FBI Director Colette Peters testified before the House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday.
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NewsTranscript
00:00:00I'll now introduce today's witness, Ms. Colette S. Peters.
00:00:04Ms. Peters is the Director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons.
00:00:07She was sworn in by the Attorney General on August 2nd, 2022.
00:00:11She oversees 122 Bureau of Prisons facilities, six regional offices,
00:00:15two staff training centers, and 22 residential reentry management offices.
00:00:20We welcome our witness and thank her for appearing today.
00:00:23And we'll begin by swearing you in, Director, if you'll please rise and raise your right hand.
00:00:30Do you swear or affirm under penalty of perjury that the testimony you are about to give is true and
00:00:34correct to the best of your knowledge, information, and belief, so help you God.
00:00:37The record will reflect that the witness has answered in the affirmative.
00:00:41Thank you, you've been seated, so that's good.
00:00:44Please know that your written testimony will be entered into the record in its entirety.
00:00:48Accordingly, we ask that you summarize your testimony.
00:00:51Keep it to five minutes.
00:00:53I believe there's a clock somewhere close where you can see it, and
00:00:58you might hear me knock a little bit when you get to five minutes, indicating to please wrap up.
00:01:02Thank you, Director Peters.
00:01:04We'll now proceed under the five minute rule and go to you first for your opening statement.
00:01:09Good morning, Chairman Biggs, Congresswoman McBath, and members of the subcommittee.
00:01:14I first also want to offer my sincere condolences for the loss of your colleague.
00:01:20Yes.
00:01:24Is that better?
00:01:25Okay, I'll start over.
00:01:26Thank you. Good morning, Chairman Biggs and Congresswoman McBath and members of the subcommittee.
00:01:31First, I too would like to offer my sincere condolences for the loss of your colleague.
00:01:36I am grateful for the conversations I have had with her and her fierce advocacy and accountability for the bureau will be missed.
00:01:44And I am honored to be here today representing our employees who are dedicated and
00:01:48courageous corrections professionals committed to our mission and the agency's core values of accountability,
00:01:54integrity, respect, compassion, and correctional excellence.
00:01:59Nearly two years ago, I took the helm knowing that it was a struggling agency and
00:02:03that it would take time and resources to make positive change.
00:02:07What I found was that our recruitment and retention crisis and
00:02:11our dilapidated facilities are at the core of nearly all of our challenges.
00:02:16Low staffing levels impact our institution's operations, including safety and
00:02:20security, medical care, education, programming, and treatment.
00:02:24So our priorities are clear.
00:02:26Recruitment, retention, employee wellness, and maintenance and repair.
00:02:32Fortunately, we are making progress with our recruitment and retention crisis.
00:02:36When I joined the bureau, we had 986 new hires for that entire calendar year.
00:02:42Already this year, we have onboarded over 1,400, and
00:02:46the even better news is that we are now hiring more people than are leaving the agency.
00:02:52Yet challenges remain.
00:02:54The bottom line is we simply do not pay our people enough.
00:02:58Our average base salary of $55,000 for new officers is not competitive.
00:03:04So even when we onboard people, some leave for better pay.
00:03:08As an example, at our facility in Massachusetts, one of our officers left because he got a better offer with better pay at the local grocery store.
00:03:17Ads in New York City offer corrections positions that pay $130,000 after three years,
00:03:24where our federal officers make tens of thousands of dollars less.
00:03:27And our staffing crisis is very expensive, as we rely on overtime and
00:03:33augmentation and incentives to keep our prisons operational.
00:03:37Last year alone, we paid more than $128 million in incentives and
00:03:42spent more than $350 million in overtime.
00:03:46I also want to note the human cost of overtime and augmentation,
00:03:51which we know are incredibly difficult on our corrections professionals, both their physical and their mental health.
00:03:59So incentives like augmentation, recruitment and retention incentives and overtime should only be short term fixes.
00:04:06To solve our long term problem, we are working closely with the department and
00:04:11OPM to create a special salary rate for employees in our institutions.
00:04:16The request, if approved, will require your support, and
00:04:18we estimate the need for an additional hundreds of millions of dollars per year.
00:04:25Our dilapidated infrastructure also affects our mission.
00:04:28It impedes our ability to offer safe, normal, and more humane environments for our employees and those in our custody.
00:04:35That number is now over $3 billion in maintenance and repair needs, and that tells you our infrastructure is crumbling.
00:04:43We have created a five year plan to attack the most serious repairs first, and are preparing our 10 and 15 year plans.
00:04:51Before I conclude, I want to celebrate the passage of the Federal Prison Oversight Act.
00:04:57This act enhances our ongoing collaboration and good work with the Office of the Inspector General.
00:05:03I share the Inspector General's and your commitment to greater accountability and oversight, and have said so from day one on the job.
