Table Of ContentTransforming Prisons, Restoring Lives
Final Recommendations of the Charles Colson Task Force on Federal Corrections
January 2016
ABOUT THE CHARLES COLSON TASK FORCE ON FEDERAL CORRECTIONS
The Task Force was established by Congressional mandate in 2014 a-sp ae rnsionne, bipartisan, blue ribbon panel charged with
developing practical, da-tdariven recommendations to enhance public safety by creating a more justc aienndt e ffefdi eral
corrections system. Informed by over a year o-ff finadcting, rigorous data analysis, and discussions with key experts and
stakeholders, the independent Task Force’s recommendations to the US Congress, the President, and the Attorney General
provide a blueprint for reforms to the federal corrections system that are sens-iebflfee, cctoivste strategies to reduce crime and
restore lives .
Copyright ©J anuary 2016. Urban Institute. Permission is granted for reproduction of this file, with attribution to the
Urban InstituteP. hoto credits: left, Getty Images/Marga Fronterac;e tnotpe r: AP Photo/Seth Perlman; top right: AP
Photo/Steve Miller; bottocmen ter: Thinkstock Imagse/Getty Images; bottom right: AP Photo/Rich Pedron celli.
Contents
Members of the Charles Colson Task Force on Federal Corrections iv
Task Force Staff v
Acknowledgments vi
Letter from the Task Force Chairs vii
Executive Summary ix
Recommendations for Reform xiv
Overview of the Task Force xix
The Transformation of the Federal Corrections System 1
Who is in the BOP? 3
Federal Sentencing Reform in the 1980s 5
The Abolition of Parole and Increase in Time Served 8
The Policy Changes Driving BOP Growth 9
Federal prison growth driven largely by drug and weapon offenses 10
Mandatory minimum sentences drove long sentences for drug crimes 11
Many people convicted of drug crimes have minimal or no criminal histories 12
Mandatory minimum sentences also drove growth in long sentences for weapon offenses 13
With Growth, Comes Consequences 14
Rising costs 14
The toll on individuals, families, and communities 15
Overcrowding and poor conditions of confinement 15
Inadequate programming 17
A New Path 17
Recommendation 1: Reserve Prison for Those Convicted of the Most Serious
Federal Crimes 20
Background 20
Recommendations 22
Maintain drug mandatory minimum penalties for only the most serious offenses
and revise the Sentencing Guidelines accordingly 22
Allow judges to sentence below the mandatory minimum for certain weapon possession
offenses associated with nonviolent crimes 23
Review all other mandatory minimum penalties, establish a “sunset provision”
for any future mandatory minimums, and require prison, fiscal, and racial
impact statements for proposed legislation and Sentencing Guidelines 24
Encourage and incent iv i ze a l ternat ives to in carcerat ion 25
Limit the types of cases prosecuted federally 27
Recommendation 2: Promote a Culture of Safety and Rehabilitation
in Federal Facilities 29
Background 29
Recommendations 30
Enhance safety and security within federal correctional facilities 30
Deliver adequate and appropriate in-prison programming and services based on
individual risk for recidivism and identified needs 32
Identify programming shortages and expand program offerings to meet
the assessed needs of the prison population 34
Ensure conditions of confinement are conducive to rehabilitation 36
Develop greater opportunities for family engagement 39
Recommendation 3: Incentivize Participation in Risk-Reduction Programming 42
Background 42
Recommendations 44
Improve public safety by incentivizing high- and medium-risk individuals
to participate in risk-reduction programming 44
Establish a Second Look provision to ensure judicious use of incarceration
and encourage rehabilitation 46
Recommendation 4: Ensure Successful Reintegration by Using Evidence-Based
Practices in Supervision and Support 50
Background 50
Recommendations 52
Conduct a comprehensive assessment of BOP procedures and practices
surrounding prerelease custody, particularly RRCs 52
Improve the transition of individuals transferring from BOP facilities
to community agencies to ensure a safe and seamless reintegration 54
Strengthen supervised release and expand use of early termination for successful individuals 55
Recommendation 5: Enhance System Performance and Accountability through Better
Coordination across Agencies and Increased Transparency 57
Background 57
Recommendations 58
Establish a joint Department of Justice/Judiciary working group on sentencing
