This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER

contains notices to the public of the proposed

issuance of rules and regulations. The

purpose of these notices is to give interested

persons an opportunity to participate in the

rule making prior to the adoption of the final

rules.

Proposed Rules Federal Register

1380 

Vol. 80, No. 6 

Friday, January 9, 2015 

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE 

Bureau of Prisons 

28 CFR Parts 523 and 544 

[BOP–1164–P] 

RIN 1120–AB64 

Good Conduct Time: Alternative Adult 

Literacy Programs 

AGENCY: Bureau of Prisons, Justice. 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: In this document, the Bureau 

of Prisons (Bureau) proposes to amend 

its rules on Good Conduct Time (GCT) 

and Literacy. The purpose of this 

proposed rule is to provide effective 

literacy programming alternatives to the 

General Educational Development 

(GED) program that more effectively 

meet the specialized needs of inmates. 

This will also have the added benefit of 

reducing lengthy waiting lists for the 

GED program. This proposed rule will 

exempt inmates from the ‘‘satisfactory 

progress’’ provision of the Violent Crime 

Control and Law Enforcement Act of 

1994 (VCCLEA) and/or the Prison 

Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PLRA) if 

they participate in an ‘‘authorized 

alternative adult literacy program.’’ The 

Bureau’s Literacy Program rules, which 

currently contemplate only GED 

attainment, would also be revised to 

allow for ‘‘authorized alternative adult 

literacy programs.’’ This change means 

that inmates participating in 

‘‘authorized alternative adult literacy 

programs’’ will not need to demonstrate 

satisfactory progress toward earning a 

GED credential to be considered for the 

full benefits of GCT. Other than the 

change regarding inmates in 

‘‘authorized alternative adult literacy 

programs,’’ we propose no further 

substantive changes. 

DATES: Written comments must be 

submitted on or before March 10, 2015. 

ADDRESSES: Rules Unit, Office of 

General Counsel, Bureau of Prisons, 320 

First Street NW., Washington, DC 

20534. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Sarah Qureshi, Office of General 

Counsel, Bureau of Prisons, phone (202) 

307–2105. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Posting of Public Comments 

Please note that all comments 

received are considered part of the 

public record and made available for 

public inspection online at 

www.regulations.gov. Such information 

includes personal identifying 

information (such as your name, 

address, etc.) voluntarily submitted by 

the commenter. 

If you want to submit personal 

identifying information (such as your 

name, address, etc.) as part of your 

comment, but do not want it to be 

posted online, you must include the 

phrase ‘‘PERSONAL IDENTIFYING 

INFORMATION’’ in the first paragraph 

of your comment. You must also locate 

all the personal identifying information 

you do not want posted online in the 

first paragraph of your comment and 

identify what information you want 

redacted. 

If you want to submit confidential 

business information as part of your 

comment but do not want it to be posted 

online, you must include the phrase 

‘‘CONFIDENTIAL BUSINESS 

INFORMATION’’ in the first paragraph 

of your comment. You must also 

prominently identify confidential 

business information to be redacted 

within the comment. If a comment 

contains so much confidential business 

information that it cannot be effectively 

redacted, all or part of that comment 

may not be posted www.regulations.gov. 

Personal identifying information 

identified and located as set forth above 

will be placed in the agency’s public 

docket file, but not posted online. 

Confidential business information 

identified and located as set forth above 

will not be placed in the public docket 

file. If you wish to inspect the agency’s 

public docket file in person by 

appointment, please see the FOR

FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT

paragraph. 

The Proposed Rule 

In this document, the Bureau of 

Prisons (Bureau) proposes to amend its 

rules on Good Conduct Time (GCT) and 

Literacy. The purpose of this proposed 

rule is to provide effective literacy 

programming alternatives to the General 

Educational Development (GED) 

program that more effectively meet the 

specialized needs of inmates. This will 

also have the added benefit of reducing 

lengthy waiting lists for the GED 

program. 

Title 18 U.S.C. 3624(b)(1) provides 

that in awarding good conduct credit, 

the Bureau must consider whether the 

inmate has earned or is making 

satisfactory progress towards earning a 

high school diploma or equivalent 

degree. The Director is given authority 

to make exemptions to the GED 

requirements as he deems appropriate 

by 18 U.S.C. 3624(b)(4). 

Through the Bureau’s Literacy 

Program, inmates are prepared to 

compete for available jobs and cope 

with post-release community, family, 

and other responsibilities. In this 

proposed rule, the Director invokes his 

authority in 18 U.S.C. 3624(b)(4) to 

make an exemption to the GED 

requirements in order to provide an 

alternative for inmates whose needs are 

not met by the GED program while also 

providing relief to the growing demand 

for Literacy Programs. 

