CAPITAL SECURITY PROGRAM
15.1

JUDICIARY CAPITAL SECURITY PROGRAM

This chapter presents the judiciary’s requirements and priorities for the Capital Security Program (CSP), which is funded as a Special 

Emphasis Program within the General Services Administration’s (GSA) Federal Buildings Fund. The CSP provides funding to 

address serious security deficiencies in existing courthouse buildings where physical renovations are viable in lieu of constructing a 

new courthouse. The authority necessary to make renovations of this scope falls under the jurisdiction of GSA.

The judiciary’s fiscal year (FY) 2022 request for the CSP is $19.8 million. When combined with $9.0 million of available prior year 

CSP funding, this request will satisfy the judiciary’s two highest CSP priorities: Detroit, Michigan, and Augusta, Georgia. Actual 

projects funded, and the amounts associated with them, may change depending on the final amount appropriated for the CSP and the 

most recent project cost estimates available at the time of appropriation. If funding is limited or costs change, requested projects that 

cannot be accommodated within the available appropriation will be reduced in scope or deferred to the following fiscal year. 

1. Theodore Levin U.S. Courthouse, Detroit, Michigan. $9.0 million (funded with $9 million reallocated from cancelled 

Raleigh CSP Project (see pg. x)). The Levin Courthouse was constructed in 1934 and is listed on the National Register of Historic 

Places. The 402,935 usable square feet, ten-story plus basement structure houses 13 courtrooms and 13 chambers. Its Asset 

Management Planning (AMP) process Facilities Benefits Assessment (FBA) Security score is 17.0 on a scale of 1 to 1001

. 

Security deficiencies at this courthouse will be partially addressed by: constructing an enclosed USMS sally port; providing new 

screening stations and queuing areas at both public and staff lobbies; providing courtroom holding cells on two floors; and adding 

2 new prisoner elevators to improve prisoner movement. This project was requested in FY 2019, FY 2020 and FY 2021, but no 

program funding was provided in any of those fiscal years. In FY 2022, this project will be funded through the reallocation of $9 

million of available prior year funds originally provided for a CSP project in Raleigh, NC, that was subsequently cancelled.

2. U.S. Courthouse, Augusta, Georgia. $19.8 million. ($19.8 million in appropriations requested for FY 2022). The U.S. 

Courthouse in Augusta was constructed in 1916 and expanded in 1930. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. 

The 28,321 useable square feet, three-story plus basement structure houses two courtrooms, one hearing room, and three 

chambers. Its AMP process FBA Security score is 26.4. Security deficiencies at this courthouse will be addressed by replacing an 

existing open air carport with an enclosed U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) sally port and separate judges’ parking area,

enlarging/reconfiguring the existing security screening queuing area, providing a dedicated judges’ elevator and a dedicated 

1 An FBA Security score of 100 represents an “ideal courthouse” and a score below 60 represents a “poor courthouse.”
15.2

prisoner elevator, reconfiguring the first floor to provide secure and restricted circulation paths for prisoners and judges, and

constructing a new prisoner movement circulation corridor over the first-floor roof to provide secure circulation on the second 

floor. This project was requested in FY 2019, FY 2020, and FY 2021, but no program funding was provided.

Future Approved Capital Security Projects

The judiciary studies and approves projects on a rolling basis for participation in the CSP. The following future projects will be next 

in line to receive funding: 

Ross Adair Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse, Fort Wayne, Indiana. $21.0 million. This location was approved for a 

CSP study in June 2016 and currently has an AMP process FBA Security Score of 29.9. The study was completed in Fall 2018

and approved by the district and circuit courts. Security deficiencies at this courthouse will be addressed by adding a new judges’ 

parking garage, new USMS sally port and secured parking for USMS staff, two new prisoner elevators, a new security screening 

station, new fire egress stairs, a new jury room, and a new holding cell. Also, two dedicated judges’ elevators will be provided 

(one is repurposed from an existing shared elevator and the other is a new elevator that will provide restricted circulation to the 

second floor, including courtrooms).

