I 
118TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 4138 
To require the Director of the Bureau of Prisons to be appointed by and 
with the advice and consent of the Senate. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 14, 2023 
Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania (for himself and Mr. TRONE) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To require the Director of the Bureau of Prisons to be 
appointed by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Federal Prisons Ac-
countability Act of 2023’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) The Director of the Bureau of Prisons leads 
a law enforcement component of the Department of 
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Justice with a budget that exceeded $7,000,000,000 
for fiscal year 2018. 
(2) With the exception of the Federal Bureau 
of Investigation, the Bureau of Prisons had the larg-
est operating budget of any unit within the Depart-
ment of Justice for fiscal year 2018. 
(3) As of 2019, the Director of the Bureau of 
Prisons oversaw 122 facilities and was responsible 
for the welfare of more than 176,000 Federal in-
mates. 
(4) As of 2019, the Director of the Bureau of 
Prisons supervised more than 36,000 employees, 
many of whom operate in hazardous environments 
that involve regular interaction with violent offend-
ers. 
(5) Within the Department of Justice, in addi-
tion to those officials who oversee litigating compo-
nents, the Director of the Bureau of Alcohol, To-
bacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Director of the 
Community Relations Service, the Director of the 
Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Director of the 
Office on Violence Against Women, the Adminis-
trator of the Drug Enforcement Administration, the 
Deputy Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Ad-
ministration, the Director of the United States Mar-
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shals Service, 94 United States Marshals, the In-
spector General of the Department of Justice, and 
the Special Counsel for Immigration Related Unfair 
Employment Practices, are all appointed by the 
President by and with the advice and consent of the 
Senate. 
(6) Despite the significant budget of the Bu-
reau of Prisons and the vast number of people under 
the responsibility of the Director of the Bureau of 
Prisons, the Director is not appointed by and with 
the advice and consent of the Senate. 
SEC. 3. DIRECTOR OF THE BUREAU OF PRISONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 4041 of title 18, United 
States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘appointed by and 
serving directly under the Attorney General.’’ and insert-
ing the following: ‘‘who shall be appointed by the Presi-
dent, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. 
The Director shall serve directly under the Attorney Gen-
eral.’’. 
(b) INCUMBENT.—Notwithstanding the amendment 
made by subsection (a), the individual serving as the Di-
rector of the Bureau of Prisons on the date of enactment 
of this Act may serve as the Director of the Bureau of 
Prisons until the date that is 3 months after the date of 
enactment of this Act. 
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(c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this Act 
shall be construed to limit the ability of the President to 
appoint the individual serving as the Director of the Bu-
reau of Prisons on the date of enactment of this Act to 
the position of Director of the Bureau of Prisons in ac-
cordance with section 4041 of title 18, United States 
Code, as amended by subsection (a). 
(d) TERM.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Section 4041 of title 18, 
United States Code, as amended by subsection (a), 
is amended by inserting after ‘‘consent of the Sen-
ate.’’ the following: ‘‘The Director shall be appointed 
for a term of 10 years, except that an individual ap-
pointed to the position of Director may continue to 
serve in that position until another individual is ap-
pointed to that position, by and with the advice and 
consent of the Senate. An individual may not serve 
more than 1 term as Director.’’. 
(2) APPLICABILITY.—The amendment made by 
paragraph (1) shall apply to appointments made on 
or after the date of enactment of this Act. 
Æ 
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