By amending 28 CFR 523.20 and 

544.71, inmates participating in 

‘‘authorized alternative adult literacy 

programs’’ will receive the full benefit 

of GCT provisions while also obtaining 

the maximum possible benefit from a 

literacy program that best meets their 

unique needs. 

Title 18 U.S.C. 3624(b)(1) requires the 

Bureau to consider whether an inmate 

has earned or is making satisfactory 

progress toward earning a high school 

diploma or an equivalent degree in 

order to award good conduct credit to 

that inmate. If inmates are not making 

satisfactory progress toward earning a 

high school diploma or equivalent 

degree, they may suffer negative 

consequences to their GCT credit. 

Although we made extensive efforts to 

enroll as many inmates in the Bureau’s 

Literacy Programs (described in 28 CFR 

part 544) as possible, the number of 

inmates waiting to enroll in adult 

literacy programs as of October 2010, 

was 17,609 or approximately 11% of the 

Bureau’s inmate population. 

Further, it became apparent that the 

Bureau’s Literacy Program was not 

meeting the specific needs of certain 

groups of inmates. For instance, 

according to officials from the Mexican 


rljohnson on DSK3VPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 6 / Friday, January 9, 2015 / Proposed Rules 1381 

Ministry of Education, GED certificates 

are not accepted by Mexican employers 

and government. The Mexican 

Secundaria Program (the compulsory 

education for Mexican nationals) is a 

better alternative reentry program for 

inmates who will be released to Mexico 

than the U.S. based GED program. 

Therefore, for deportable aliens 

(Mexican nationals and other 

nationalities) whose primary language is 

Spanish and whose release country 

accepts the Mexican Secundaria 

certificates, the Mexican Secundaria 

Program is the better, more practical 

option. 

For this reason, the Bureau offers the 

Mexican Secundaria program to inmates 

as described above. The Bureau does not 

intend the Mexican Secundaria Program 

to be a literacy option for U.S. citizen 

inmates. U.S. citizen inmates are 

required to take the GED program to 

enhance their opportunities for 

successful post-release employment 

because GED certificates are the basic 

academic requirement for most entrylevel jobs in the United States. 

Another group of inmates whose 

needs may not be met by the GED 

program are those inmates who face 

cognitive challenges. Such inmates have 

unique intellectual and employment 

needs and may have already reached 

their optimum level of academic 

achievement. Under current regulations, 

inmates whose cognitive abilities have 

precluded them from being able to 

complete the GED have tended to drop 

out of the GED program or otherwise 

receive an exemption for not showing 

gain in academic achievement scores, 

often after a prolonged period of 

enrollment. These inmates would be 

better served by giving them the option 

of participating in ‘‘authorized 

alternative adult literacy programs’’ 

which would teach them to function 

successfully (in society and while 

incarcerated) by assisting them in the 

development of the life skills needed to 

manage their lives on a daily basis in a 

respective residential or community 

setting. 

Groups of inmates like the two 

described above have needs that are not 

addressed by the GED program. Inmates 

in both groups who participate in 

Bureau ‘‘authorized alternative adult 

literacy programs’’ would effectively 

receive the benefit of the program to the 

extent that their unique circumstances 

permit, but despite this 

accomplishment, they would not, under 

the current regulatory structure, receive 

the full amount of GCT that their peers 

who are able to participate in the GED 

program could receive. 

This proposed rule will allow the 

Director to exercise his authority under 

18 U.S.C. 3624(b)(4) to exempt inmates 

from the ‘‘satisfactory progress’’ 

provision of the Violent Crime Control 

and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 

(VCCLEA) and/or the Prison Litigation 

Reform Act of 1995 (PLRA) if they 

participate in an ‘‘authorized alternative 

adult literacy program.’’ The Bureau’s 

Literacy Program rules, which currently 

contemplate only GED attainment, are 

also being revised to allow for 

‘‘authorized alternative adult literacy 

programs.’’ This change means that 

inmates eligible for ‘‘authorized 

alternative adult literacy programs’’ will 

not need to demonstrate satisfactory 

progress toward earning a GED 

credential to be considered for the full 

benefits of GCT. 

Executive Order 12866 

The Director certifies that this rule is 

not a ‘‘significant regulatory action’’ 

under section 3(f) of Executive Order 

12866 and therefore was not reviewed 

by the Office of Management and 

Budget. 

Executive Order 13132 

This regulation will not have 

substantial direct effects on the States, 

on the relationship between the national 

government and the States, or on 

distribution of power and 

responsibilities among the various 

levels of government. Under Executive 

Order 13132, this rule does not have 

sufficient federalism implications for 

which we would prepare a Federalism 

Assessment. 