Federal Building, Post Office, and U.S Courthouse, Burlington, Vermont. $21.7 million. The CSP study was completed in 

April 2020 and approved as a CSP project in June 2020. The courthouse currently has an AMP process FBA Security Score of 

35.38. Security deficiencies at this courthouse will be addressed by adding: a secure judges’ parking garage, a new dedicated 

judges’ restricted elevator, new restricted circulation paths from the judges’ elevator to chambers and courtrooms, a new security 

screening station at the loading dock, a new fire egress stair, a new jury room, and a new holding cell. 

William M. Colmer Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse, Hattiesburg, Mississippi. $20.4 million. The CSP study was 

completed in October 2020 and approved as a CSP project in December 2020. This location has an AMP process FBA Security 

Score of 37.66. Security deficiencies at this courthouse will be addressed by adding: a new secure judges’ parking garage; a 

refurbished dedicated judges’ elevator; new restricted circulation paths from the judges’ elevator to chambers and courtrooms; a 

USMS vehicle sallyport; dedicated prisoner elevator; two new courtroom holding cells; and a new fire egress stair tower.
15.3

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

The CSP was endorsed by the Judicial Conference of the United States in September 2010 to assist the courts at locations that have 

significant security deficiencies but may not qualify for a new courthouse building that would, among other things, address their

security needs. The purpose of the CSP is to improve physical security in buildings occupied by the judiciary. Program goals include: 

• Utilizing existing building assets and federal resources cost-effectively;

• Addressing security deficiencies which place the public, prisoners, judges, and federal employees at risk; and

• Providing a low-cost alternative to high-cost capital improvements.

The CSP was first funded in FY 2012 when Congress designated $20 million within GSA’s Federal Buildings Fund to address 

security deficiencies in federal courthouses using mechanisms such as constructing additional secure corridors; adding or 

reconfiguring elevators; constructing USMS sally ports; creating visual barriers; and reconfiguring security screening areas. Project 

prioritization, selection, and implementation are handled collaboratively by stakeholders from the courts, the USMS, and GSA. This 

valuable program has resulted in greater security at federal courthouses in the selected locations at a fraction of the cost of new 

courthouse construction. Funding for the CSP is summarized in the table below.

Fiscal Year Funding

FY 2012 $20 million

FY 2013 $20 million

FY 2014 $0

FY 2015 $20 million

FY 2016 $20 million

FY 2017 $26.7 million

FY 2018 $20 million

FY 2019 $0

FY 2020 $0

FY 2021 $0

Renovation projects that enhance security are selected for the program through an objective and collaborative review process that 

includes stakeholder representatives from local courts and their circuit judicial councils, the USMS, GSA, Federal Protective Service 
15.4

(FPS), the Judicial Conference’s Space and Facilities Committee in consultation with the Judicial Conference’s Judicial Security 

Committee, and the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts (AO). The process consists of:

1. Preliminary List. Development of a preliminary list of potential CSP projects begins with data collected through the 

judiciary’s AMP2 process that identify courthouses with poor security ratings. These data are then compared with risk 

assessment data collected independently by the USMS and with GSA data on government facilities that are in need of physical 

improvement. A preliminary list of potential projects is then compiled based on these sources of data.

2. In-Depth Analysis and Resulting Short List. Each project on the preliminary list is then reviewed and validated during a 

more in-depth analysis conducted by stakeholder representatives of local courts and their circuit judicial councils, the USMS, 

GSA, FPS, and the AO. This review looks at specific security deficiencies at each courthouse and identifies potential 

conceptual solutions. Potential projects are then evaluated against a list of factors to determine the relative priority of the 

potential projects. Factors may include whether there is a separate circulation pattern for judges, prisoner movement, and the 

public; the number of resident judges; the type of caseload and proceedings; other repair and alteration projects planned; 

USMS risk assessment and incident reports; and the presence of high-risk prisoners regularly in the courthouse.