and corrections to oversee implementation of recommended reforms 58
Expand and disseminate public information and knowledge
about federal corrections and supervision 59
Establish a BOP Office of Victim Services as a point of contact for victims
seeking information or support 62
I I CONTENTS
Expand the ro l e and capac i t y o f the USSC to i nc l ude more d i v e r s e per spec t i ves
and grea treers pons ib i l i t y fo r -cargoesnscy co l l abo ra t i on 62
Establish a permanent BOP Performance, Accountability, and Oversight Board 64
Review federal collateral consequence laws, regulations, and practices,
and develop specific recommendations to Congress 65
Recommendation 6: Reinvest Savings to Support the Expansion of Necessary
Programs, Supervision, and Treatment 66
Population and Cost Projections 67
Reinvestment Plan 68
Investment priorities 70
Most long-term savings should be reinvested in promoting public safety 71
Appendix A. Recommendations by Authority 72
Appendix B. Task Force Member Biographies 77
Appendix C. List of Invited Speakers, Roundtable Participants, and Other
Contributing Organizations and Stakeholders 79
Appendix D. Projected Impact of Selected Task Force Recommendations 85
Appendix E. Data Sources and Methods 86
Notes 90
References 95
CONTENTS I I I
Memberosf the Charles Colson Task Force
on Federal Corrections
Chairs
J.C. Watts, Jr., Chair
Chairman, J.C. Watts Companies; Congressman (R-OK) (1995–2003)
Alan B. Mollohan, Vice Chair
Congressman (D-WV) (1983–2011)
Members
Craig DeRoche*
Senior Vice President of Policy and Advocacy, Prison Fellowship; Member, Michigan House of
Representatives (R-38th District) (2002–2009, Speaker 2005–2006)
David C. Iglesias
Director, Wheaton Center for Faith, Politics and Economics at Wheaton Colleg; eUS Attorney for the
District of New Mexico (2001–2007)
Jim Liske**
President and CEO, Prison Fellowship Ministries (2011–2015)
Jay Neal
Criminal Justice Liaison, Georgia Criminal Justice Coordinating Council;
Representative, Georgia General Assembly (R-Lafayette) (2005–2013)
Laurie O. Robinson
Clarence J. Robinson Professor of Criminology, Law and Society, George Mason University; Assistant
Attorney General, US Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs (1993–2000; 2009–2012)
Cynthia W. Roseberry
Project Manager, Clemency Project 2014; Executive Director, Federal Defenders of the Middle District
of Georgia (2009–2014)
Judge Ricardo M. Urbina
Arbitrator and Mediator, JAMS; Judge, US District Court for the District of Columbia (1994–2012)
John E. Wetzel
Secretary, Pennsylvania Department of Corrections; Warden, Franklin County (PA) Jail (2002–2010)
* Began serving November 2015
** Served until November 2015
IV MEMBERS OF THE CHARLES COLSON TASK FORCE ON FEDERAL CORRECTIONS
Task Force St a f f
TheU rban Inst i tute and i t s partner ,t tehrfe o Cr eEnf fect ive Publ ic P, oplriocvyidde s trateg ic gu idance ,
researcha,n a lys ,i sand log is t i scuapl portto the Task Fo r ce .
Nancy La Vig ne Execut ive D i rec tor
Ju l ie Samue l s Pr inc ipa l Invest ig a tor
Cybele Koton i as Pro ject Manager and Po l icy A na lyst
SamueTl axy Data Manager and Po l icy A na lyst
Beck i Ne y Correct iona l Programs and Pract ice s Ana lyst
Peggy Burk e Correct ions Adv isor and Roundtab le F ac i l i tator
Ryan K in g Pol icy Adv is o r
Br ian E lderbro om Pol icy Adv is o r
Richard St rok er Correct io nAsdv iso r
Wi l l i am Adam s Data Adv is o r
Ab iga i l F ly nn Research Ass ist ant
L i l ly Y u Research Ass ist ant
Chel sea Thoms on Pro ject Assoc i a te
Kate Vi l lar r ea l Communica t ions Man ager
Jen i fer Warr en Staf f Wr i t er
TheC onso l idated Appropr iat ions Act , 2014 , Pub-.7 L6. ( JNaonu. a1r1y 317, 2014) provided
funding for the Charles Colson Task Force on Federal Corrections.T he work of the Task Force,
including this report, was supported through a competitive grant awarded to the Urban Institute by the
Bureau of Justice Assistance (Grant No. 2014-ZR-BX-K001). The Bureau of Justice Assistance is a
component of the Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs, which also includes the Bureau of
Justice Statistics, the National Institute of Justice, the Office of Juvenile Justicned a Delinquency
Prevention, the Office for Victims of Crime, and the SMART Office. Points of view or opinions in this
document are those of thea uthors and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the
US Department of Justice.
