Pretrial Services Agency

for the District of Columbia

Congressional Budget Justification and 

Performance Budget Request

Fiscal Year 2022

May 28, 2021
ii

LEADERSHIP

Executive Management

Leslie C. Cooper, Esq.

Director

Victor Valentine Davis, Esq.

Assistant Director, Defendant Engagement 

and System Support

Executive Committee

Honorable Anna Blackburne-Rigsby, Chair

Chief Judge, District of Columbia Court of 

Appeals

Honorable Sri Srinivasan

Chief Judge, United States Court of Appeals for 

the District of Columbia Circuit

Honorable Beryl A. Howell

Chief Judge, United States District Court for the 

District of Columbia

Honorable Anita Josey-Herring

Chief Judge, Superior Court for the District of 

Columbia

Honorable Richard S. Tischner

Director, Court Services and Offender 

Supervision Agency for the District of Columbia

Channing D. Phillips, Esq.

Acting United States Attorney for the 

District of Columbia

Avis E. Buchanan, Esq.

Director, Public Defender Service for the District 

of Columbia
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TABLE OF CONTENTS

AGENCY OVERVIEW...............................................................................................................1

FISCAL YEAR 2022 PRESIDENT’S BUDGET........................................................................4

ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE........................................................................................12

PSA STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK...........................................................................................16

PROGRAM PERFORMANCE..................................................................................................18

RESOURCE REQUIREMENTS BY STRATEGIC GOAL .....................................................32

SUPPORTING MATERIALS ...................................................................................................33

BUDGET DISPLAYS................................................................................................................35

APPENDIX A: PSA’s FY 2019 CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET JUSTIFICATION FOR LEASE 

REPLACEMENT AND RELOCATION COSTS .....................................................................37
1

AGENCY OVERVIEW

The mission of the Pretrial Services Agency (PSA or Agency) for the District of Columbia (DC or 

District) is to promote pretrial justice and enhance community safety. In fulfilling this mission, PSA 

assists judicial officers in both the Superior Court of the District of Columbia (DCSC) and the 

United States District Court for the District of Columbia (USDC) by conducting a risk assessment 

for every arrested person who will be presented in court, identifying detention eligibility and 

formulating release recommendations, as appropriate, based upon the arrestee’s demographic 

information, criminal history, and substance use and/or mental health information. For defendants 

who are placed on conditional release pending trial, PSA provides supervision and treatment 

services intended to reasonably assure that they return to court and do not engage in criminal 

activity pending their trial and/or sentencing. 

PSA was created by an act of Congress (the District of Columbia Bail Agency Act) in 1967.1 Under 

the National Capital Revitalization and Self-Government Improvement Act of 1997, PSA was 

established as an independent entity within the Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency 

(CSOSA) in the Executive Branch of the Federal Government.2

The District operates an “in or out” bail system that promotes open and transparent decisions about 

release or detention. The foundation of this system is the DC bail statute, which includes a 

presumption in favor of pretrial release for all non-capital defendants, emphasizes the use of least 

restrictive release conditions for eligible defendants, provides an option of preventive detention for 

those who pose an unacceptable risk to the community, and limits the use of money-based 

detention. PSA employs evidence-based practices to help judicial officers in the District and local

and Federal courts make appropriate and effective bail decisions. 

PSA’s efforts focus on creating a customer-centric culture that meets the needs of the judges, 

protects the rights of defendants and remains cognizant of the Agency’s responsibility to the DC 

community. The result is enhanced public safety, a fairer and more effective system of release and

detention, and judicious use of jail resources. 

In March 2020, PSA began responding to the coronavirus disease of 2019 (hereafter referred to as 

COVID-19) by altering its operations to enforce social distancing measures necessary to slow the 

spread of the virus. Overall, the number of arrests has decreased, but the number of cases assigned 

to PSA supervision, court case processing times and the number of days defendants remain under 

PSA supervision have all increased. In addition, the judicial decision-making process supporting 

defendant release and detention has also been affected by COVID-19, resulting in the release of 

some defendants who were previously detained under DC’s preventive detention statute, as well as 

other defendants who are eligible for preventive detention and would otherwise have been held to 

PSA supervision.

During FY 2020, PSA supervised 15,451 defendants on pretrial release, which corresponds to an 

average of 3,782 defendants on any given day. PSA served an additional 12,789 defendants by 

providing services such as court date notifications and criminal history checks for persons who were 

1

(https://beta.code.dccouncil.us/dc/council/code/titles/23/chapters/13/, n.d.)

2

(https://www.congress.gov/bill/105th-congress/house-bill/1963, n.d.)
2

released on citation or personal recognizance, or whose charges were dismissed. Overall, PSA 

served more than 28,240 defendants during this period. Additionally, PSA conducted drug testing 

for 8,874 non-defendants.

PSA’s current caseloads include individuals being supervised on a full range of charges, from 

misdemeanor property offenses to felony murder. The vast majority of defendants (95 percent) are

awaiting trial in DCSC, with a smaller number (5 percent) awaiting trial in USDC. On average, 

defendants remained under supervision for 140 days. During this period, PSA administered

evidence-based and data-informed risk assessment and supervision practices to identify factors 

related to pretrial misconduct to and maximize the likelihood of arrest-free behavior and court 

appearance during the pretrial period.

A MODEL FOR PRETRIAL JUSTICE

While serving the District for over 50 years, PSA’s drug testing and innovative supervision and 

treatment programs have become recognized as models for the field of pretrial justice. The 

foundations of PSA’s model approach include: 

• providing timely and accurate information to the courts to support informed decisionmaking;

• honoring the presumption of innocence and each defendant’s right to pretrial release under 

the least restrictive conditions that assure community safety and return to court;

• promoting the use of appropriate graduated sanctions and incentives in response to defendant 

conduct; 

• using evidence-based solutions and implementing continuous process evaluation to improve 

outcomes; 

• partnering with other criminal justice agencies and community organizations to enhance 

public safety in the District’s neighborhoods, building capacity for support services for 

defendants under pretrial supervision; and 

• effectively managing the appropriated funds entrusted to the Agency’s stewardship.

PSA continues to facilitate a steady stream of requests for technical assistance from national and 

international groups. Requests from domestic groups to focus more on understanding the technical 

aspects of how to replicate certain operations, particularly risk assessment. Requests from 

international groups generally focus on explanations of the US civil and criminal justice systems at 

the Federal, state and local levels; the role of various criminal justice system partners; the Drug 

Court model; developing and implementing alternatives to incarceration; and supervision 

techniques for non-violent defendants. Most recently, PSA has hosted representatives from 

California, Illinois, Kentucky, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Texas, and Kenya, which have included 

senior government officials, policy advisors, researchers, and practitioners.

A MODEL FOR INNOVATION

PSA is a leader in the field of criminal justice drug testing, having established the first in-house 

laboratory for a pretrial agency in 1984. Drug testing is key to helping PSA and other justice 

agencies identify and address the substance use-related public safety risks posed by individuals 
3

under supervision. PSA also plays a vital role in supplying the District of Columbia public health 

and public safety communities with information on emerging trends related to drug use within the 

criminal and juvenile justice systems. 

PSA was one of the first pretrial agencies to use a risk assessment instrument (RAI) and has used 

some form of risk assessment since its inception. It has also leveraged developments in science and 

best practices to refine and improve its protocols and instruments. PSA's risk instrument was 

designed exclusively for the District of Columbia using a data set consisting of defendants assigned 

to pretrial supervision in the District. To be fair and effective, RAIs must be tested regularly to 

ensure that they produce valid results for the population being served and are unbiased with respect 

to race, gender or other factors. In accordance with this understanding, PSA’s RAI is independently 

revalidated on a regular basis, most recently in 2018. 

In addition to advancements in drug testing and risk assessment, during the pandemic, PSA has 

adopted innovative supervision techniques to provide continuity of critical services to the defendant 

population. In April 2020, PSA began providing virtual substance use disorder treatment groups 

and encouraged defendants to connect with community-based mental health providers to obtain 

virtual services and support from external agencies. In July 2020, the Agency began utilizing

teleconferencing software to conduct virtual supervision meetings between defendants and PSOs. 

As PSA determines its post-pandemic operating posture, it hopes to leverage the lessons learned to 

inform future decisions regarding the delivery of supervision and treatment services. 
4

FISCAL YEAR 2022 PRESIDENT’S BUDGET

PSA’s FY 2022 President’s Budget is $77,419,000, including 325 FTE, a net increase of 

$10,676,000, or 16 percent, above the FY 2021 Enacted Budget. The request consists of a net 

increase of $3,143,000 in changes to base and an increase of $7,533,000 in program changes. 

Program changes include $7,304,000 for move and relocation expenses, and $229,000 to conduct a 

retrospective review that examines the use of cash bail in the District in Columbia.

This budget request reinforces the Agency’s commitment to its vital role in the District of Columbia 

law enforcement community. Critical to PSA’s success is its ability to reduce defendant rearrest and 

failure-to-appear rates through high-quality risk assessment, drug testing and supervision and 

treatment services. 