3. Space and Facilities Committee Review and Validation. The Space and Facilities Committee reviews and, in consultation 

with the Judicial Security Committee, approves the specific courthouse locations to move on to the next step in the project 

selection process – completion of a capital security study. 

4. Capital Security Study and Final Recommendations. Using judiciary funding, the AO contracts with an architect-engineering 

firm to conduct a capital security study for each court location approved by the Space and Facilities Committee. Each study 

reviews the security issues specific to that court location, identifies potential solutions, and documents the three best options 

with corresponding budget estimates. The study also identifies other projects that are already planned or underway by the 

USMS, GSA, or the judiciary to ensure design solutions are fully coordinated.

2 Under the AMP process, each district and circuit adopt a long-range facilities plan that includes an evaluation of each courthouse location for urgency of space 

needs. As part of the process, facility benefit assessments are conducted on each courthouse to determine how well the existing facility supports the needs and 

operations of the court. An urgency evaluation list is then developed each year, placing each courthouse location in rank order. This rank is used to determine 

the urgency of space needs. The AMP process was adopted by the Judicial Conference in 2008.
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The Space and Facilities Committee’s Subcommittees on Space Planning and Rent Management then review the options and 

budgets for each project location, including rent impacts, if applicable, and recommend a final list of projects to the Space and 

Facilities Committee. The Space and Facilities Committee then reviews the recommendations and approves the locations to 

proceed with a CSP project.

5. Notification to GSA. GSA is advised of the result of the Space and Facilities Committee’s review of the final list of projects.

If the list of projects exceeds the congressional budget limitation for that fiscal year, projects are moved to the next fiscal year 

while keeping their rank order.

The flow chart that follows illustrates the steps involved in the approval of CSP projects for funding.
Complete CSP Study to

identify specific security

enhancement options for

each location. Final review

by staff from Court and

Circuit, with GSA and

USMS input – both local

and at headquarters

In-Depth Analysis

The Judiciary, GSA, FPS, and the

USMS review and validate

preliminary list, and reach a 

consensus on courthouse

locations to recommend for CSP

Studies

GSA Central Office

receives list of Space &

Facilities Committee

approved CSP projects

and begins next steps

towards funding

GO!

CSP project funded;

begin design and

construction

The Space Planning 

Subcommittee, in

consultation with the Rent 

Management Subcommittee 

(as appropriate) reviews list 

of potential CSP project 

locations and makes 

recommendation to Space & 

Facilities Committee

Preliminary List of Potential

Projects

The Judiciary compiles the

preliminary list of courthouse

locations with security deficiencies

based upon Asset Management

Planning process data

Circuit Judicial

Councils approve the

completed CSP Study

and its recommended

options, and endorse

the inclusion of the

project in the CSP

Space & Facilities

Committee

approves CSP

project location

The Space & Facilities 

Committee, in 

consultation with the 

Judicial Security 

Committee, approves 

the conducting of a 

CSP study

Circuit Judicial 

Councils approve the 

conducting of a CSP 

Study at locations 

within their Circuit

High-Level Capital Security Program (CSP) Process Summary

15.6
15.7

STATUS OF CSP PROJECTS:

FY 2021 CSP. Congress did not provide funding for CSP in FY 2021.

FY 2020 CSP. Congress did not provide funding for CSP in FY 2020.

FY 2019 CSP. Congress did not provide funding for CSP in FY 2019.

FY 2018 CSP.

1. Hato Rey Complex, Clemente Ruiz Nazario U.S. Courthouse and Federico Degetau Federal Building, San Juan, 

Puerto Rico (Phase 2). $20 million. The Hato Rey complex, which includes the Degetau Federal Office Building and 

Ruiz Nazario U.S. Courthouse, serves as the headquarters for the District Court in the District of Puerto Rico. A CSP 

project study completed in 2016 evaluated existing conditions of both buildings and proposed a preferred concept 

solution to address additional deficiencies of each structure. The recommendation for the Ruiz Nazario Courthouse 

involves construction of a secure judges’ parking garage, designation of a judges’ elevator, and the addition of a shared 

judge/prisoner elevator. At the Degetau Federal Building, a new USMS vehicle sally port is proposed in conjunction

with a new shared judge/prisoner elevator. Staff also considered scope options to accommodate the potential of a new 

courthouse annex project. A courthouse annex project is currently listed as a judicial space emergency on the Federal 

Judiciary Courthouse Project Priorities list. Funding for a Phase 2 CSP project was appropriated and authorized by 

Congress in June 2019. The design is complete, and construction award is planned for Summer 2021.

FY 2017 CSP.

1. U.S. Post Office and Courthouse, Alexandria, Louisiana (construction only). $9 million. The project scope is 

summarized below (FY 2016 CSP); $9 million from FY 2017 appropriations will be used for construction costs. 

2. U.S. Courthouse, Paducah, Kentucky. $17.7 million. The original CSP project in this location was identified to 

address security deficiencies by improving secure circulation, and adding a dedicated prisoner elevator, a dedicated 

judges’ elevator, restricted judges’ parking, and a USMS vehicle sally port for prisoner transport vehicles. Estimated 

construction completion was originally March 2021; however, in September 2017, GSA issued a report and analysis of 

assets potentially impacted by Executive Order 13717, which established a Federal Earthquake Risk Management 
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Standard. Based on the standard, the Paducah Courthouse was identified as being Exceptionally High Risk and 

requiring seismic mitigation. Options to address the risk have been evaluated and as a result this CSP project has been 

cancelled. Instead, GSA has determined that the work required for the CSP and seismic upgrades are interrelated in 

terms of their execution and must therefore be accomplished as one project. GSA believes that all deficiencies can be 

remedied through a prospectus-level renovation and alteration project that will include CSP security improvements, as 

well as seismic and overall building upgrades. GSA intends to request funding for this project in FY 2022 after a 

comprehensive feasibility study is conducted. This study was completed in October 2020. 

Accordingly, GSA submitted in May 2019 a request to Congress to reprogram the $17.7 million that had been 

previously reserved for the Paducah CSP project to cover necessary costs for prior year CSP projects that have 

encountered funding shortfalls. These projects were: Raleigh, North Carolina; Texarkana, Arkansas/Texas; Monroe, 

Louisiana; and Alexandria, Louisiana. In addition, $3.18 million of the proposed reprogramming will be used to 

complete a newly approved project in Fort Worth, Texas, as described below.

Eldon B. Mahon U.S. Courthouse, Fort Worth, Texas. $9.0 million ($3.18 million from CSP; $4.3 million from USMS; 

$1.82 million from GSA’s R&A FY 2019 Spending Plan). The USMS has a completed security improvement design for the

Eldon B. Mahon U.S. Courthouse in Fort Worth, Texas. This facility currently has an AMP process FBA Security Score of 

42.75. The design includes a new prisoner/judge’s elevator, sally port, holding cells, and restricted and secure circulation, as 

well as USMS command center renovations. Detailed construction documents and cost estimates have been completed and the 

project is ready for construction. The total project construction cost estimate is $9.0 million, and $4.3 million is available from 

the USMS. Because of this funding shortfall, and because this project aligns with many of the goals of the CSP program, the 

Space and Facilities Committee, at its November 2018 meeting, approved this project for program participation and approved 

the reallocation of funds originally intended for Paducah, Kentucky. Approximately $3.2 million was reprogrammed from 

funds originally intended for Paducah, Kentucky, plus $1.8 million from GSA’s FY 2019 Major Repairs & Alterations 

Spending Plan. Construction was awarded in December 2020. 
15.9

FY 2016 CSP.

1. Terry Sanford Federal Building, Raleigh, North Carolina. $15.7 million. Security deficiencies at this courthouse 

were intended to be addressed by adding and/or reconfiguring elevators, providing secure parking for judges, and 

constructing additional secure circulation corridors with security screening revisions to better accommodate both the 

courts and the Military Entrance Processing Station (MEPS) - a future tenant. The design for this project was 

completed in October 2017. The construction bids received were significantly higher than the budget, therefore, the 

design was revised in April 2019. In addition to the $15.7 million of FY 2016 funding, approximately $6.8 million was 

reprogrammed from funds originally intended for the Paducah, Kentucky, project to cover this shortfall due to scope 

changes and lack of competition, for total project availability of $22.5 million. 