The views expressed are those of the authors and should not be attributed tohe Urban Institute,
its subcontractors,i ts trustees, or its funders. Funders do not determine research findings othr e
insights and recommendations of Urban expert. sFurther information on the Urban Institute’s funding
principles is available atw ww.urban.org/support.
TASK FORCE STAFF V
Acknowledmgent s
The members o f t he Cha r l es TCaoslks oFno rc e on Federa l Co rrec t i ons a re g ra te fu l f o r the a s s i s t ance
and support o f many cont r ibutor s over the pa s t yea r . F i r s t and fo remSo Csotn,g wreess t ahnadn k t he U
Department of Justice for making this work possible. Congress created the Task Force and provided the
funding necessary to accomplish our mission. The Department of Justice, including staff at the Bureau
of Justice Assistance and the Criminal Division, executed the grant supporting our work.
The Federal Bureau of Prisons, including headquarters staff and countless other individuals in the
field, provided critical data and insights regarding current policies and practices in the federal
corrections system. The Task Force especially thanks the staff at the US Penitentiary, Atlanta for
facilitating our September visit. We also appreciate the assistance of the US Sentencing Commission,
which provided essential data about individuals sentenced in the federal system.
Over the past twelve months, a wide array of people and organizations committed time and
resources to discuss the challenges facing the federal corrections system with the Task Force and our
staff. This investment underscored the need for action, and their views and perspectives greatly
informed our deliberations.
The Task Force’s findings and recommendations build on decades of federal corrections reform and
research by government officials, policy makers, advocacy groups, and scholars. This extensive
groundwork provided the foundation for our efforts.
Lastly, we thank the staff of the Urban Institute and Center for Effective Public Policy for their
dedication to our mission. Their knowledge of the federal corrections system and the larger field of
criminal justice research and practice—along with their commitment to following the data—set the tone
for the evidence-based recommendations embodied in this report.
V I ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Let ter f rom the Task Force Cha i r s
When Dona Tlday lo r g raduated f rom h igh s choo l i n 1984 h i s goa l s were c ry s ta l c l ea r : en l i s t i n the US
Army and make s erv i ng h i s count ry a l i f e l ong ca reer . The p l an began we l l bu t ended bad ly when Tay lo r
was s t ruck by a moto r i s t near Fo r t Rucker , A l abama , dainsdch haorngoerda ibnl y1990 . Haunted by
i n ju r i es and t he c o l l apse o f h i s d ream , he re turned home , f e l l i n w i th the w rong c rowd , and was
conv i c ted o f se l l i ng powder coca ine i n 1994 . A l though h i s c r ime was nonv io len t , Tay lor was s ent to
f edera l p r i son on a man dmaitnoimryum sentence o f 20 years s ince he had a p-rl eveiol u s s ta t e
conv i c t ion fo r s e l l i ng l es s than a g ram o f pow der coca ine .
Amer i ca i s awash i n Dona ld Tay lor s , peop le whose d rug o f fenses o r o the r nonv io l en t c r imes d rew
exces s ive pena l t i es t ha t ha vper ifsiol lnesd, s quandered human potent i a l , a nd s ent cor rec t iona l cos t s
sky rocket ing wh i l e p roduc ing on ly modes t pub l i c s a f e t y benef i t s . Over the pa s t year , t he Cha r l es Co l son
Task Force on Federa l Cor rec t ions has ga thered te s t imony f rom such efdo rpmeeorpllye ,i n ca rce ra t
correc t i ons o f f i c i a l s , p rosecutor s , , daenfde nddoezer sns o f o t hers a s pa r t o f an ex t ens ive ana ly s i s o f ou r
na t ion ’ s f edera l c r im ina l j u s t i ce s y s t em .
Es tab l i s hed i n 2014 by Congress i n response to yea rs opfr ui snosnu sptoapinual abtl ieo nc oasnt d
increases, high rates of recidivism, and inaction on possible reforms, the Task Force was directed to
conduct an independent assessment of the federal system to identify the dynamics driving increases in
the Federal Bureau of Prisons’ population and costs and produce recommendations for lasting reform.