Annual 

Amount

Multi-Year 

Amount

Total 

Appropriation 

Amount

FTE $(000) $(000) $(000)

FY 2020 Enacted Budget 325 66,461 998 67,459

FY 2021 Enacted Budget 320 66,284 459 66,743

Changes to Base:

FY 2021/2023 Non-recurring Resources in FY 20221 - - (459) (459)

2022 Pay Raise - 1,225 - 1,225

FY 2022 Agency FERS Contributions - 534 - 534

Treatment and Transitional Housing - 500 - 500

FY 2022 Awards Spending - 550 - 550

Mission Critical Programs - 793 - 793

FY 2022 Employment Increase 5 - - -

Sub-Total, Changes to Base 5 3,602 (459) 3,143

FY 2022 Base Operations 325 69,886 - 69,886

Requested Program Changes: 

Lease Replacement and Relocation Costs - - 7,304 7,304

Cash Bail Retrospective - 229 - 229

Sub-Total, Requested Program Changes - 229 7,304 7,533

FY 2022 President's Budget 325 70,115 7,304 77,419

 5 3,831 6,845 10,676

1.6% 5.8% 1491% 16.0%

Pretrial Services Agency for the District of Columbia

Summary of Change

Fiscal Year 2022

Increase (Decrease) versus FY 2021 Enacted:

Percent Increase (Decrease) versus FY 2021 Enacted:

1 Reduction of $459,000 in non-recurring three-year FY 2020/2022 funding associated with the Lease Replacement Prospectus.
5

PSA’s FY 2022 budget request includes changes to base operations funding in the following areas:

Changes to Base Operations Funding +$3,143,000 5 FTE

Operations 

Budget

Nonrecurring 

Funding Total FTE

Replacement Lease Prospectus –

Non-recurring FY 2021-23 Funding

($459,000) ($459,000) 0

2021-2022 Pay Increases $1,225,000 $0 $1,225,000 0

Increase in Agency Contributions to 

FERS Retirement Accounts

$534,000 $0 $534,000 0

Treatment and Transitional 

Housing

$500,000 $0 $500,000 0

Award Spending $550,000 $0 $550,000 0

Mission Critical Programs $793,000 $0 $793,000 0

FY 2022 Employment Increase $0 $0 $0 5

Total Requested Changes to Base 

Operations Funding

$3,602,000 ($459,000) $3,143,000 5

Replacement Lease Prospectus -$459,000 0 FTE

The 2021 Budget included $459,000 in three-year (FY 2021-2023) funding to support additional 

costs associated with Prospectus Number PDC-12-WA19, for the lease replacement project. This 

funding does not recur in FY 2022. This funding supports PSA’s relocation of its Headquarters 

locations at 601 and 633 Indiana Avenue, NW, and 1025 F Street, NW. 

2021-2022 Pay Increases +$1,225,000 0 FTE 

PSA requests $1,225,000 to fund civilian pay raises in 2021 and 2022. Effective January 2021, the 

2021 enacted pay raise was 1 percent. The proposed pay raise for 2022 is 2.7 percent and would be 

effective in January 2022. 

FY 2022 Agency FERS Contributions +$534,000 0 FTE 

OMB A-11 Section 32.3, dated July 2020, outlines increases in agency contributions to employee 

Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) retirement accounts effective FY 2022. Based on 
6

the new rates, PSA computes agency contributions would increase by approximately $534,000 in 

FY 2022. 

Agency Retirement Contribution Rates

FY 2020 FY 2021 FY 2022

FERS Regular 16.0% 17.3% 18.4%

FERS Law Enforcement 

Officer (LEO) 33.4% 35.8% 37.6%

FERS-Revised Annuity 

Employees (FERS-RAE) 14.2% 15.5% 16.6%

FERS-RAE LEO 31.6% 34.0% 35.8%

FERS Further Revised 

Annuity Employees 

(FERS-FRAE)

14.2% 15.5% 16.6%

FERS-FRAE LEO 31.6% 34.0% 35.8%

 

Treatment and Transitional Housing +$500,000 0 FTE

PSA requests an increase of $500,000 to partially restore its treatment budget to pre-pandemic 

levels. This includes $400,000 for residential substance use disorder treatment, which would 

support approximately 92 additional defendants for 30 days of treatment; and $100,000 for 

transitional housing, which would support approximately 32 additional defendants for 30 days of 

transitional housing. Transitional housing provides a graduated step-down for individuals being 

released from residential treatment that supports continued abstinence and sobriety. 

The request represents PSA’s conservative estimate of expected demand in fiscal year 2022. Due to 

the impact of COVID-19 on Agency operations in FY 2020 and FY 2021, PSA has not conducted 

the standard battery of behavioral health assessments on its supervised population, which it 

normally uses to estimate the demand for treatment services. Nevertheless, the request is likely less 

than the true demand for services. 

Background

PSA’s contract treatment budget is used to provide a variety of behavioral health interventions 

for defendants. These services include detoxification, residential and intensive outpatient 

substance use disorder/co-occurring disorder treatment, transitional housing for defendants 

successfully discharged from residential treatment, and outpatient mental health treatment. 

These services are key to PSA’s risk mitigation strategies, which are designed to ensure that 

defendants remain arrest-free and make all scheduled court appearances while awaiting trial.
7

PSA reduced its contract treatment budget from $1,181,000 to $500,000 in FY 2021 as a result 

of budget reductions to support agency priorities that are underfunded and required a shifting of 

budgetary priorities to ensure viability of critical resources and programs.

PSA’s FY 2022 treatment budget submission is $1,919,732. The table below outlines planned 

program and activities as follows:

Defendant Services

FY 2022 

Planned 

Amount

FY 2022 Planned Contracted 

Services

Substance Use Disorder Treatment -

Detoxification

$180,000 Approximately 60 defendants (5-day

length of stay)

Substance Use Disorder Treatment -

Residential

$900,000 Approximately 220 defendants (30 day 

length of stay)

Substance Use Disorder Treatment –

Intensive Outpatient 

$369,548 Approximately 85 defendants (48 

session program) 

Transitional Housing $195,000 Approximately 62 defendants (30-day

length of stay)

Mental Health – Outpatient Services $275,184 Approximately 200 defendants in 

group sessions and 30 defendants in 

individual sessions (variable length 

programming)

TOTAL $1,919,732

Award Spending +$550,000 0 FTE

PSA requests $550,000 to restore monetary awards for non-SES employees. This funding will allow 

PSA to recognize and award outstanding performance of its personnel, particularly mission-critical 

staff who have reported in-person for duty and continued necessary active in-person engagement 

with PSA’s defendant population during the COVID-19 pandemic.

PSA eliminated its awards budget for non-SES employees in FY 2020 and FY 2021 in order to 

cover unanticipated expenses arising from both the COVID-19 pandemic and to support the 

development and implementation of the agency’s new client management system (CMS). In 

addition to these unexpected costs, PSA has absorbed unfunded increases in mandatory costs due to 

increases in the agency FERS contribution rates in FY 2020 and FY 2021, and the FY 2020 pay 

raise. 

In addition, PSA’s enacted FY 2021 budget required budget reductions to all PSA programs and 

further affected PSA’s ability to support performance awards.
8

Restoration of this funding for non-SES award spending will enable PSA to strategically implement 

incentive awards, bonuses, and recruitment and retention allowances to reward and retain highperforming employees and to retain those with critical skill sets. It will also allow PSA to support 

awards based on performance and ensure that meaningful distinctions are made, when recognizing 

the contributions of high-performing employees.

FY 2021 Estimated 

Non-SES Salaries

Award Spending Percentage of 

Non-SES Salaries

Award Amount

$33,650,000 1.63% $550,000

Mission Critical Programs +$793,000 0 FTE

PSA requests $793,000 be added to its baseline budget to support bringing mission-critical core 

programs back up to pre-pandemic levels. 

During fiscal years 2020 and 2021, PSA significantly reduced mission-critical services, 

including forensic toxicology reagents, defendant GPS surveillance, defendant substance use 

disorder and mental health treatment, and employee training. These reductions were required as 

a result of unanticipated expenses arising from both the COVID-19 pandemic and development 

of the agency’s new client management system (CMS), now known as PARIS. 

PARIS is an essential function of the Agency, making it imperative that these costs were 

prioritized within PSA’s base operations budget. PARIS is used to manage all data and criminal 

history information for all arrestees processed prior to appearance in court, all individuals 

released on personal recognizance and all defendants released to pretrial supervision. The 

system is a high value asset, as defined in OMB Memorandum 17-09: Management of Federal 

High Value Assets. The system is the Agency’s mainstay for providing reliable information to 

law enforcement, external criminal justice agencies and court officials. The information in 

PARIS is relied upon to inform decision making at the point of arrest, charging and first court 

appearance. In addition, the system stores all information related to supervision and treatment 

services that are provided during the pendency of a case. PARIS records may be subpoenaed 

during and/or after the pretrial supervision period and are referred to often by subsequent 

supervising agencies, including CSP.

The reductions in 2020 and 2021 significantly impacted PSA’s ability to meet its public safety 

mission. As a tangible example, the agency is currently working to remove nearly 150 

defendants from GPS supervision and, despite increased demand, the number of defendants that 

can be placed onto GPS supervision for the remainder of FY 2021 will be reduced as a costsavings measure. These cost-driven decisions undermine the agency’s ability to effectuate 

evidence-based supervision for defendants more at risk of rearrest and/or failure to appear in 

court.

Additionally, PSA made early strides to comply with the President’s Executive Order (EO) 

13991, Protecting the Federal Workforce and Requiring Mask-Wearing and OMB 

Memorandum M-21-15, COVID-19 Safe Federal Workplace: Agency Model Safety Principles 

EO, directing the prioritization of the health and safety of all personnel and defendants to 
9

comply with both Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and General Services 

Administration (GSA) recommendations, directing federal agencies to halt the spread of 

COVID-19 by implementing a variety of science-based public health measures.

To support these recommendations, PSA implemented a phased reopening plan that maximizes 

telework for most of its workforce and virtual supervision for most defendants. In addition, to 

protect mission-essential employees required to work on-site and high-risk defendants required 

to report in person, PSA purchased PPE and disinfecting supplies, completed facilities 

modifications, introduced new technology, and adopted rigorous cleaning protocols. 

During FY 2021 and particularly for FY 2022, PSA anticipates progressing through its 

reopening plan, resulting in greater numbers of employees and defendants reporting to PSA 

worksites, which is expected to increase COVID-related costs. FY 2020 costs incurred for these 

efforts amounted to $162,600 and expected costs for FY 2021 are $231,000.

Requested Program Changes +$7,533,000 0 FTE

PSA’s FY 2022 budget request includes funding for the replacement lease prospectus project and to 

conduct a cash bail retrospective.

Operations 

Budget

Nonrecurring 

Funding Total FTE

Replacement Lease Prospectus –

Non-recurring FY 2022-24 Funding

$0 $7,304,000 $7,304,000 0

Cash Bail Retrospective $229,000 $0 $229,000 0

Total Requested Program Changes $229,000 $7,304,000 $7,533,000 0

Replacement Lease Prospectus +$7,304,000 0 FTE

PSA requests $7,304,000 in three-year (2022/2024) funding to replace 2019/2021 funding that is 

likely to lapse due to protracted delays in the General Services Administration (GSA) procurement 

process to secure a new headquarters location for the agency. 