Regulatory Flexibility Act 

The Director of the Bureau of Prisons, 

under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 

U.S.C. 605(b)), reviewed this regulation. 

By approving it, the Director certifies 

that it will not have a significant 

economic impact upon a substantial 

number of small entities because: This 

rule is about the correctional 

management of offenders committed to 

the custody of the Attorney General or 

the Director of the Bureau of Prisons, 

and its economic impact is limited to 

the Bureau’s appropriated funds. 

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 

This rule will not cause State, local 

and tribal governments, or the private 

sector, to spend $100,000,000 or more in 

any one year, and it will not 

significantly or uniquely affect small 

governments. We do not need to take 

action under the Unfunded Mandates 

Reform Act of 1995. 

Small Business Regulatory Enforcement 

Fairness Act of 1996 

This rule is not a major rule as 

defined by section 251 of the Small 

Business Regulatory Enforcement 

Fairness Act of 1996, 5 U.S.C. 804. This 

rule will not result in an annual effect 

on the economy of $100,000,000 or 

more; a major increase in costs or prices; 

or significant adverse effects on 

competition, employment, investment, 

productivity, innovation, or on the 

ability of United States-based 

companies to compete with foreignbased companies in domestic and 

export markets. 

List of Subjects in 28 CFR Parts 523 and 

544 

Prisoners. 

Charles E. Samuels, Jr., 

Director, Bureau of Prisons. 

Under the rulemaking authority 

vested in the Attorney General in 5 

U.S.C. 552(a) and delegated to the 

Director, Bureau of Prisons, we propose 

to revise 28 CFR parts 523 and 544 as 

follows. 

SUBCHAPTER B—INMATE ADMISSION, 

CLASSIFICATION, AND TRANSFER 

PART 523—COMPUTATION OF 

SENTENCE 

■ 1. The authority citation for 28 CFR 

part 523 continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 301; 18 U.S.C. 3568 

(repealed November 1, 1987 as to offenses 

committed on or after that date), 3621, 3622, 

3624, 4001, 4042, 4081, 4082 (Repealed in 

part as to conduct occurring on or after 

November 1, 1987), 4161–4166 (repealed 

October 12, 1984 as to offenses committed on 

or after November 1, 1987), 5006–5024 

(Repealed October 12, 1984 as to conduct 

occurring after that date), 5039; 28 U.S.C. 

509, 510. 

■ 2. Amend § 523.20 by revising 

paragraph (d) to read as follows: 

§ 523.20 Good Conduct Time. 

* * * * * 

(d) Notwithstanding the requirements 

of paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section; 

(1) An inmate participating in an 

authorized alternative adult literacy 

program is eligible for a yearly award of 

good conduct time; and 

(2) An alien subject to a final order of 

removal, deportation, or exclusion, is 

eligible, but is not required, to 

participate in a literacy program, or to 

be making satisfactory progress toward 

earning a General Educational 

Development (GED) credential, to be 

eligible for a yearly award of good 

conduct time. 


rljohnson on DSK3VPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS
1382 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 6 / Friday, January 9, 2015 / Proposed Rules 

SUBCHAPTER C—INSTITUTIONAL 

MANAGEMENT 

PART 544—EDUCATION 

SUBPART H—LITERACY PROGRAM 

■ 3. The authority citation for 28 CFR 

part 544 continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 301; 18 U.S.C. 3621, 

3622, 3624, 4001, 4042, 4081, 4082 (Repealed 

in part as to offenses committed on or after 

November 1, 1987), 5006–5024 (Repealed 

October 12, 1984 as to offenses committed 

after that date), 5039; 28 U.S.C. 509, 510; 28 

CFR 0.95–0.99. 

■ 4. Amend § 544.71 by revising 

paragraph (a) introductory text and 

paragraph (a)(4) and adding paragraph 

(a)(5) to read as follows: 

§ 544.71 Exceptions to required literacy 

program participation. 

(a) The following inmates are not 

required to attend the literacy program 

under § 544.70: 

* * * * * 

(4) Inmates determined by staff to be 

temporarily unable to participate in the 

literacy program due to special 

circumstances beyond their control (e.g., 

due to a medical condition, transfer on 

writ, on a waiting list for initial 

placement). Such inmates, however, 

shall be required to participate when the 

special circumstances are no longer 

applicable; and 

(5) Inmates who participate in 

authorized alternative adult literacy 

programs (programs other than the GED 

program) due to special circumstances, 

such as release destination or learning 

ability. 

