Washington, D.C. ? Hate crimes incidents decreased slightly last year despite a surge in those targeting gays and lesbians.

The FBI reported more than 7,600 hate crimes incidents in 2007, down about 1 percent from the previous year. The decline was driven by decreases in the two largest categories of hate crimes – crimes against race and religion.

But incidents linked to prejudice against sexual orientation, the third-largest category, increased about 6 percent, the report found.

The FBI report does not compare its data from one year to the next because the number of law enforcement agencies participating in the annual count varies from year to year. More agencies contributed to the 2007 report than the 2006 report, however.

The report released Monday is consistent with previous years. Racial bias remained the most common motive, accounting for more than half of all reported hate crimes. Blacks, Jews and gays were the most frequent victims of hate crimes, the report found.