The estimated cost for this request was derived from GSA’s Move and Replication Cost Estimate 

and represents a long-term investment in space management through the execution of a 20-year 

replacement lease. Estimated costs include design and construction, information technology, 

communications and security equipment and setup, and GSA management fees.

In FY 2019, PSA received a three-year (2019/2021) appropriation to support space acquisition and 

planning and relocation costs for PSA’s expiring leases identified in Prospectus Number PDC-12-
10

WA19, which was submitted to OMB by GSA, and subsequently to Congress for approval. The 

prospectus includes replacement of three leases for PSA workspaces: 633 Indiana Avenue (expired 

as of September 30, 2020), 1025 F Street (expired as of November 7, 2020) and 601 Indiana 

Avenue (expiring on September 30, 2021). Due to the protracted delays in procurement of new 

space for PSA, expired leases required re-negotiation with building owners, and the following table 

provides new lease expiration dates:’

Leased Spaces PSA Lease Expiration

633 Indiana Avenue, 

NW 09/30/2022

1025 F Street, NW 11/07/2023

601 Indiana Avenue, 

NW*

TBD

 *PSA is currently negotiating an extension for this building and the 

 revised lease expiration date is pending.

 

In addition, the design phase of this project was projected to start during the first quarter of FY 

2019. However, as of the second quarter of FY 2021, GSA’s procurement process is still pending 

and neither a definitive location nor schedule to start the design is known to PSA. 

PSA is dependent on GSA for its space needs. There are no other alternatives at this time through 

which PSA can secure continued housing for its mission-critical operations other than working with 

GSA to complete this process. Furthermore, PSA does not have the flexibility to fund this project 

within its base operations budget. This action takes into consideration any further unforeseen 

delays and will ensure that enough funding is available when the process to secure needed space is 

complete.

For reference: The full funding justification for this request was contained in PSA’s FY 2019 

Congressional Budget Justification (CBJ) and is included in Appendix A of this submission.

Cash Bail Retrospective +229,000 0 FTE

PSA requests $229,000 to conduct a retrospective review that examines the use of cash bail in the 

District in Columbia.

For over fifty years, the District of Columbia has operated a primarily non-financial system of 

release for defendants awaiting trial in its local and federal courts. The system has proven to be an 

effective solution to the problem of balancing the fair administration of justice against the need for 

public safety. 
11

PSA is the federal agency responsible for administering the District’s bail system. From inception, 

the District’s bail system operated from a core set of tenets, including a presumption in favor of 

release on their own recognizance for non-capital defendants; conditional pretrial release with 

conditions imposed to reduce the risk of failure to appear; restrictions on money bail bonds, which 

the court could impose only if non-financial release options were not enough to assure a defendant’s 

appearance; and review of bail bonds for defendants detained for 24 hours or more. 

In 1970, recognizing a need to make public safety an equal consideration to risk of flight in making 

bail determinations in the District, Congress passed the DC Court Reform and Criminal Procedure 

Act, a first of its kind in the nation. This was followed by the federal Comprehensive Crime Control 

Act (Bail Reform Act of 1984), which introduced the assessment of public safety for all federal 

cases. 

In 1992, the District made yet another legislative shift to address emerging issues related to crime 

trends. The DC Bail Reform Amendment Act was passed by the DC Council and made several 

enhancements to the city’s bail system. Chief amongst those changes were the introduction of 

pretrial preventive detention for certain groups of defendants and an express prohibition on the use 

of money bail to control for public safety. This latter change essentially ended the cash bail industry 

in our Nation’s Capital. 

2022 will mark 30 years since the passage of this groundbreaking and revolutionary law. PSA seeks 

to document the impact of this change by conducting a retrospective that examines pretrial 

functions and outcomes prior to and since passage of the 1992 law. PSA believes this study can 

make a significant contribution to the ongoing national conversation regarding bail reform, 

particularly the reduction and/or elimination of cash bail. 

PSA proposes to engage a senior management analyst and technical writer for a six-month 

engagement to produce a summary report highlighting the District’s experience, including lessons 

learned, to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the legislation. 

The estimated costs for this retrospective are as follows:

Resource Estimated Cost FTE

Senior Management Analyst $150,000 0

Technical Writer $75,000 0

Printing/Publication Costs $4,000 0

Total $229,000 0
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ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE

PSA’s organizational structure supports the Agency in operating programs that provide an array of 

services to DCSC, USDC and the defendants under PSA’s supervision. Consistent with the 

Agency’s strategic plan, PSA is organized into two divisions: Defendant Engagement and System 

Support (DESS) and Management and Administration (M&A). 

DEFENDANT ENGAGEMENT AND SYSTEM SUPPORT

DESS provides supervision and treatment services and support to persons awaiting trial in DCSC 

and USDC. DESS is comprised of the offices responsible for pre-release screening and risk 

assessment, drug testing specimen collection, forensic toxicology, release services, defendant

supervision, behavioral health assessment and treatment, courtroom support, and administrative 

support. The Division is comprised of four offices: Pre-Release and Testing, Post-Release and 

Supervision, Forensic Toxicology Services, and Administrative Services.

Pre-Release and Testing

The Office of Pre-Release and Testing performs diagnostic and drug testing services and supports 

the process of transitioning defendants onto pretrial supervision. The office consists of two units: 

Diagnostic, and Drug Testing and Release Services.

The Diagnostic Unit interviews and reviews the criminal history of defendants arrested and charged

with certain DC Code offenses and US Code offenses in the DCSC. This information is used to

assess each defendant’s likelihood of appearing in court when required and remaining arrest-free

while awaiting trial. This is called a “risk assessment.”

PSA then recommends to the court what, if any, release conditions can be ordered that will

reasonably assure a defendant’s appearance in court and public safety. 

The Drug Testing team collects urine and oral fluid specimens from defendants during the 

diagnostic process and once cases are assigned to PSA for supervision. The unit also collects 

specimens from respondents and juveniles with matters pending in DC Superior Court Family 

Division.

Immediately after defendants are released, they report to the Release Services team to review 

conditions of release. This engagement helps support the transition to supervision and compliance 

with the court’s expectations.

Post-Release and Supervision

The Office of Post-Release and Supervision is responsible for supervision, treatment intervention 

and support services. The Office consists of three units: Supervision I, Supervision II and 

Treatment.
13

The Supervision Units supervise the majority of defendants awaiting trial or sentencing in DCSC 

and USDC. This includes monitoring defendants’ compliance with release conditions and reporting 

this information to the courts.

Common supervision requirements include reporting to a Pretrial Services Officer (PSO), drug

testing, and curfew or electronic monitoring. PSA’s supervision components include general 

supervision teams, as well as teams that specialize in the supervision of electronic monitoring and 

traffic-related cases. 

The Supervision Units also include PSA’s Court Representatives, who are PSOs assigned to 

criminal courtrooms to provide daily support to judges in the form of compliance reporting and 

facilitation of necessary referrals.

PSA’s Treatment Unit is designed for defendants with severe substance use disorders and/or acute 

mental health treatment needs. The unit specializes in the synchronization of supervision and 

behavioral health interventions and consists of three components: Social Services and Assessment

Center, Drug Court and Specialized Supervision.

The Social Services and Assessment Center (SSAC) administers assessments to identify defendants’ 

treatment needs and assists PSOs in making appropriate referrals for treatment services. The SSAC 

also serves as a repository for information on community resources and helps connect defendants 

with needed social services.

The Superior Court Drug Intervention Program, or Drug Court, is a substance use disorder 

treatment and supervision program for defendants charged with misdemeanors and non-violent 

felonies. Participants receive appropriate treatment and, upon completion of the program, may have 

misdemeanor charges dismissed or receive favorable sentencing or reduction of felony charges.

Drug Court is a collaboration amongst the DCSC, United States Attorney’s Office for the District of

Columbia (USAO), Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia (OAG), Public

Defender Service for the District of Columbia (PDS) and PSA. Through Drug Court, the judiciary,

prosecutor, defense attorney and PSA work together to help defendants achieve sobriety and

become law-abiding citizens. PSA’s Drug Court team uses innovative case management, referrals 

to appropriate treatment, and recovery-focused incentives and sanctions to support the rehabilitative

process. During the program, participants have immediate access to substance use disorder 

treatment and receive specialized care, including gender-specific groups and individual and group

therapy for trauma-impacted individuals.

PSA’s Specialized Supervision teams provide services to defendants with mental health or a

combination of substance use disorder and mental health treatment needs to assist them in meeting

pretrial obligations. Specialized Supervision plays a vital role in supporting the Mental Health 

Community Court (MHCC), which is a partnership amongst DCSC, OAG, USAO, the local defense 

bar and PSA, was created to provide an alternative to traditional case processing for appropriate 

defendants with mental health issues. The MHCC is available to eligible defendants charged with 

either misdemeanors or felonies and enables positive defendant judicial interaction and full 

participation in mental health services. PSA’s participation in the MHCC includes assessing and 

recommending eligible defendants for participation, providing close supervision and connection to 

mental health and substance use disorder treatment, and reporting compliance to the court. 
14

Forensic Toxicology Services

The Office of Forensic Toxicology Services (OFTS) operates a comprehensive drug testing 

program for pretrial defendants, as well as individuals supervised by Community Supervision 

Program (CSP) and certain juveniles and respondents with cases in DCSC Family Court.

OFTS screens urine and oral fluid specimens collected from offenders, defendants and respondents 

for up to 36 illicit substances: marijuana, phencyclidine (PCP), opiates (codeine/morphine;

oxycodone/oxymorphone; hydrocodone/hydromorphone), methadone, cocaine, alcohol, heroin, 

amphetamines (methamphetamine/amphetamine; MDMA/MDA), and synthetic cannabinoids (20 

analytes). In addition, samples are tested for creatinine levels to determine sample validity and for 

ethyl glucuronide (EtG) to confirm alcohol use. OFTS uses gas chromatography/mass spectrometry 

(GC-MS) to confirm test results and is in the process of introducing liquid chromatography with 

tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS-MS) to enhance PSA’s ability to test for synthetic compounds. 