In the wake of successful reforms of state corrections systems over the last decade, which have
demonstrated models to reduce costs and improve public safety, Congress sought a bipartisan review of
the federal system to inform the public debate on possible reforms.
Throughout our work, we were ever mindful of the man for whom our Task Force was named.
Chuck Colson, who served time in federal prison and upon release founded the world’s largest prison
ministry, was a vigorous advocate on behalf of the incarcerated at a time when criminal justice reform
had virtually no support on either side of the aisle. We salute his leadership and we are grateful for the
chance to move the cause forward with our efforts.
Those efforts, spanning more than a year of interviews, roundtable discussions, data analysis, and
other research, have been far more enlightening than any of our members imagined—and have revealed
both the causes of the bloated federal prison system and the results of decades of unbridled growth. We
learned that one of the key drivers of the population has been extremely long sentences for drug
offenses, including for those with no histories of violence. We also observed that the result of these
policy choices is a federal prison system that is in a state of crisis. Indeed, even with our years of
experience as elected officials with an interest in corrections policy, we were routinely startled by
testimony illuminating the breadth of the problems and their consequences for those serving time and
working within the Bureau of Prisons. From severe overcrowding to an insufficient array of effective
programs and incentives to encourage behavioral change, the system is failing those it incarcerates and
the taxpayers who fund it.
LETTER FROM THE TASK FORCE CHAIRS V I I
Yet wh i le the sca le o f the cha l l enge i s g reater than any o f us ant ic ipated , th is Task Force i s noth ing
but op t im ist i c about the fu ture . Recent ly , former Bureau of Pr i sons D i rector Char les E . Samue ls , J r .
made great s t r ides toward t rangs fhoirsm aignency th rough a renewed emphas is on reent ry preparat ion
and a s t rengthened partnershiitps wemithp loyeuens i on . At the same t ime, a b ipart i san appet i te for
reform is read i ly apparent i n act ionsa tl la tkherne bey b ranches o f gover. nWmietnht th irso pmis ing
foundat ion , we are conf ident our recommendat ions , i f c arr ied out as deta i led in th i s report , w i l l enable
Congress , the Pres ident , and the Attorney Genera l to reduce the federa l pr i son popu lat ion , inc rease
publ i c sa fety , and cut cost s .
I t i s impoarntt to note that our recommendat ions were adopted unan imous ly by a Task Force
featur ing a b ipar t i san and except iona l ly d iverse membersh ip , inc lud ing a fo rmer p rosecutor ,
pract i t ionaenr d academeicx pert s , and representat ives f rom the jud ic i ary ,b tahre, adnedf etnhsee fa i th
community . We were a ss is ted by s ta f f who not on ly brought extens ive exper ience to the job but a l so
ensured our b luepr int f or change was anchored in data and the best ava i lab le sc i ence about what works
to change the behav ior o f pevooplvlee din i n c r ime, reduce rec id iv i sm, and keep comm un it i es sa fe .
In c los ing , we are p leased to report that Dona ld Tay lor was d i scharged f rom federa l superv is ion in
l a te 2014 , g raduated f rom co l l ege w i th the he lp o f Veterans Admin ist rat iomn abkeense fhiitss , and now
l iv ing as a counse lor fo r t roubled youth . But the lesson in h is s tory i s th is : In our country , Dona ld Tay lor
was the except ion , overcomdiisnpgr oap o rt ionatleolnyg sentence and a scarc i ty o f rehab i l i ta t ive
o f fer ings in p r i son to f ind h i sf rweaeyd otmo , a co l l ege degree , and a j ob . I t was our task to look at the
correct iona l system and make recommendat ions that such outcomes w i l l be the ru le . That , i n the end ,
w i l l p roduce a sa fer soc iety for a l l .
On beha l f o f the Co lson Task Force , we lrye supbemctiftu tlh i s report to the Cotnhger ess ,
Pres identth, eA t to rney Gene, raanld the Amer ican peop le w i th a s t rong be l ie f that the enc losed
f ind ings and recommendat ions w i l l he lp further our shared commitment to a reform of the f edera l
correct ions systeamt trhestores l i avnesd improves publ i c sa f ety .
J .C . Watts , J r . A lan B . Mo l loh an
Cha i r ViceC ha i r
V I I I LETTER FROM THE TASK FORCE CHAIRS
