Ling yueyan worked in Nanjing as an adjutant, managing legal affairs and prisons.

At the Justice Department, Mr. Grobmyer and his client discussed the Administration's plans for private companies to manage prisons.

The Corrections Corporation of America, for example, a Nashville company that manages prisons, was the top-performing stock on the New York Stock Exchange.

Governments are also sharing more confidential data with companies that now manage child support enforcement, prisons and welfare benefits.

Serco provides services for private industry and public agencies; it manages prisons, operates hospitals and trains military helicopter pilots.

The Corrections Corporation of America, which contracts with governments to manage prisons, and the CBT Group, which develops interactive training software, both drew big crowds.

The inspection system is identical for both the state-run and privately managed prisons.

Among the largest corporate gifts was a $100,000 check given to Mr. DeLay last year by the Corrections Corporation of Nashville, which manages federal prisons.

The Nashville-based company manages prisons and other correctional operations for government agencies.

Management & Training Corporation or MTC is a Centerville, Utah-based contractor that manages private prisons and provides vocational training.