The number of inmates in Iowa prisons is down, due in part to a drop in the number of prison terms and fewer offenders returning for parole or probation violations, corrections officials said.

As of June 31, which marked the end of Iowa's 2008 fiscal year, the state prisons housed 8,740 inmates.

That's down 66 inmates from the year before and marks only the third annual decline in 12 years, said Department of Corrections Director John Baldwin.

The 1,800 new commitments to Iowa prisons were down 162 placements from the previous year and was the lowest total since fiscal 1997. Baldwin called it a "significant" decline.

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