As used in this compact, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms have the following meanings.
1. Inmate. "Inmate" means a male or female offender who is committed, under sentence to or confined in a penal or correctional institution.
2. Institution. "Institution" means any penal or correctional facility, including, but not limited to, a facility for the mentally ill or mentally defective, in which inmates, as defined in subsection 1, may lawfully be confined.
3. Receiving state. "Receiving state" means a state party to this compact to which an inmate is sent for confinement other than a state in which conviction or court commitment was had.
4. Sending state. "Sending state" means a state party to this compact in which conviction or court commitment was had.
5. State. "State" means a state of the United States, located in New England, to wit, Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island.