[FR Doc. 2015–00144 Filed 1–8–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4410–05–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND 

SECURITY 

Coast Guard 

33 CFR Part 165 

[Docket Number USCG–2014–0002] 

RIN 1625–AA11 

Regulated Navigation Area, Kill Van 

Kull and Newark Bay; Bayonne, NJ, NY 

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS. 

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking. 

SUMMARY: The United States Coast 

Guard proposes to establish a 

permanent Regulated Navigation Area 

(RNA) on the navigable waters of Kill 

Van Kull and Newark Bay surrounding 

the Bayonne Bridge. In response to a 

planned Bayonne Bridge construction 

project, this proposed rule would 

establish a speed restriction in the 

waters surrounding the Bayonne Bridge. 

Also, this proposed rule would allow 

the Coast Guard to prohibit vessel traffic 

through the RNA when necessary to 

safeguard people and vessels from the 

hazards associated with bridge 

construction. 

DATES: Comments and related material 

must be received by the Coast Guard on 

or before February 9, 2015. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

identified by docket number using any 

one of the following methods: 

(1) Federal eRulemaking Portal: 

http://www.regulations.gov. 

(2) Fax: 202–493–2251. 

(3) Mail or Delivery: Docket 

Management Facility (M–30), U.S. 

Department of Transportation, West 

Building Ground Floor, Room W12–140, 

1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., 

Washington, DC 20590–0001. Deliveries 

accepted between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., 

Monday through Friday, except federal 

holidays. The telephone number is (202) 

366–9329. 

See the ‘‘Public Participation and 

Request for Comments’’ portion of the 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section 

below for further instructions on 

submitting comments. To avoid 

duplication, please use only one of 

these three methods. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If 

you have questions on this rule, call 

Lieutenant Commander Myles 

Greenway, Waterways Management at 

First Coast Guard District at 617–223– 

8385 or email at Myles.J.Greenway@

uscg.mil; or call LT Hannah Eko, 

Waterways Management Division at 

Sector New York at 718–354–4114, or 

email hannah.o.eko@uscg.mil. If you 

have questions on viewing or submitting 

material to the docket, call Cheryl 

Collins, Program Manager, Docket 

Operations, telephone 202–366–9826. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Table of Acronyms 

COTP NY Captain of the Port New York 

DHS Department of Homeland Security 

FR Federal Register 

NPRM Notice of Proposed Rulemaking 

RNA Regulated Navigation Area 

A. Public Participation and Request for 

Comments 

We encourage you to participate in 

this rulemaking by submitting 

comments and related materials. All 

comments received will be posted 

without change to http://

www.regulations.gov and will include 

any personal information you have 

provided. 

1. Submitting Comments 

If you submit a comment, please 

include the docket number for this 

rulemaking, indicate the specific section 

of this document to which each 

comment applies, and provide a reason 

for each suggestion or recommendation. 

You may submit your comments and 

material online at http://

www.regulations.gov, or by fax, mail, or 

hand delivery, but please use only one 

of these means. If you submit a 

comment online, it will be considered 

received by the Coast Guard when you 

successfully transmit the comment. If 

you fax, hand deliver, or mail your 

comment, it will be considered as 

having been received by the Coast 

Guard when it is received at the Docket 

Management Facility. We recommend 

that you include your name and a 

mailing address, an email address, or a 

telephone number in the body of your 

document so that we can contact you if 

we have questions regarding your 

submission. 

To submit your comment online, go to 

http://www.regulations.gov, type the 

docket number [USCG–2014–0002] in 

the ‘‘SEARCH’’ box and click 

‘‘SEARCH.’’ Click on ‘‘Submit a 

Comment’’ on the line associated with 

this rulemaking. 

If you submit your comments by mail 

or hand delivery, submit them in an 

unbound format, no larger than 81⁄2 by 

11 inches, suitable for copying and 

electronic filing. If you submit 

comments by mail and would like to 

know that they reached the Facility, 

please enclose a stamped, self-addressed 

postcard or envelope. We will consider 

all comments and material received 

during the comment period and may 

change the rule based on your 

comments. 

2. Viewing Comments and Documents 

To view comments, as well as 

documents mentioned in this preamble 

as being available in the docket, go to 

http://www.regulations.gov, type the 

docket number (USCG–2014–0002) in 

the ‘‘SEARCH’’ box and click 

‘‘SEARCH.’’ Click on Open Docket 

Folder on the line associated with this 

rulemaking. You may also visit the 

Docket Management Facility in Room 

W12–140 on the ground floor of the 

Department of Transportation West 

Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., 

Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. 

and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 

except Federal holidays. 

3. Privacy Act 

Anyone can search the electronic 

form of comments received into any of 


rljohnson on DSK3VPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS