not permanent beds available.As of Sunday, the inmate population was 230 - 176 males and 54 females. In October, the average daily population was 219.Robert Crampsie, county controller, asked Fritz for additional information on the population with regards to temping out inmates.Fritz said that the grand total of inmates is between 265 and 270 with approximately 40 of those either in rehabs, different agencies for other court appearances in other counties, or at a state facility to see if they are eligible for state programs.Carbon County has been watching the rising number of inmates at the Nesquehoning prison for years. The higher numbers is a trend happening across the country.In recent years, officials have discussed the need for more space, additional programs and other options to help alleviate overcrowding issues.Commissioner Thomas J. Gerhard, president of the prison board who also sits on the prison overcrowding committee, said that officials will be further discussing what can be done to reduce the population, adding that there are a lot of options the board must investigate to see what would work best for the county.Recently, Carbon County contracted with Carbon-Monroe-Pike Drug and Alcohol Commission to provide counseling services to inmates with addictions, which begins in the prison and continues once the inmate is released from incarceration.Officials have also toured day reporting facilities in other counties and considered drug courts as possible solutions.To date, no action has been taken on either option.