As a result of CSP project delays and other recently identified building deficiencies in the Sanford Federal Building 

that are beyond the scope of the proposed CSP project, the Eastern District of North Carolina withdrew support for this 

project in November 2019. The Fourth Circuit Judicial Council approved this action in December 2019. At the 

USMS’s request, GSA is preparing to revise design drawings and cost estimates for just the construction of a new 

prisoner elevator and associated restricted circulation corridors (components of the former CSP project). The projected 

cost for this elevator is approximately $6.8 million and the remaining funding balance will be reallocated to other 

approved CSP projects. 

2. U.S. Post Office and Courthouse, Alexandria, Louisiana (design only). $1.9 million. Security deficiencies at this 

courthouse will be addressed by constructing restricted judges’ parking, a judges’ elevator, and reconfigured corridors 

to facilitate restricted circulation for all judges. The USMS will have new space that includes an enclosed sally port, 

holding cells, a prisoner elevator, and reconfigured corridors to facilitate secure prisoner transport. Full funding for this 

project was requested in FY 2016. Due to increased cost estimates for other projects, however, FY 2016 appropriations 

were only sufficient to complete the Alexandria project’s design ($1.9 million). Construction funding ($9.0 million) 

was received in FY 2017 appropriations and an additional $1.0 million was reprogrammed from funds originally 

intended for the Paducah, Kentucky, project to cover a budget shortfall. This shortfall was due to underestimated direct 

costs, escalation, and market conditions. Final design is planned for completion in July 2021.
15.10

3. Ron De Lugo Federal Building, St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands (Phase 2). $2.4 million. Security deficiencies at 

this courthouse will be addressed by constructing enhancements to the first-floor entry screening and access control 

space. The project will provide air-conditioned space for USMS screening equipment, thus prolonging its useful life, 

organize the processing space to minimize lobby queuing, provide separate adjacent zones for an employee entrance 

and occupant/visitor entrance, and improve ballistic protection available to court security officers. Estimated 

construction completion date is Summer 2021.

FY 2015 CSP. 

1. J. Robert Elliot Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse, Columbus, Georgia. $6.7 million. Security deficiencies at this 

courthouse were addressed by constructing an enclosed USMS sally port and prisoner and judges’ elevators with secure 

prisoner movement, reconfiguring and constructing new corridors, and adding perimeter fencing. The project was completed 

in Summer 2019. As a result of the project, the AMP process FBA Security Score for this courthouse improved from 38.2 to 

60.2 and the overall FBA score improved from 54.9 to 61.7.

2. Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse, Monroe, Louisiana. $6.1 million. Security deficiencies at this courthouse will be 

addressed by enclosing a sally port, adding one or two elevators (for prisoners and judges), and reconfiguring/constructing new 

corridors. Additional judiciary funding ($2.8 million) will be used to build a new courtroom and jury assembly to address 

courthouse needs in lieu of building a new courthouse. The design was completed in November 2017. A budget shortfall is 

anticipated due to two-plus years of escalation between the initial and projected construction start dates and underestimated 

general cost conditions for the project. In addition to the $6.1 million of FY 2015 funding, approximately $3.4 million was 

reprogrammed from funds originally intended for the Paducah, Kentucky project to cover this budget shortfall for total project 

funding availability of $9.5 million. Anticipated construction award date is March 2021 with anticipated substantial 

construction completion in June 2022. 

