I 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 6711 

To direct the Director of the Bureau of Prisons to conduct a comprehensive 

review of understaffing across the Bureau, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

DECEMBER 11, 2023 

Mr. OBERNOLTE (for himself, Ms. CHU, Mr. WEBER of Texas, and Mr. 

CARBAJAL) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To direct the Director of the Bureau of Prisons to conduct 

a comprehensive review of understaffing across the Bureau, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Prison Staffing Re5 form Act of 2023’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) The Bureau of Prisons has 121 institutions 

9 located throughout the United States and employs 

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1 nearly 35,000 employees. Understaffing across the 

2 agency jeopardizes the health, safety, and well-being 

3 of staff and inmates alike. 

4 (2) Understaffing at Bureau of Prison institu5 tions poses a threat to inmates, who will con6 sequently lack access to lifesaving medical care, effi7 cient review of their casework, sanitary living condi8 tions, access to vital recidivism reduction program9 ming, and protections against abuse or sexual mis10 conduct. 

11 (3) Understaffing at Bureau of Prison institu12 tions will also result in reduced staff safety, esca13 lated workplace abuse, stressful work conditions, en14 hanced mental and physical health concerns, and un15 acceptably long work shifts for employees. 

16 (4) Mandated overtime, misuse of augmentation 

17 or reassignment, and overworked employees will re18 duce prison security and threaten public safety. 

19 SEC. 3. COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW OF UNDERSTAFFING 

20 ACROSS BUREAU OF PRISONS. 

21 (a) REVIEW.—Not later than 180 days after the date 

22 of the enactment of this Act, the Director of the Bureau 

23 of Prisons shall— 

24 (1) complete a thorough external review, in ac25 cordance with subsection (b), of staffing across the 

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1 Bureau of Prisons, as well as the impact of any 

2 understaffing on employees, individuals in the cus3 tody of the Bureau of Prisons, and overall agency 

4 spending; and 

5 (2) submit to the Committee on the Judiciary 

6 of the House of Representatives, the Committee on 

7 the Judiciary of the Senate, and the Council of Pris8 on Locals C–33 within the American Federation of 

9 Government Employees Organization— 

10 (A) a plan for recruiting job applicants, 

11 filling vacancies, reducing mandated overtime 

12 and misuse of augmentation, and strengthening 

13 staffing across the Bureau of Prisons; and 

14 (B) a guideline for staffing requirements 

15 including— 

16 (i) the number of correctional officers 

17 needed per individual in the custody of the 

18 Bureau of Prisons for each housing unit, 

19 building, or location where individuals in 

20 the custody of the Bureau of Prisons are 

21 located; and 

22 (ii) the number of employees, includ23 ing teachers, counselors, case managers, 

24 and medical staff, needed per individual in 

25 the custody of the Bureau of Prisons for 

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1 non-correctional departments, 

2 disaggregated by the three primary shifts, 

3 security levels, and any special mission 

4 within the Bureau of Prisons. 

5 (b) REQUIREMENTS OF REVIEW.—The external re6 view completed under subsection (a)(1) shall be conducted 

7 by a non-Bureau of Prisons organization, in consultation 

8 with— 

9 (1) the Council of Prison Locals C–33 within 

10 the American Federation of Government Employees 

11 Organization; 

12 (2) civil rights organizations; and 

13 (3) organizations focused on reducing recidi14 vism through educational, mental health, and sub15 stance use disorder programming. 

16 (c) CONTENTS.—The review required under sub17 section (a) shall— 

18 (1) identify and address the effects of under19 staffing on— 

20 (A) the length of time during which indi21 viduals in the custody of the Bureau of Prisons 

22 are placed on waiting lists to receive care or 

23 programming; 

24 (B) the availability of medical care for in25 dividuals in the custody of the Bureau of PrisVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:44 Dec 28, 2023 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6711.IH H6711
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1 ons, including substance use disorder treatment 

2 programs, mental health programs, and mater3 nal health programs; 

4 (C) the processing of an individuals’ in the 

5 custody of the Bureau of Prisons application 

6 for compassionate release, home confinement, 

7 and time credits established under title I of the 

8 First Step Act of 2018 (18 U.S.C. 3631 et 

9 seq.); 

10 (D) the availability of teachers, therapists, 

11 and other support staff for evidence-based re12 cidivism reduction programs and productive ac13 tivities (as such terms are defined in section 

14 3635 of title 18, United States Code); 

15 (E) adequate protections for staff and indi16 viduals in the custody of the Bureau of Prisons 

17 against violence, neglect, and sexual mis18 conduct; 

19 (F) the availability of sanitary and effi20 cient food services; 

21 (G) prison security, including the detection 

22 of contraband; 

23 (H) the efficient installation of security 

24 cameras and plans to remedy deficits in secu25 rity camera systems; 

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1 (I) the conversion of existing analog radio 

2 systems to digital radios equipped with the 

3 man-down feature; 

4 (J) stressful work environments, mandated 

5 overtime, augmentation, and other workplace 

6 conditions that may jeopardize employees’ men7 tal and physical health; and 

8 (K) additional costs incurred by the Bu9 reau of Prisons, including costs associated with 

10 augmentation and overtime; 

11 (2) include an independent review, conducted by 

12 the National Academy of Medicine, a nonprofit orga13 nization, or other type of organization determined by 

14 the Director to be capable of conducting such review, 

15 of the adequacy and quality of medical care available 

16 to individuals in the custody of the Bureau of Pris17 ons; 

18 (3) include a comparison of the various meth19 odologies used by the Bureau of Prisons to assess 

20 staffing levels, as well as any possible misalignments 

21 and inconsistencies in terminology between these 

22 methodologies; and 

23 (4) include a 3-year strategic plan and cost pro24 jection for filling existing vacancies and maintaining 

25 staffing across the Bureau of Prisons. 

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1 (d) IMPLEMENTATION DEADLINE.—Not later than 3 

2 years after the date on which the plan is submitted under 

3 subsection (a)(2), and subject to appropriations, the Di4 rector of the Bureau of Prisons shall complete implemen5 tation of the submitted plan. 

6 (e) ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORTS.—Beginning 1 year 

7 after the date on which the plan is submitted under sub8 section (a)(2), and each year thereafter until the end of 

9 the 3-year period described in subsection (c), the Director 

10 of the Bureau of Prisons shall submit to the Committee 

11 on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives, the 

12 Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate, and the Council 

13 of Prison Locals C–33 within the American Federation of 

14 Government Employees Organization a report on the 

15 progress of the implementation of the plan submitted 

16 under subsection (a)(2). 

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