Toxicologists conduct levels analyses to distinguish new use from residual use to provide timely 

and accurate results for pretrial and other judicial decision-making.

OFTS also conducts forensic research that leads directly to practical enhancements in drug testing,

improves strategies in surveillance monitoring, reveals trends in emerging new drug use, develop 

bi-directional partnerships with the scientific and social research community, and introduces new

technologies that improve efficiency and provide critical evidence to support future decision

making.

Administrative Services

The Office of Administrative Services (OAS) provides a full range of services to DESS offices and 

is responsible for ensuring alignment with PSA's strategic goals and management objective. In 

addition, OAS is responsible for enterprise risk-management, emergency preparedness, and quality

management, and conducts analyses and evaluations of business processes to support data-driven 

decision making.

MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION

The Management and Administration (M&A) division is comprised of the offices responsible for 

PSA's planning and evaluation, policy development and implementation, information technology, 

human capital management, financial management, procurement and facilities management.

3

Justice and Community Relations

The Office of Justice and Community Relations establishes and maintains partnerships with judicial

system partners, other government and non-profit entities, and the community to enhance PSA’s 

ability to provide effective community supervision, enforce accountability, increase community 

awareness of PSA’s public safety role, and develop opportunities for defendants under pretrial 

supervision. It is through these partnerships that PSA can effectuate close supervision to reasonably 

assure that defendants will return to court and not endanger the community while on pretrial release. 

3Certain functions are performed by CSP for PSA, including select functions of the Office of General Counsel; Office 

of Legislative, Intergovernmental, Public Affairs; Equal Employment Opportunity; and Diversity and Special Programs.
15

In addition, treatment and social service options are developed and/or expanded to address the 

social problems that contribute to criminal behavior. 

Finance and Administration

The Office of Finance and Administration (OFA) assures the effective management and financial

integrity of PSA programs, activities, and resources by developing, implementing and managing

policies, procedures and systems in the areas of budget formulation and execution, finance and

accounting, travel, internal control, financial systems, and contract management. OFA also has

responsibility for developing and administering policies, standards, and procedures regarding

facilities management, property management and control, space management, vehicles, mail and

distribution services, printing and reproduction services, and emergency management planning.

Human Capital Management

The Office of Human Capital Management (OHCM) develops and administers the full range of

human resources programs, including organizational design; a comprehensive classification, pay,

and position management program; staffing and recruitment; awards and recognition; payroll

administration; employee and labor relations; benefits; and personnel security. OHCM also 

includes the Training and Career Development Center (TCDC), which manages programmatic, 

systems and management training; performs training needs assessments; develops curricula; and 

prepares, presents, procures and delivers training courses. TCDC also offers formal developmental 

programs and training opportunities to all staff.

Information Technology

The Office of Information Technology (OIT) plans, develops, and manages the information 

technology systems that support PSA programs and management operations as well as information 

technology-related standards, policies and procedures. OIT assesses PSA technology requirements; 

analyzes potential return on technology investment for internal systems and for PSA interface with 

external systems; designs and administers system configuration and architecture including hardware 

and software, telecommunications, network operations, desktop systems, and system security; and 

reviews and approves acquisition of all PSA major hardware, software, and information technology 

contracts. 

Planning, Policy and Analysis

The Office of Planning, Policy and Analysis (OPPA) was established in November 2017 with the 

mission of using evidence-based approaches to inform planning, policy and operations. OPPA, in 

close partnership with other PSA offices, supports the achievement of the Agency’s mission by 

administering a range of functions, including strategic planning, budget formulation, policy 

development, evidence-based analyses, and Agency performance improvement. Notably, OPPA 

ensures accurate reporting of Agency performance measures among other mission-critical analytical 

functions for offices across the Agency. OPPA’s Deputy Assistant Director serves as PSA’s 

Performance Improvement Officer.
16

PSA STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK

PSA’s strategic plan is the foundation upon which the Agency sets outcome-oriented goals, 

determines actions to achieve the goals, and mobilizes resources to execute the actions. It is based 

on a clear mission and sets forth a framework of priorities and objectives that cascade throughout all 

levels of the Agency to guide its work of promoting pretrial justice and enhancing community 

safety while striving for efficient Agency administration. 

PSA’s FY 2018-2022 strategic plan is comprised of four strategic goals and one management 

objective that outline the long-term outcomes the Agency plans to achieve. Four strategic goals 

focus on effectiveness of mission accomplishment, and one management objective focuses on 

efficiency of Agency administration (refer to figure on next page). The four strategic goals are 

supported by specific objectives that target Agency progress. Key strategies outline how the 

Agency will achieve its objectives, and the performance indicators measure the impact of progress 

towards Agency goals. 

The cascading structure of PSA’s strategic plan from strategic goals down to performance indicators 

provides leading and lagging indicators of Agency performance. This allows PSA to proactively 

monitor performance at various organizational levels and adjust direction towards achieving 

Agency goals. 
17
18

PROGRAM PERFORMANCE

In response to COVID-19, and in adherence to public health guidance from the CDC and the White 

House, PSA altered its operations starting in March 2020 to enforce social distancing measures 

necessary to slow the spread of the virus. In coordination with the courts, the Agency suspended 

defendant lockup interviews, drug testing, treatment assessments and referrals to treatment

programs, all of which require close in-person contact. To safely continue contact with defendants 

on release to PSA, the Agency continued defendant location monitoring, and shifted the majority of 

in-person reporting to phone reporting. For higher risk defendants, where in-person contact was 

necessary to promote community safety, PSA limited in-person reporting to:

• New installations of location monitoring devices,

• Maintenance and troubleshooting of existing location monitoring devices,

• Specific release conditions ordered by DCSC or USDC, and/or

• Individual cases based on PSO request with supervisory approval.

Also, in March 2020, most DCSC hearings were suspended, with the exception of arraignments, 

emergency and detention hearings, which were held virtually. Similarly, USDC instituted virtual 

court operations. The judicial decision-making process supporting defendant release and detention 

was also affected by COVID-19, resulting in the release to PSA supervision of some defendants

who were previously held under preventive detention statutes, as well as other defendants who were 

eligible for preventive detention and would otherwise have been held without bond. Despite the 

impact of COVID-19 on Agency operations, PSA continued to meet or exceed the performance 

targets for all strategic goals during FY 2020. 

Performance 

Indicator Area

Indicator Description FY

2016

Actual

FY

2017

Actual

FY

2018

Actual

FY

2019

Actual

FY

2020

Actual

FY 2018-2022

Target

Strategic Goal 1 Judicial Concurrence 

with PSA 

Recommendation

72% 76% 81% 78% 79% 70%

Strategic Goal 2 Continued Pretrial 

Release

88% 87% 85% 87% 85% 85%

Strategic Goal 3 Arrest Free Rate 88% 86% 87% 87% 88% 88%

(Violent Crimes) 98% 99% 99% 99% 99% 97%

Strategic Goal 4 Court Appearance Rate 91% 88% 89% 88% 91%* 87%

*Due to COVID-19 and the interruption in PSA’s normal operations, FY 2020 data covers October 2019 through March 

2020.
19

FY 2020 KEY AGENCY ACCOMPLISHMENTS

During FY 2020, PSA continued to advance its mission of promoting pretrial justice and enhancing 

community safety. Select highlights of Agency accomplishments include:

A. Supporting Judicial Decision-Making

Redesigned Reports for US District Court 

Consistent with PSA’s goal of maintaining a customer-centric culture, the Agency redesigned 

the USDC status report to conform to the layout used in other federal jurisdictions. The 

revisions help judges quickly locate key information and make PSA’s report easily understood 

when cases are transferred across federal districts. The new report includes the defendant’s 

picture along with a summary of the defendant’s compliance with conditions of release and 

recommendations for any modification of conditions of release, if applicable.

B. Enhancing Drug Testing

1. Implemented Universal Fentanyl Testing

In response to the nationwide public health emergency to address the opioid crisis and based on 

PSA’s research findings showing fentanyl use among its defendant population, PSA expanded 

its substance use testing panel to include fentanyl testing. While COVID-19 delayed the 

Agency’s plans to begin fentanyl testing in April 2020, as originally scheduled, PSA is ready to 

implement universal fentanyl screening upon the Agency’s return to normal operations.

2. Reduced Turnaround Times for Oral Fluid Screening

Due to medical conditions and other factors, some defendants and respondents are unable to 

provide urine specimens for testing. As an alternative for these individuals, PSA conducts 

testing on oral fluid specimens. PSA previously relied on an external contractor for all oral 

fluids testing, however this caused delays in the turnaround times for specimen results and 

resulted in increased testing expenses for the Agency. In 2016, PSA began screening a limited 

number of oral fluid specimens in-house, using a manual process. While this lowered testing 

expenses for PSA, the high turnaround times for test results persisted, due to the manual 

analysis process.

In February 2020, PSA secured and introduced testing kits that allow for screening of oral fluid 

specimens using its high-capacity automated analyzers. The introduction of the new oral fluid 

specimen testing kit enabled the Agency to reduce testing turnaround times from seven business 

days to five business days for routine oral fluid test results, and from four business days to two

business days for spot test results. In addition to reducing turnaround times for oral fluid 

screening, the new kit expanded detection to include four additional substances: alcohol, 

methadone, methamphetamine, and oxycodone. This new kit enables detection of a total of nine 

substances. This includes the newly added substances mentioned above, plus the original five 
20

that were previously detected: amphetamines, cocaine/cocaine metabolites, marijuana, opiates, 

and PCP.

C. Enhancing Defendant Supervision

1. Expanded Community Supervision Options for Cyber-Crime Offenses for USDC Defendants

In September 2019, PSA awarded a contract to enable remote supervision of internet activity for 

select defendants. Within USDC, judges will soon have the option to order computer and 

electronic device surveillance for defendants charged with child pornography and/or sexual 

exploitation and financial crimes. This specialized computer monitoring brings PSA’s 

supervision options into alignment with other federal pretrial districts. Once fully operational, 

this contract will allow PSA to offer real-time monitoring of a defendant’s online activity to 

ensure compliance with court-ordered release conditions related to the use of electronic devices 

and accessing the internet. PSA plans to pilot this supervision tool in FY 2021. During the pilot 

phase, PSA will place up to five defendants charged with child sex offenses on remote internet 

and computer monitoring. Once the pilot is completed, PSA will expand use of the computer 

monitoring tool by training additional USDC PSOs.

2. Improved Monitoring of Defendant Criminal Activity

In January 2020, PSA and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Criminal Justice 

Information Services (CJIS) Division signed an interagency agreement that provides PSA with 

real-time, nationwide criminal activity alerts for defendants released to PSA for supervision. 

Execution of the agreement makes PSA the first federal law enforcement agency to use the 

FBI’s Criminal Justice RAP (Record of Arrest and Prosecution) Back Service. In March 2020, 

PSA and the FBI successfully piloted the exchange of criminal activity alerts and launched the 

data exchange. Through this partnership, PSA continuously monitors defendants’ criminal

activity, particularly that which occurs outside of the District, thereby enhancing the Agency’s 

ability to provide effective supervision for defendants and accurate compliance information to 

the court.

3. Enhanced Community Safety by Requesting Arrest Warrants in USDC

To further align PSA’s efforts with those of other federal pretrial agencies, in October 2019, 

PSA implemented a new Petition for Warrant for USDC. Historically, PSA has submitted 

reports describing defendant non-compliance to the Court and has deferred to the Court and 

prosecutors to initiate actions related to the issuance of warrants. In response to a request from 

the Chief Judge, PSA introduced the practice of requesting warrants in cases of sustained noncompliance or egregious acts of non-compliance by defendants under supervision. In addition, 

to support changes made by the DC Neighborhood Engagement Achieves Results (NEAR) Act, 

in FY 2021, PSA will develop and implement a new Petition for Warrant in DC Superior Court

for defendants who violate a condition of release by violating a stay-away order or an order to 

wear a detection device. These new reports alert judicial officers about defendants that may be 

at higher risk of failing to appear in court and/or being rearrested. The report also requests 
21

expedited judicial responses for cases where defendants are in a loss of contact status, abscond 

from a halfway house, tamper with GPS equipment and/or violate a condition of release. 

D. Enhancing Prosocial Services Interventions

Ensuring Treatment Access During the Pandemic

In March 2020, PSA suspended all internal intensive outpatient substance use disorder treatment 

groups and mental health groups to ensure the safety of defendants and employees during the

COVID-19 pandemic. To ensure continuity of care for defendants under supervision, PSA 

collaborated with community-based mental health and substance use disorder treatment vendors 

to identify and connect defendants with virtual services until PSA safely resumes service 

delivery. 

PSA also worked with its contract-funded treatment vendors to develop virtual services using 

remote platforms such as Zoom. Virtual treatment groups were launched in July 2020 and

PSA’s mental health and substance use treatment vendors now offer virtual group services at the 

same level as pre-pandemic in-person offerings. In FY 2021, PSA will start to administer 

virtual substance use disorder assessments to continue to identify defendants’ treatment needs 

and assists PSOs in making appropriate referrals for treatment services.

KEY AGENCY STRATEGIES 

PSA continued to progress towards meeting its FY 2020-2021 Agency Priority Goal (APG) of 

implementing a risk-based supervision operating model.4

During FY 2020, PSA developed risk-based case management protocols into a finalized risk-based 

supervision (RBS) guide and began drafting corresponding staff instructions in preparation for 

training and implementation. In fulfillment of its labor obligations pertaining to the implementation 

of RBS, throughout the year, PSA briefed and worked collaboratively with its labor union to 

finalize implementation plans. Since the onset of the pandemic, PSA has continued to actively 

engage its union to adjust the plan in response to COVID-19. 

Additionally, PSA completed the initial cloud configuration for its newly acquired client 

management system, PARIS. In February 2020, the Agency demonstrated the preliminary 

functionality of PARIS for the first half of PSA’s business process and continued Agile 

configuration and user testing of the second half of its business process during the remainder of the 

year. Early user acceptance testing of the preliminary PARIS design was exceptionally favorable.

While PSA remains on track to complete the implementation of risk-based supervision in FY 2021, 

factors related to COVID-19 and the recent interruption of the courts’ and other criminal justice 

partners’ normal operations could impact the Agency’s progress. 

4 This is based on the three-year modernization plan described in the FY 2021 President’s Budget.
22

STRATEGIC GOAL 1: JUDICIAL CONCURRENCE WITH PSA RECOMMENDATIONS

PSA promotes the fair administration of justice by recommending the least restrictive release 

conditions consistent with community safety and return to court. To support judicial decisions, 

PSA provides a Pretrial Services Report, or PSR, which contains a summary of each defendant’s 

criminal history and demographic information. In this report, PSA recommends – as appropriate –

release conditions that are designed to mitigate the risk of failure to appear and rearrest during the 

pretrial period. PSA’s release recommendations include pro-social interventions, such as drug 

testing, behavioral health assessment and treatment, halfway house placement, global positioning 

system (GPS) electronic monitoring, and regular contact with a PSO. To gauge how often judicial 

officers concur with PSA’s release recommendations, the Agency implemented a measure of 

judicial concurrence.

Strategic Objective 1.1 Risk Assessment

The PSR provides much of the information judicial officers use to determine a defendant’s risk to 

the community and the level of supervision, if applicable, that the defendant requires. Risk 

assessment is a core component of the PSR. PSA uses a scientifically-validated risk assessment to 

determine each defendant’s risk of pretrial misconduct.5 Use of this instrument, which was 

developed specifically for the adult defendant population within the District of Columbia, enhances 

the Agency’s ability to accurately assess pretrial risk of failure and make appropriate 

recommendations to the court regarding release conditions. 

To gauge the quality of the information provided to judicial officers for decision-making, PSA

implemented a measure of PSR completeness. A PSR is deemed “complete” when it contains

defendant interview responses (or documented refusal thereof), lock-up drug test results, criminal 

history, and release recommendations based on risk assessment score, prior to the case being called 

in court.

5 Kennedy, S., House, L., and Williams, M. (2013). Using Research to Improve Pretrial Justice and Public Safety: 

Results from PSA’s Risk Assessment Validation. Federal Probation a journal of correctional philosophy and practice, 

77(1), 28-32. Retrieved from https://www.uscourts.gov/federal-probation-journal/2013/06/using-research-improvepretrial-justice-and-public-safety-results.
23

Performance Indicators

Table 1 - Performance Indicators for Strategic Goal 1: Judicial Concurrence with PSA 

Recommendations

Performance 

Indicator Area

Indicator 

Description

FY

2016

Actual

FY

2017

Actual

FY

2018

Actual

FY

2019

Actual

FY

2020

Actual

FY 2018-

2022

Target

Strategic Goal 1 Judicial 

Concurrence with 

PSA 

Recommendation

72% 76% 81% 78% 79% 70%

Strategic 

Objective 1.16

Risk Assessment

(Complete PSRs)

N/A 73% 80% 72% 73%* 73%

*Due to COVID-19 and the interruption in PSA’s normal operations, data covers October 2019 through March 

2020.

PSA met or exceeded its performance targets for Strategic Goal 1: Judicial Concurrence with PSA 

Recommendations and its supporting strategic objective.

Key Strategies Supporting Strategic Direction

1. Revalidate the existing risk assessment instrument during the first 12 months of the strategic

 period to ensure that it has maintained the predictive validity and accuracy

Since 2014, PSA has utilized a scientifically validated risk assessment. To ensure continued 

accuracy and validity, PSA periodically revalidates its risk assessment tool. In FY 2018, PSA 

completed the revalidation of its risk assessment tool. The revalidation confirmed that the 

instrument continues to effectively predict risk among adult defendants awaiting trial in DC. 

Since fiscal year 2020 PSA has partnered with the Metropolitan Police Department and DC 

Department of Corrections to obtain access to data regarding handgun offenses, which will

allow PSA to specifically assess firearms-related offense risk during the next revalidation.

2. Revise the Pretrial Services Report (PSR) to effectively inform judicial officer decisions

During FY 2019, PSA launched the first revision to the PSR for USDC. The revision maps 

release condition recommendations to the specific domain of risk that each is designed to 

mitigate (e.g., failure to appear or rearrest). PSA continues to collaborate with USDC 

magistrate judges by seeking feedback on desired enhancements and revisions to the report and 

implements new plans, as appropriate.

3. Implement risk-based recommendations matrix to support judicial decision making

PSA’s current case management model utilizes court-ordered conditions of release to place 

defendants in supervision “programs.” These programs have uniform core requirements that 

result in similar approaches being utilized for all defendants who are released with the same 

6 Strategic Objective 1.1 does not include CDC and CTF because not all of these defendants receive a diagnostic 

interview; a key component of the Complete PSR measure. 
24

release conditions. Best practices recommend utilization of individualized approaches that 

correspond to each defendant’s assessed risk(s). In accordance with best practices, PSA is 

transitioning from a program-based to a risk-based supervision model, where supervision is 

tailored to each defendant’s identified risk designation. 

PSA has developed and will implement a new risk-based recommendations matrix that balances 

the risks of failure to appear and re-arrest to support judicial decision making. This will enable 

PSA to ensure harmonization among risk designations, release condition recommendations, and 

supervision protocols. 

STRATEGIC GOAL 2: CONTINUED PRETRIAL RELEASE

Continued pretrial release aims to ensure that defendants placed on release remain safely in the 

community during the pendency of their cases. During the pretrial period, defendant release may be 

revoked due to non-compliance with conditions of release. To gauge the effectiveness of defendant 

case management, PSA implemented a measure of continued pretrial release, which examines the 

rate at which defendants remain on release without revocation or a pending request for revocation 

due to non-compliance.

Strategic Objective 2.1 Effective Case Management

Case management is an individualized approach for securing, coordinating, and monitoring the

appropriate supervision, treatment, and ancillary services necessary to manage each defendant

successfully for optimal outcomes. It comprises all activities performed by PSA that support a

defendant’s compliance with court-ordered conditions of release, appearance at all scheduled court 

hearings, and crime-free behavior while on pretrial release. 

To gauge the effectiveness of its defendant case management, PSA implemented measures of 

response to defendant non-compliance and defendant satisfaction with PSA case management.
25

Performance Indicators

Table 2 - Performance Indicators for Strategic Goal 2: Continued Pretrial Release

Performance 

Indicator Area

Indicator 

Description

FY

2016

Actual

FY

2017

Actual

FY

2018

Actual

FY

2019

Actual

FY

2020

Actual

FY 2018-

2022

Target

Strategic Goal 2 Continued 

Pretrial 

Release

88% 87% 85% 87% 85% 85%

Strategic 

Objective 2.1

Response to 

Defendant 

Conduct7

91% 91% 90% 89% 91%* Drug 

Infractions 

80%

87% 89% 89% 89% 93% Contact 

Infractions: 

70%

87% 88% 92%8 95% 94% Electronic 

Monitoring

Infractions: 

92%

90% 88% 89% 80% 78%* Group 

Session 

Infractions:

80%

*Due to COVID-19 and the interruption in PSA’s normal operations, data covers October 2019 through March 

2020.

PSA met or exceeded its performance targets for performance indicators supporting Strategic Goal 

2: Continued Pretrial Release, except for:

• Strategic Objective 2.1- Group Sessions, for which the Agency was within 2 percentage 

points of its performance target. 

Key Strategies Supporting Strategic Direction

1. Implement risk-based case management protocols and supervision plans

Under its new risk-based supervision model, PSA has developed and is preparing to implement 

supervision protocols that take full account of a defendant’s individual risk and respond to both 

compliant and non-compliant behavior accordingly. 

2. Respond in a timely manner to defendant compliance with conditions of release to enhance 

defendants’ observance of court requirement.

PSA has updated timelines and options for responding to defendant non-compliance that 

correspond to each defendant’s assessed risk level. 

7 PSA refined its methodology by removing instances with suspected data entry errors (e.g., observations where the date 

of non-compliance is addressed occurs before the non-compliance date). This logic update was performed as part of the 

Agency’s data revalidation process. 

8 Data captured between February 14th and May 12th

, 2018 were excluded due to PSA’s transition from manual to 

automation collection.
26

3. Upgrade client management system to support new supervision protocols

In support of PSA’s transition to revised case management protocols, PSA is upgrading its client 

management system to ensure proper documentation of supervision activities. 

STRATEGIC GOAL 3: MINIMIZE REARREST

PSA supervision is designed to minimize risk to the community. PSA uses appropriate supervision 

strategies to manage defendants most at risk of violating their release conditions. PSA also 

provides pro-social interventions, such as mental health and substance use disorder treatment, to 

enable defendants to remain arrest-free. To gauge PSA’s effectiveness in minimizing rearrests, 

PSA implemented a measure of arrest-free rates.

Strategic Objective 3.1 Risk-Based Supervision

PSA focuses supervision resources on defendants most at risk of violating their release conditions 

and uses graduated levels of supervision consistent with each defendant’s identified risk level. As 

described in the APG, once PSA implements risk-based supervision fully, very low-risk defendants 

(those released on personal recognizance) will receive only notification of their court dates. Lowrisk defendants with reporting conditions will require limited contact with PSA. Medium-risk 

defendants will be placed under PSA’s supervision and maintain regular contact through a 

combination of in-person and telephone reporting to PSOs. High-risk and very high-risk defendants 

will be subject to more frequent and primarily in-person contact with assigned PSOs.

PSA’s supervision strategy includes promoting swift, consistent consequences for violation of

release conditions, and promoting incentives for defendants who consistently comply with release 

conditions. Swift, graduated sanctions are used to modify defendant behaviors considered 

precursors to a return to criminal activity or failure to appear for court. Examples of such behaviors 

include loss of contact and absconding from substance use disorder and/or mental health treatment.

Responding promptly to non-compliance is directly related to reducing failures to appear and

enhancing public safety. When violations of conditions are detected, PSA uses all available

administrative sanctions, informs the court and, when warranted, seeks judicial sanctions, including 

revocation of release. PSA also harnesses the power of incentives to change defendant behavior. 

Common incentives recommended by PSA include reduction in the number of contacts with PSOs

required, reduction in the frequency of drug testing, and placement in less intensive treatment or 

supervision programs.

To gauge the effectiveness of Risk-Based Supervision, PSA implemented a measure of defendant 

compliance at case disposition.
27

Performance Indicators

Table 3 - Performance Indicators for Strategic Goal 3: Minimize Rearrest

Performance 

Indicator Area

Indicator 

Description

FY

2016

Actual

FY

2017

Actual

FY

2018

Actual

FY

2019

Actual

FY

2020

Actual

FY 2018-

2022

Target

Strategic Goal 3 Arrest-Free 

Rate

88% 86% 87% 87% 88% 88%

(Violent 

Crimes)

98% 99% 99% 99% 99% 97%

Strategic Objective 3.1.1 Compliance 

with Release 

Conditions

(Closeout 

Assessment)

72% 71% 75% 77% 74% 77%

Strategic Objective 3.1.2 GPS 

Monitoring 

Installations

TBD

Strategic Objective 3.2.1 Substance Use 

Disorder 

Assessments

92% 93% 91% 96% 95%* 95%

Strategic Objective 3.2.2 Placement into 

Substance Use 

Disorder 

Treatment

49% 53% 55% 50% 33%* 50%

Strategic Objective 3.2.3 Reduction 

in 

Drug Use

84% 85% 82% 85% 85%* 74%

Strategic Objective 3.2.4 Mental Health 

Assessments

89% 95% 95% 93% 84%* 95%

Strategic Objective 3.2.5 Connection to 

Mental Health 

Services

84% 88% 89% 86% 92%* 80%

*Due to COVID-19 and the interruption in PSA’s normal operations, data covers October 2019 through March 

2020.

PSA met or exceeded its performance targets for performance indicators supporting Strategic Goal 

3: Minimize Rearrest, except for:

• Strategic Objective 3.1.1 - Compliance with Release Conditions, for which the Agency was 

within 3 percentage points of its performance target. 

• Strategic Objective 3.2.2 – Placement Into Substance Use Disorder Treatment, for which the 

Agency was below target by 17 percentage points. Due to COVID-19, placement into 

substance use disorder treatment was suspended in March 2020.

Strategic Objective 3.2.4 – Mental Health Assessments, for which the Agency was below 

target by 11 percentage points. Due to COVID-19, mental health assessments were 

suspended in March 2020.
28

Key Strategies Supporting Strategic Direction

1. Prioritize sanctions and court reporting for non-compliant high-risk and very high-risk

defendants 

To assist judicial officers in identifying court reports that require immediate action, PSA 

implemented a priority reporting system to assist with expediting judges’ responses to noncompliance by high-risk and very high-risk defendants. PSA designates reports as “high 

priority” when high-risk and very high-risk defendants are declared a loss of contact, violate a 

stay away order or when any defendant (irrespective of risk level) threatens or assaults PSA staff 

or other defendants or tampers with GPS equipment. 

2. Support proper assignment of defendants to electronic monitoring supervision and timely 

installation of GPS equipment

Consistent with the shift to risk-based supervision, PSA is refining its process for 

recommending electronic monitoring in an effort to limit its use to defendants who are at 

greatest risk of pretrial misconduct. In FY 2021, PSA developed new eligibility criteria for 

future electronic monitoring placements and worked with the courts, the US Attorneys’ office 

and the defense bar to implement the new criteria. In addition, PSA is refining its protocols to 

prioritize high-risk and very high-risk defendants for immediate installations.

Strategic Objective 3.2 Assessment-Driven Treatment 

An effective approach to minimizing rearrests is addressing underlying issues, such as substance 

use disorder and mental health treatment needs, during the pretrial period. PSA provides, through 

either contracted services or referral, appropriate substance use disorder and mental health treatment 

to enhance supervision compliance. In addition to public safety benefits, the community also 

benefits from the cost savings of providing supervision with appropriate treatment instead of 

incarceration.

Treatment for either substance use or mental health disorders is provided as a supplement to, and 

never in lieu of, supervision. Just as defendants are assigned to supervision levels based on risk, 

they are assigned to supervision units that provide treatment based on both risk and need. In 

addition to substance use disorder treatment, defendants placed in these programs have drug testing, 

contact, and other release conditions and are held accountable for compliance with these conditions. 

To gauge effectiveness of pro-social interventions, PSA measures defendant referral, assessment,

and placement in treatment programs.
29

Key Strategies Supporting Strategic Direction

1. Ensure timely assessment and connection to behavioral health services and substance use 

disorder treatment

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic PSA conducted, in person, same-day mental health and 

substance use disorder assessments for referred defendants under pretrial supervision. PSA has

resumed substance uses disorder assessments, utilizing a virtual platform, to support the case 

management processes and to allow safe assessments of defendant treatment needs during the 

pandemic. 

2. Assure the use of evidence-based treatment protocols by PSA contractors

PSA contracts with licensed and certified providers to address underlying severe mental 

illnesses and substance use disorders that increase defendant risk of pretrial misconduct. To 

ensure the provision of appropriate, quality-based services, PSA will continue conducting 

routine audits to ensure adherence to contract requirements.

STRATEGIC GOAL 4: MAXIMIZE COURT APPEARANCE

The strategic goal of maximizing court appearance is one of the most basic outcome measures for 

pretrial service programs. National standards on pretrial release identify minimizing failures to 

appear as a central function for pretrial programs. This strategic goal is measured by the defendant 

appearance rate, which indicates the percentage of defendants on pretrial release who make all 

scheduled court appearances.

Strategic Objective 4.1 Court Appearance Notifications

In order to minimize failures to appear, PSA notifies defendants of future court dates. During the 

last strategic period, PSA expanded its notification process by adding an electronic option to

inform, remind, and/or update defendants of upcoming court dates. This new process incorporates 

the use of text and email notifications in addition to traditional mailed letters. During the initial 

contact, PSA asks defendants about their preferred method of notification. An automatic hierarchy 

is then generated for notifications to the defendant (i.e., email, text messages, and letters) based on 

the defendant’s preference. 

To gauge the effectiveness of defendant court appearance notifications, PSA implemented a 

measure of court appearance following notifications.
30

Performance Indicators

Table 4 -Performance Indicators for Strategic Goal 4: Maximize Court Appearance

Performance 

Indicator Area

Indicator 

Description

FY

2016

Actual

FY

2017

Actual

FY

2018

Actual

FY

2019

Actual

FY

2020

Actual

FY 2018-

2022 

Target

Strategic Goal 4 Court 

Appearance 

Rate9

91% 88% 89% 88% 91%* 87%

Strategic 

Objective 4.1.1

Court 

Notification 

Automation

TBD

Strategic 

Objective 4.1.2

Redesign 

Court 

Notification

TBD

Strategic 

Objective 4.2.1

Failure to 

Appear 

Investigation

TBD

Strategic 

Objective 4.2.2

Ratio to 

Bench 

Warrant

TBD

*Due to COVID-19 and the interruption in PSA’s normal operations, data covers October 2019 through March 

2020.

Prior to its operations being impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, PSA met or exceeded its 

performance target for Strategic Goal 4: Maximize Court Appearance

Key Strategies Supporting Strategic Direction

1. Update court date notification templates

Due to COVID-19 and the interruption in PSA’s normal operations, the Improving Court 

Appearance Rates Project was placed on hold. Upon resumption of normal Agency operations, 

PSA will test the court date notifications with defendants and evaluate their effectiveness and 

will continue to use insights from behavioral science to improve defendant communications 

about their future court dates. 

2. Increase the use of alternative notification methods (e.g. text, email)

Once the courts resume more standard operations, PSA will continue automating its court date 

notifications to more efficiently and effectively remind defendants of their upcoming court 

dates. The requirements gathering for the Agency’s new Pretrial Automated Records and 

Information System ensures emphasis on the capability to initiate and record automated 

notifications. 

9 The Court Appearance Rate indicator is for the life of an individual’s case, which can contain multiple court 

appearances, and success is dependent on the individual making all court appearances in order to be counted towards 

meeting the target.
31

Strategic Objective 4.2 Failure to Appear Investigations

Defendants often present issues that may contribute to failure to appear in court (e.g., unstable home 

environments, homelessness, illiteracy and low educational achievement, developmental 

disabilities, unemployment, substance use disorders, mental illness, physical problems, etc.). To 

help address these issues, PSA conducts failure-to-appear investigations to determine the reason for 

a defendant's nonappearance in court. The pertinent information is documented, and the court is 

informed of the findings. In some cases, these investigations may prevent issuance of a bench 

warrant.

Key Strategies Supporting Strategic Direction

Respond timely to requests for investigating defendant failure to appear in court

PSA will continue to assist in bench warrant prevention and provide information to the court in 

regards to defendants’ statuses on scheduled court appearance dates and reasons for failing to 

appear for court. 
32

RESOURCE REQUIREMENTS BY STRATEGIC GOAL

PSA uses a cost allocation methodology to determine actual and estimated appropriated resources, 

including both direct (e.g., staff performing direct defendant supervision) and indirect (e.g., rent, 

administrative activities, management), supporting each strategic goal. The chart below reflects the 

funding allocation by strategic goal for fiscal years 2020, 2021 and 2022. 

FUNDING BY STRATEGIC GOAL

FY 2020

Actual

FY 2021 

Enacted

FY 2022

Request

Change from 

FY 2021

$ in thousands 16,102 16,098 17,029 931

FTE 80 79 80 1

$ in thousands 15,616 15,611 16,514 903

FTE 76 75 77 2

$ in thousands 17,157 17,153 18,144 991

FTE 83 82 84 2

$ in thousands 17,426 17,422 18,428 1,006

FTE 85 84 84 0

Total Base 

Funding 

$ in thousands

66,301 66,284 70,115 3,831

Total FTE 324 320 325 5

$ in thousands 0 459 7,304 6,845

Total Budget 66,301 66,743 77,419 10,676

Strategic Goal 1: Judicial Concurrence With PSA Recommendations 

Strategic Goal 2: Continued Pretrial Release

Strategic Goal 3: Minimize Rearrest

Lease Replacement Prospectus

Strategic Goal 4: Maximize Court Appearance
33

SUPPORTING MATERIALS 

MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION 

Strategic Human Capital Management 

✓ Revised the Agency’s Performance Management Policy, changing the performance cycle to 

align with the fiscal year. The changes increase accountability by tying performance closely to 

year-end Agency outcome and performance measures. In addition, all performance plans 

cascade from the Senior Executive Service level through managers and supervisors to line 

employees, ensuring that performance at each administrative level can be directly linked to the 

performance at subordinate levels. 

✓ Supported achievement of the Agency’s Priority Goal by working to ensure that all labor/ 

bargaining obligations were met. Began work with organizational units to modify position 

descriptions and performance standards, as appropriate, to ensure that expectations are clearly 

articulated and that employees are held accountable for results.

✓ Developed, tested, and launched a new system for electronic routing of personnel actions. The 

new system improves process flow and facilitates timely review and approval within a virtual 

environment.

✓ Continued to manage a training and career development program committed to developing a 

workforce capable of effectively responding to current and future demands in administering 

pretrial services and creating a work environment that promotes inclusiveness and growth:

• PSA employees completed 5,900 hours of training to include on-line courses, instructor-led 

courses, forums, shadowing and on-the-job instruction. 

• Hosted four undergraduate and graduate student interns.

• Two employees participated in Executive Potential Program at Graduate School USA.

Records Management Infrastructure Development

✓ Conducted individual office assessments for record maintenance compliance and timely 

disposal of records that reached or surpassed disposition dates.

✓ Conducted the annual training for records liaisons.

✓ Identified approximately 13,255 closed cases for transfer to the Federal Records Center for 

storage.

✓ Disposed of approximately 17,270 closed cases.

✓ Ensured Agency-wide compliance with the annually mandated records management training.

Financial Statement Audit 

✓ Achieved an unmodified (clean) opinion on the FY 2020 financial statements. 
34

Information Technology

✓ Developed and implemented the Automated Security Awareness Program for PSA employees, 

interns, and contractors.

• Trained 93 percent of staff on handling personally identifiable information.

• Trained 95 percent of staff with significant privacy and security functions on role-based 

security.

• Conducted five phishing campaigns to mitigate the risk of security vulnerabilities.

• Enhanced security awareness with monthly cybersecurity newsletters.

✓ Enhanced mobile capabilities for the PSA workforce in response to establishing a maximum 

telework posture due to COVID-19.

• Deployed the Microsoft Teams collaboration tool to all PSA employees.

• Developed user training tools and techniques on telework best practices.

• Conducted an independent infrastructure assessment to inform PSA’s strategy to accelerate 

cloud adoption.

✓ Enhanced the cloud migration effort through the deployment of the Salesforce Platform as a 

Service and Software as a Service (PaaS/SaaS) capabilities.

• Implemented the PaaS which allows PSA to easily deploy, run, and manage future cloud 

applications without the complexity of building and maintaining its own servers and 

infrastructure.

• Implemented the Government Cloud environment for the Salesforce SaaS which will be 

used to deploy PARIS. 
35

BUDGET DISPLAYS

Grade FTE Amount FTE Amount FTE Amount FTE Amount

SES 1 197 3 533 3 543 0 10

GS-15 10 1,644 10 1,657 10 1,670 0 13

GS-14 31 4,460 30 4,351 30 4,388 0 37

GS-13 57 6,952 56 6,885 57 7,066 1 181

GS-12 164 17,102 159 16,714 163 17,278 4 564

GS-11 10 766 10 772 10 779 0 7

GS-09 13 959 14 1,041 14 1,050 0 9

GS-08 5 330 5 333 5 335 0 2

GS-07 18 1,115 18 1,124 18 1,134 0 10

GS-06 2 117 2 118 2 119 0 1

GS-05 13 649 13 655 13 660 0 5

Total Appropriated FTE 324 34,291 320 34,183 325 35,022 5 839

Object Class

11.1 Full-time Permanent 324 34,291 320 34,183 325 35,022 5 839

11.3 Other than Full-time Permanent 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

11.5 Other Personnel Compensation - Awards 0 29 0 0 0 550 0 550

11.5 Other Personnel Compensation - Other 0 281 0 298 0 298 0 0

12.0 Personnel Benefits 0 16,481 0 17,402 0 18,322 0 920

Personnel Costs 324 51,082 320 51,883 325 54,192 5 2,309

21.0 Travel and Transportation of Persons 2 2 2 0

22.0 Transportation of Things 0 0 0 0

23.1 Rental Payments to GSA 3,184 3,386 3,454 68

23.2 Rental Payments to Others 2,022 2,056 2,094 38

23.3 Communications, Utilities & Misc. Charges 663 661 661 0

24.0 Printing and Reproduction 14 20 20 0

25.1 Advisory and Assistance Services 8 65 65 0

25.2 Other Services from non-Federal Sources 4,958 4,551 6,959 2,408

25.3 Other Goods/Services from Federal Sources 1,430 1,419 1,419 0

25.4 Operation and Maintenance of Facilities 8 17 17 0

25.7 Operation and Maintenance of Equipment 191 151 651 500

26.0 Supplies and Materials 613 520 520 0

31.0 Equipment (& Furniture) 2,126 1,553 61 -1,492

32.0 Land and Structures 0 0 0 0

43.0 Interest 0 0 0 0

Non-Personnel Costs 15,219 14,401 15,923 1,522

 TOTAL 324 66,301 320 66,284 325 70,115 5 3,831

SALARIES and EXPENSES (BASE FUNDING)

SUMMARY OF REQUIREMENTS by GRADE and OBJECT CLASS

(Dollars in Thousands)

FY 2020

Actual

FY 2021

Enacted

FY 2022

PB

FY 2021 to 

FY 2022 

Variance 
36

FTE Amount FTE Amount FTE Amount

Object Class

11.1 Full-time Permanent 0 0 0 0 0 0

11.3 Other than Full-time Permanent 0 0 0 0 0 0

11.5 Other Personnel Compensation 0 0 0 0 0 0

12.0 Personnel Benefits 0 0 0 0 0 0

Personnel Costs 0 0 0 0 0 0

21.0 Travel and Transportation of Persons 0 0 0

22.0 Transportation of Things 0 0 0

23.1 Rental Payments to GSA 0 0 5,127

23.2 Rental Payments to Others 0 0 943

23.3 Communications, Utilities & Misc. Charges 0 0 0

24.0 Printing and Reproduction 0 0 0

25.1 Advisory and Assistance Services 0 153 395

25.2 Other Services from non-Federal Sources 0 0 0

25.3 Other Goods/Services from Federal Sources 0 0 0

25.4 Operation and Maintenance of Facilities 0 11 0

25.7 Operation and Maintenance of Equipment 0 0 0

26.0 Supplies and Materials 0 0 0

31.0 Equipment (& Furniture) 998 295 839

32.0 Land and Structures 0 0 0

43.0 Interest 0 0 0

Non-Personnel Costs 998 459 7,304

 TOTAL 0 998 0 459 0 7,304

2 Three-year FY 2021/2023 funding was received to fund increase in costs associated with the Lease Replacement Prospectus.

3

 Three-year FY 2022/2024 funding is requested to replace any lapsed 2019/2021 funding that is expected to occur due to 

delays with the GSA procurement process for the Lease Replacement Prospectus.

SALARIES and EXPENSES (NON-RECURRING FUNDING)

SUMMARY OF REQUIREMENTS by GRADE and OBJECT CLASS

(Dollars in Thousands)

FY 20201

Enacted

3-year 20/22

Lease Prospectus

FY 20212

Enacted

3-year 21/23

Lease Prospectus

FY 20223

PB

3-year 22/24

Lease Prospectus

1 Three-year FY 2020/2022 funding was received to fund additional costs associated with the Lease Replacement Prospectus.
37

APPENDIX A: PSA’s FY 2019 CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET JUSTIFICATION FOR 

LEASE REPLACEMENT AND RELOCATION COSTS

Replacement Lease Prospectus +$7,304,000 0 FTE

PSA requests $7,304,000 in three-year funding to support space acquisition and planning for the 

expiring leases identified in Prospectus Number PDC-03-WA18, which was submitted to OMB by 

the General Services Administration (GSA). This funding request is made in accordance with 40 

U.S.C. § 585(a), 40 U.S.C. § 3307(a)(1) and (2) and (h), and applicable GSA procedures and 

regulations. 

The estimated funding is derived from GSA’s Move and Replication Cost Estimate and represents a 

long-term investment in space management through the execution of a 20-year replacement lease. 

Also included in the total program increase request are the estimated costs that may be required for 

lease early termination fees.

Justification for Program Increase

Replacement Lease Prospectus

Management Objective 1 – Effective Agency Administration

Program Area FTE Estimated 

Funding

Real Property Costs

Design 0 $395,000

Construction 0 $6,590,000

Standard Contingency built-in by GSA 0 $699,000

GSA Management Fee (4%) 0 $195,000

Slide Scale Overhead Fee 0 $30,000

Less Tenant Improvement Allowance Amortized in Monthly 

Rent Payments

0 ($2,800,000)

Total Real Property Costs 0 $5,109,000

Personal Property Costs

IT/Communications 0 $452,000

Security 0 $174,000

IT Collaborative Spaces 0 $213,000

Standard Contingency built-in by GSA 0 $413,000

Total Personal Property Costs 0 $1,252,000

Total GSA’s Move and Replication Estimated Costs for FY 

2019

0 $6,361,000

Lease Early Termination Costs $943,000

Total Requested Program Increase 0 $7,304,000
38

GSA’s Move and Replication estimate also included the costs in the table below. The funding for 

these costs may be requested in future fiscal year(s). 

Projected Additional Funding Required in Future Fiscal Years

Replacement Lease Prospectus

Management Objective 1 – Effective Agency Administration

Program Area FTE Estimated 

Funding

Personal Property Costs

Move 0 $255,000

Signage, Artwork, Graphics 0 $63,000

Furniture Units 0 $2,940,000

Total Personal Property Costs 0 $3,258,000

Total Funding Required in FY 2020 0 $3,258,000

Background

The GSA lease for 633 Indiana Avenue, NW expires on September 30, 2020. PSA shares this space 

with CSP and the Public Defender Service (PDS) and each agency holds a separate occupancy 

agreement with GSA. Since the annual rent for this space requirement will exceed the net annual 

rent prospectus threshold imposed by 40 U.S.C. § 3307(a)(1) and (2), GSA is legally required to 

submit a prospectus to OMB and Congress for approval to fund future rent expenses before it can 

enter into a new lease. 

GSA proposes a replacement lease(s) for CSP, PSA and PDS in Washington, DC. The prospectus 

includes six leased locations currently occupied by the agencies. 

Leased Spaces PSA Lease 

Expiration

Occupants

GSA Leases

633 Indiana Avenue, NW 09/30/2020 PSA, CSP, PDS

600 E Street, NW PDS

1025 F Street, NW 11/07/2020 PSA

Non-GSA Leases

601 Indiana Avenue, NW 09/30/2021 PSA, CSP

25 K Street, NW CSP

300 Indiana Avenue, NW CSP

PSA opted to include the leases at 1025 F Street, NW and 601 Indiana Avenue, NW in the 

prospectus because these leases expire within a year or less of the 633 Indiana Avenue lease. This 
39

option is intended to streamline overall space acquisition and planning and long-term facility 

management and reduce the Agency’s footprint. 

Since the existing lease at 601 Indiana Avenue expires approximately eight months after the 

projected move-in/occupancy date for the new leased property, an early termination fee may be 

imposed. The existing lease does not allow for early termination, but during the lease replacement 

process, PSA will work with GSA to negotiate an early termination agreement at a reduced rate (to 

the extent possible).

Justification of Request

Reduce the Footprint - The replacement lease will provide necessary continued housing for PSA 

and will improve the office utilization rate per person and overall space utilization. PSA’s goal is to 

reduce its real estate footprint through consolidation and elimination of some of its existing 

locations. PSA’s workplace goals include advancing positive and productive work environments;

promoting flexible workplace schedules to help improve employee work/life balance; and 

increasing employee morale and satisfaction without compromising the mission of the Agency or 

diminishing the support that PSA provides the courts, defendants and those who live, work, and 

visit the District. PSA aims to provide an environmentally responsible and energy efficient 

workplace and will reduce its real estate footprint and operational costs by reducing the size and 

number of individual offices and through open space plans and office sharing, where feasible. PSA 

estimates it will consolidate space for the majority of its staff and reduce its footprint by nearly 

9,400 usable square feet under a replacement lease. 

The following table shows the expiration date of each existing lease, the number of personnel 

impacted, and a comparison of current versus planned space utilization.

Building Location Lease 

Expiration

Personnel

Impacted

Usable Square 

Footage

Square 

Footage 

Change

Percentage 

Change

Current Planned

633 Indiana Avenue 9/30/2020 130 31,202 25,968 -5,234 -17%

1025 F Street 11/07/2020 33 9,679 9,405 -274 -3%

601 Indiana Avenue 9/30/2021 131 28,423 24,535 -3,888 -14%

Total 294 69,304 59,908 -9,396 -14%

Maximum Rentable Square Footage: 72,000

Delineated Area – Statutorily, PSA is required to provide direct support for the courts, and for 50 

years, has performed its mission-critical operations/services within walking distance to the courts.

There is constant interaction between the activities conducted in the courts and the Pretrial Services 

Officers (PSOs) and management officials located in nearby PSA locations. PSA personnel provide 

in-person daily support to nearly 30 courtrooms in DC Superior Court and approximately 15 

courtrooms in US District Court. Having the ability to immediately respond to the courts helps to 

ensure the pretrial release process is administered fairly and, in turn, enhances community safety.

Staff also have daily interactions with other criminal justice partners and the defendants who are 
40

placed under PSA’s supervision while awaiting trial. Similarly, the proximity of the Social Services 

Assessment Center to the courthouses allows PSA to provide prompt response to court-ordered 

substance use and mental health assessments.

PSA strongly believes that close proximity to the local and federal courthouses in which it operates 

is vital to its mission. Many defendants under PSA supervision are diagnosed with mental health 

and/or substance use disorders, homeless, and/or unemployed. Having PSA offices within walking 

distance to the courts allows the defendants to conduct their pretrial release matters with the courts, 

PSA, and PDS in one central location. An increase in distance between required reporting locations 

potentially increases the likelihood of defendants failing to appear for critical supervision and 

treatment related appointments with agency personnel, which are key components of PSA’s risk 

mitigation and public safety strategies. Relocating these mission-critical operations to other areas of

the city could negatively impact PSA’s budget; efficiency of operations; and services to the courts, 

defendants, and the community. PSA has asked GSA to consider these factors as the lease 

replacement process moves forward.

20-Year Investment - PSA will secure long-term space for most of its staff through this project and 

simplify management of its facilities. PSA intends to enter into a 20-year occupancy agreement for 

the new space and will have fewer agreements to manage, as it closes three expiring leases 

simultaneously. In addition, PSA will reduce costs by eliminating the non-GSA lease at 601 Indiana 

Avenue, which is its most expensive space per square foot. 

Three-Year Funding – Three-year funding is requested because GSA estimates the entire project 

may take several years to complete. The project phases include solicitation of lease proposals 

through an open bid process; execution of a lease(s); design and construction of space; installation 

of furniture, information technology, security, and communications; and relocation of personnel, 

files, and personal property. The space design phase is projected to start in the first quarter of FY 

2019 and PSA must have funding to enter into a Reimbursable Work Authorization with GSA for

this work to commence. The design and construction phases may take up to 24 months to complete. 

Before the construction is complete, PSA will begin procuring personal property and moving 

services to meet the projected move-in/occupancy timeframe in the second quarter of FY 2021.

Additional funding may be required in future years to fund all aspects of the project.

Three-year funding is requested because PSA does not have the flexibility to fund this project 

within its existing base budget without significantly compromising its public safety mission. The 

three-year funding will also provide flexibility if any unforeseen delays occur during the various 

phases of the project and/or if there is a delay in the appropriation process (i.e., operating under a 

continuing resolution). 

PSA is dependent on GSA for its space needs. GSA has certified that the prospectus is the best 

solution to meet PSA’s validated space requirements. There are no other alternatives at this time 

through which PSA can secure continued housing for its mission-critical operations beyond the 

expiration terms of the existing leases.