3. U.S. Courthouse and Post Office Building, Texarkana, Texas/Arkansas. $7.2 million. Security deficiencies at this 

courthouse will be addressed by consolidating the USMS space into one location, enclosing a sally port, adding elevators for 

prisoners and judges, building corridors for secure circulation, and reconfiguring building entry screening areas. The design 

was completed in May 2018 and construction started in October 2019 with anticipated substantial construction completion in

July 2021. In addition to the $7.2 million of FY 2015 funding, approximately $3.3 million was reprogrammed from funds 
15.11

originally intended for the Paducah, Kentucky, project to cover budget shortfall, resulting in total project funding availability 

of $10.5 million. This shortfall was due to underestimated direct costs, escalation, and market conditions. Anticipated 

substantial construction completion in June 2021. 

FY 2014 CSP. Congress did not provide funding for CSP in FY 2014.

FY 2013 CSP.

Ron De Lugo Federal Building, St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands (Phase 1). $20 million. Several major security 

deficiencies at this courthouse will be addressed by constructing judges’ and prisoner elevators, a restricted judges’ garage, a 

USMS sally port, and other security-related site improvements. A follow-on Phase 2 project to construct an adequate security 

screening area in the building’s lobby was funded in FY 2016 in the amount of $2.4 million. The FY 2013 Phase 1 project is 

currently under construction. The project could not afford to swing tenants out of the courthouse during construction and 

therefore, a five-phase, 36-month construction schedule was instituted. GSA has confirmed that it cannot use its hurricane 

funding authority to pay the delay costs due to difficulty in obtaining labor and materials following the hurricanes in 2017. In 

May 2019, $402,000 was received from GSA’s FY 2019 Major Repair and Alterations Spending Plan to cover delay costs due 

to difficulty in obtaining labor and materials following Hurricane Irma in 2017. The overall project schedule has been 

extended by approximately 171 days due to the delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic with anticipated substantial 

construction completion in March 2021. 

FY 2012 CSP.

1. Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse, Benton, Illinois. $4.7 million. Security deficiencies at this courthouse were 

addressed by reconfiguring and constructing new corridors, adding an elevator, enclosing a sally port, and constructing visual 

barriers. The project is complete, and the court resumed occupancy of the space in January 2015. As a result of the project, 

the AMP process FBA Security Score for this courthouse improved from 46.1 to 80.2 and the overall FBA score improved 

from 51.7 to 61.1.

2. Hato Rey Complex, Clemente Ruiz-Nazario U.S. Courthouse and Federico Degetau Federal Building, San Juan, Puerto 

Rico (Phase 1). $3.1 million. Security deficiencies at this courthouse were partially addressed by constructing a new 
15.12

dedicated elevator for prisoner movement. The project is complete, and the court resumed occupancy in July 2015. As a result 

of this project, the AMP process FBA Security Score for this courthouse improved from 58.9 to 68.2 and the overall FBA 

score improved from 70.4 to 73.0. A follow-on Phase 2 CSP project study has been completed to evaluate remaining security 

concerns not addressed by the FY 2012 project. The resulting project was funded in FY 2018 (described above under FY 

2018). 

3. Frank M. Scarlett Building, Brunswick, Georgia. $5.5 million. A new judge’s elevator, perimeter fence, and enclosed 

parking area were constructed. Secure circulation was provided on the upper floors by re-stacking the clerk’s public access 

operations, relocating the magistrate and bankruptcy judges’ chambers, and constructing a USMS sally port and prisoner 

elevator. The project is complete, and the court resumed occupancy of the space in May 2017. As a result of the project, the 

AMP process FBA Security Score for this courthouse improved from 41.1 to 63.9, and the overall FBA score improved from 

61.2 to 67.7.

4. U.S. Courthouse and Post Office, Lexington, Kentucky. $6.7 million. Security deficiencies at this courthouse were

addressed by reconfiguring and constructing new corridors, adding dedicated prisoner and judges’ elevators, enclosing a sally 

port, and constructing visual barriers. In addition to the security enhancements, two new fire egress stairwells were

constructed to make the facility compliant with life safety codes. Construction was completed in July 2017. As a result of the 

project, the AMP process FBA Security Score for this courthouse improved from 37.2 to 62.4 and the overall FBA score 

improved from 61.9 to 69.1.