I 
119TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2879 
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 
APRIL 10, 2025 
Mr. OBERNOLTE (for himself, Ms. CHU, Mr. CARBAJAL, and Mr. WEBER of 
Texas) 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 Bu-
reau, and for other purposes. 
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 ‘‘Prison Staffing Re-
form Act of 2025’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) The Bureau of Prisons has 121 institutions 
located throughout the United States and employs 
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nearly 35,000 employees. Understaffing across the 
agency jeopardizes the health, safety, and well-being 
of staff and inmates alike. 
(2) Understaffing at Bureau of Prison institu-
tions poses a threat to inmates, who will con-
sequently lack access to lifesaving medical care, effi-
cient review of their casework, sanitary living condi-
tions, access to vital recidivism reduction program-
ming, and protections against abuse or sexual mis-
conduct. 
(3) Understaffing at Bureau of Prison institu-
tions will also result in reduced staff safety, esca-
lated workplace abuse, stressful work conditions, en-
hanced mental and physical health concerns, and un-
acceptably long work shifts for employees. 
(4) Mandated overtime, misuse of augmentation 
or reassignment, and overworked employees will re-
duce prison security and threaten public safety. 
SEC. 3. COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW OF UNDERSTAFFING 
ACROSS BUREAU OF PRISONS. 
(a) REVIEW.—Not later than 180 days after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, the Director of the Bureau 
of Prisons shall— 
(1) complete a thorough external review, in ac-
cordance with subsection (b), of staffing across the 
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Bureau of Prisons, as well as the impact of any 
understaffing on employees, individuals in the cus-
tody of the Bureau of Prisons, and overall agency 
spending; and 
(2) submit to the Committee on the Judiciary 
of the House of Representatives, the Committee on 
the Judiciary of the Senate, and the Council of Pris-
on Locals C–33 within the American Federation of 
Government Employees Organization— 
(A) a plan for recruiting job applicants, 
filling vacancies, reducing mandated overtime 
and misuse of augmentation, and strengthening 
staffing across the Bureau of Prisons; and 
(B) a guideline for staffing requirements 
including— 
(i) the number of correctional officers 
needed per individual in the custody of the 
Bureau of Prisons for each housing unit, 
building, or location where individuals in 
the custody of the Bureau of Prisons are 
located; and 
(ii) the number of employees, includ-
ing teachers, counselors, case managers, 
and medical staff, needed per individual in 
the custody of the Bureau of Prisons for 
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non-correctional 
departments, 
disaggregated by the three primary shifts, 
security levels, and any special mission 
within the Bureau of Prisons. 
(b) REQUIREMENTS OF REVIEW.—The external re-
view completed under subsection (a)(1) shall be conducted 
by a non-Bureau of Prisons organization, in consultation 
with— 
(1) the Council of Prison Locals C–33 within 
the American Federation of Government Employees 
Organization; 
(2) civil rights organizations; and 
(3) organizations focused on reducing recidi-
vism through educational, mental health, and sub-
stance use disorder programming. 
(c) CONTENTS.—The review required under sub-
section (a) shall— 
(1) identify and address the effects of under-
staffing on— 
(A) the length of time during which indi-
viduals in the custody of the Bureau of Prisons 
are placed on waiting lists to receive care or 
programming; 
(B) the availability of medical care for in-
dividuals in the custody of the Bureau of Pris-
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ons, including substance use disorder treatment 
programs, mental health programs, and mater-
nal health programs; 
(C) the processing of an individuals’ in the 
custody of the Bureau of Prisons application 
for compassionate release, home confinement, 
and time credits established under title I of the 
First Step Act of 2018 (18 U.S.C. 3631 et 
seq.); 
(D) the availability of teachers, therapists, 
and other support staff for evidence-based re-
cidivism reduction programs and productive ac-
tivities (as such terms are defined in section 
3635 of title 18, United States Code); 
(E) adequate protections for staff and indi-
viduals in the custody of the Bureau of Prisons 
against violence, neglect, and sexual mis-
conduct; 
(F) the availability of sanitary and effi-
cient food services; 
(G) prison security, including the detection 
of contraband; 
(H) the efficient installation of security 
cameras and plans to remedy deficits in secu-
rity camera systems; 
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(I) the conversion of existing analog radio 
systems to digital radios equipped with the 
man-down feature; 
(J) stressful work environments, mandated 
overtime, augmentation, and other workplace 
conditions that may jeopardize employees’ men-
tal and physical health; and 
(K) additional costs incurred by the Bu-
reau of Prisons, including costs associated with 
augmentation and overtime; 
(2) include an independent review, conducted by 
the National Academy of Medicine, a nonprofit orga-
nization, or other type of organization determined by 
the Director to be capable of conducting such review, 
of the adequacy and quality of medical care available 
to individuals in the custody of the Bureau of Pris-
ons; 
(3) include a comparison of the various meth-
odologies used by the Bureau of Prisons to assess 
staffing levels, as well as any possible misalignments 
and inconsistencies in terminology between these 
methodologies; and 
(4) include a 3-year strategic plan and cost pro-
jection for filling existing vacancies and maintaining 
staffing across the Bureau of Prisons. 
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(d) IMPLEMENTATION DEADLINE.—Not later than 3 
years after the date on which the plan is submitted under 
subsection (a)(2), and subject to appropriations, the Di-
rector of the Bureau of Prisons shall complete implemen-
tation of the submitted plan. 
(e) ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORTS.—Beginning 1 year 
after the date on which the plan is submitted under sub-
section (a)(2), and each year thereafter until the end of 
the 3-year period described in subsection (c), the Director 
of the Bureau of Prisons shall submit to the Committee 
on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives, the 
Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate, and the Council 
of Prison Locals C–33 within the American Federation of 
Government Employees Organization a report on the 
progress of the implementation of the plan submitted 
under subsection (a)(2). 
Æ 
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