00:05:11I'd like to thank Representative McBath for her leadership on this legislation and
00:05:16her acknowledgement on the House floor of our brave men and women, and the need for
00:05:20additional resources to improve environments for them and those in our care and custody.
00:05:25I also want to thank every member of this committee who supported this legislation.
00:05:30As I have mentioned publicly, we will need more resources to implement this act efficiently on a couple of fronts.
00:05:37The legislation limits the Bureau's use of augmentation, and
00:05:41while I agree wholeheartedly with the sentiment of limiting augmentation,
00:05:45today in the midst of our crisis, without augmentation, we will need to mandate more overtime.
00:05:52Which will not only cost tens of millions of more dollars, but again, I will note the human cost.
00:05:57And the physical, mental wear and tear of our employees.
00:06:02We will also need to hire additional employees to effectively respond to the additional oversight and make that meaningful, long-lasting change.
00:06:10All of us at the Bureau, including our national union, look forward to working with you closely
00:06:15to ensure that we have the needed resources to uphold our end of the bargain.
00:06:20As I have said before, I believe in good government, accountability, transparency, and the importance of oversight.
00:06:27Thank you for your time, and I stand ready to answer your questions.
00:06:30Thank you, Director Peters.
00:06:32Now we'll proceed on the five minute rule with questioning.
00:06:35The chair recognizes the gentleman from Florida, Mr. Gates, for five minutes.
00:06:39Director Peters, do you remember telling me that Peter Navarro was too notorious when I wanted to interview him during his incarceration?
00:06:48Congressman, we had a long conversation about your desire to have us help facilitate Mr. Strand to appear on your podcast.
00:06:55Nope, nope, nope, this is Navarro.
00:06:57So I'm asking about Mr. Navarro, do you remember telling me he was too notorious?
00:07:01Sorry, Congressman, yes, we-
00:07:04Okay, so all right, so I want to get into how you determine that an inmate is too notorious for an interview or not too notorious for an interview.
00:07:13What is the standard that you apply?
00:07:14So Congressman, I think it's really important for the committee to understand that the request was about him appearing on a podcast.
00:07:20It wasn't about facilitating a meeting with the two of you, which my office followed up and
00:07:26said we would clearly facilitate, and there's only one avenue, as we talked about in our policy, around being able to appear on a podcast,
00:07:34and that's our media policy, and you, with your personal podcast, that is not official media.
00:07:40No, it's my official podcast, so members of Congress do podcasts to function as video newsletters to tell the American people what's going on.
00:07:46So I wanted to interview Navarro, you said he was too notorious, you've acknowledged that was the basis.
00:07:52So I want to know now what test you apply to determine that someone is or is not too notorious.
00:07:59Again, Congressman, while I shared that information with you in a one-on-one briefing, the crux of the denial was that we were not able to help facilitate an incarcerated individual to appear on a podcast.
00:08:14No, no, no, that wasn't what you said.
00:08:16You said it was, I mean, are you, you acknowledge it was this notoriety factor, and the reason I ask is because Michael Avenatti gave an interview from federal prison.
00:08:28So I guess, like, why is it that Michael Avenatti is authorized to do an interview from federal prison, but Peter Navarro isn't?
00:08:36Congressman, I met with you to be as helpful as possible.
00:08:40That wasn't helpful.
00:08:41No, because here's what it looks like.
00:08:43Okay, you've acknowledged that the reason you didn't let me interview Navarro was because you said he was too notorious.
00:08:49And then, I've spent more than a minute trying to get you to explain what the test is for that notoriety.
00:08:55And you can't explain one.
00:08:56You just keep going back to, well, we couldn't facilitate you, and we're trying to be helpful.
00:08:59That wasn't helpful.
00:09:00And when you have standards that are subject to just any interpretation you want, then you carry with the entire Bureau the belief that you guys are just being arbitrary.
00:09:11Because, like, when John Gotti is allowed to do an interview from federal prison, and Peter Navarro isn't, it's hard to ascertain how Gotti would be less notorious.
00:09:21And it just sort of looked—it animates the concern that you heard expressed by the chairman, whether it's Galanis or Navarro or Bannon or whomever,
00:09:31that you guys are trying to make it harder on people who are expressing views that you don't particularly like.
00:09:37And so, you know, that's going to be a—we're going to have to put into law or oversight or something the ability to get to these people,
00:09:45because we're not going to accept just you making a determination that Avenatti's not too notorious, but Navarro is.
00:09:52So, you heard the chairman say in his opening remarks that we want to go to Danbury Prison in Connecticut, and we want to go there to see Mr. Bannon.
00:09:59So is there going to be any problem in the next few weeks approving a visit with the chairman of this committee to go to Danbury?
00:10:09As the congressman and I talked about during a one-on-one conversation yesterday, and as I will say to the committee,
00:10:15we will be happy to review that request and make that a combination as you submit that request to the Office of Legislative Affairs.
00:10:22Okay, I appreciate the commitment to review it, but are you committing to approve it?
00:10:27Congressman, that—those approvals actually happen through the Office of Legislative Affairs.
00:10:31I can't foresee an issue with the approval of that, but we—
00:10:35This is a legislative affair. You're testifying before your oversight subcommittee.
00:10:38So why don't you just tell us that you'll approve our trip to go to Danbury?
00:10:42That approval rests with the department. We have a longstanding process of reviewing—
00:10:45You lead the department. There's not some other person. You're the head of the department. Why can't you just say we can go?
00:10:50We have a longstanding process of those requests being reviewed by the department,
00:10:55and I will encourage my team to work closely with the department in reviewing that request.
00:11:01That is just a total non-answer. I mean, this is what we get, Mr. Chairman.
00:11:04This is what we get. Arbitrary standards, non-answers, and frankly, if we continue to fund it and tolerate, it's all we're going to get.
00:11:13So I would encourage some robust oversight here. I would not want to be in a position where you guys deny this request.
00:11:20Finally, I would just say with my final few seconds, Mr. Biggs and I were in really one of the most impressive prisons in the world,
00:11:26Tecate in El Salvador, and there was concern expressed by the Minister of Justice there that the Mexican mafia is operating out of our prisons,
00:11:34and they're able to conduct criminal enterprises and use communication capabilities.
00:11:39So I hope you would just take for the record, perhaps, a review of what the Mexican mafia's activities are, and I'd love to hear about it.
00:11:46And finally, I just want to echo everyone on the committee's very thoughtful and appropriate remarks about our colleague, Sheila Jackson Lee,
00:11:55and it only seems appropriate to offer that after the gavel has been rung, because that's when Ms. Jackson Lee did some of her most outstanding work.
00:12:04I yield back.
00:12:07She and I talked about that frequently, so the chair recognizes now the gentlelady, Ms. McBath.
00:12:14Thank you, Chairman. Director Peters, the grotesque actions at FCI Dublin is an extreme example of why every person needs oversight.
00:12:23Every prison needs oversight. I back its closure 110 percent, and closing the facility was the first step in a long and harrowing process.
00:12:33The women at that prison remain in need of supervision, protection, and a sense of what their futures would look like.
00:12:41They've already endured so much, and it's your job to ensure that no additional harm comes to them.
00:12:47Many of these women held at FCI Dublin have family members and loved ones who are concerned for their physical safety and their emotional well-being.
00:12:57What steps were taken to screen for histories of misconduct among the temporary staff BOP brought to FCI Dublin to facilitate the transfer of adults in custody?
00:13:08Thank you, Congresswoman.
00:13:09There was a review by the regional directors to ensure that the people we were sending to have additional eyes and ears in that facility during that closure were the appropriate people.
00:13:18We also brought in additional members from the regional office to have that oversight as well.
00:13:24The safety and security of those women and fear of even perceived retaliation during that move was top of mind for us.
00:13:32Thank you. And what oversight is occurring to ensure that women are being treated humanely during their transfer process?
00:13:40So on a variety of levels, we sent out clear messages to the wardens that they would have direct eyes and ears and
00:13:46watching these women as they arrived in their receiving institutions to ensure that they have the medical care,
00:13:52mental health care, access to counsel, access to their family.
00:13:56You're right, we were worried about their families as well.
00:13:59We also have an individual that has been a liaison with our safer teams from the department,
00:14:05from the office of the Deputy Attorney General, and she too is keeping watch on these individuals.
00:14:10So we have someone in central office paying attention.
00:14:13I also had the opportunity to visit a group of these women who had been transferred to our facility,
00:14:19in Washington, and talk to them directly to ensure that their transition was going smoothly.
00:14:26And did BOP evaluate every woman's eligibility for early release or
00:14:31release to community placements with consideration for good time credits and
00:14:38also the first step at credits and the second chance act before assigning them to another facility?
00:14:45Congresswoman, we did.
00:14:46And in fact, at the time that we decided to close the facility, there were over 600 women at that facility.
00:14:52And at the point of moving them out, we had 518.
00:14:56So a substantial number of them were able to go to the community based on those earned time credits or other standing.
00:15:03Also, the women that I mentioned that were housed at SeaTac,
00:15:07those were individuals that had less than five months remaining on their sentence.
00:15:11We wanted them to be as close to their releasing facility as possible during the latter part of their sentence.
00:15:18And finally, what efforts were made to ensure that other BOP facilities had the capacity to
00:15:23receive those individuals that were transferred from FCI double A?
00:15:28Yes, we did a careful review of capacity and their ability to safely absorb them and
00:15:34felt comfortable with the institutions that we had chosen that they would able to safely absorb them and
00:15:39provide them the appropriate treatment and programming and medical and mental health.
00:15:44We've also been kind of concerned about the fact that we understand that some of the individuals that were transferred,
00:15:51were transferred very far away from their communities and far away from their families.
00:15:56With no notification of those family members as to where their family and
00:16:01those individuals were being transferred to.
00:16:03I myself, also having the murder of my son's child actually placed in federal prison as well.
00:16:12I will tell you our rights were violated because that gentleman,
00:16:16I will call him a gentleman, actually was transferred and we never knew anything about it.
00:16:22I found out from the media that he had been transferred out of the state of Florida to another facility.
00:16:28Thank you, Congresswoman.
00:16:29I know you and I have talked about that unfortunate incident, and I'm just, again, sorry that that happened to you and your family.
00:16:36The families were also a concern of ours in this move.
00:16:39For safety and security reasons, we can't give advance notice on when we're moving adults in custody ever.
00:16:47Not just the temporary closure of a facility, but even the daily moves that we make,
00:16:51which is why we made sure that they had access and ability to reach out to their families once they arrived at their receiving institutions.
00:17:00Thank you very much.
00:17:00I yield back my time.
00:17:02General, the yields chair now recognizes the gentleman from Wisconsin, Mr. Tiffin.
00:17:06Thank you. Director Peters, the ranking member, said it very well in her opening statement that everyone should be treated with dignity and respect.
00:17:15I'm assuming that applies to all inmates, is that correct?
00:17:17That's correct.
00:17:19Derek Chauvin in a Tucson facility was stabbed.
00:17:24Derek Chauvin in a Tucson facility was stabbed 22 times while he was copying documents.
00:17:30What happened?
00:17:32Congressman, excuse me, I won't be able to speak to the details of that situation for
00:17:40obvious reasons, but I will tell you that the safety of all individuals in our custody is what we do every day.
00:17:46That's our mission.
00:17:47That's our focus.
00:17:48So the gang member that stabbed him 22 times seems now to have full access to being able to, for
00:17:57example, copy documents, stuff like that, while Mr. Chauvin is not allowed that privilege currently.
00:18:03Why would there be disparate treatment like that?
00:18:05Congressman, I wouldn't be able to speak to the specifics of Mr. Chauvin's incarceration or the assailant.
00:18:10What I can tell you is that we have experts who make housing determinations and
00:18:15placements to ensure that people are safe and secure, both the individuals that were assaulted and the assailants.
00:18:22Are you aware that Jason Galanis reported to Bureau of Prisons Chaplain that he was the victim of
00:18:28repeated incidents of sexual harassment at the hands of BOP staff?
00:18:32I am familiar with Mr. Galanis' allegations, yes.
00:18:36Is that staff member who assaulted Mr. Galanis, is he still working for Bureau of Prisons?
00:18:41Again, that's an ongoing investigation, and I wouldn't be able to speak to the alleged individual's circumstances right now.
00:18:49You know, Mr. Chairman, this is really one of, I've just been here four short years, this is really one of the frustrating things.
00:18:55When people come before this committee, whether it's the FBI, the Department of Justice, whomever, we rarely get answers.
00:19:02And you can see why the American people are losing faith in some of our institutions when we can't even get answers to some of these things.
00:19:10I just want to close with this question, Director Peters.
00:19:13In Wisconsin, recently, we had a staff member that was killed at
00:19:19the Lincoln Hills Juvenile Facility, and I don't expect you to know the details in regards to it.
00:19:26But a judge restricted use of restraints for violent youth due to an appeal by the ACLU.
00:19:34Do you ever run into the same problem where,
00:19:39as a result of the actions of the courts, that they restrict the ability to protect staff?
00:19:45Congressman, I'm not aware of any examples.
00:19:49So you believe your staff is well protected?
00:19:53I'm sorry, I'm not understanding the question.
00:19:55Do you think your staff is relatively safe in the environment that they work in?
00:20:01I think that the important thing that we do every day is work to train them.
00:20:05Make sure they have the tools and the resources they need to operate safe and secure prisons.
00:20:11So, Mr. Chairman, thank you for giving me the latitude where I'm morphing into a state issue.
00:20:17But it's very disappointing now, a staff member, a very good staff member was killed in a facility that lives in my district.
00:20:25As a result of a judge who took actions that allowed the inmates to run the asylum.
00:20:32With that, I yield back.
00:20:34The gentleman yields, the chair now recognizes the ranking member of the whole committee, the gentleman from New York, Mr. Nather.
00:20:40Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
00:20:42In April 2023, GAO placed management of the federal prison system on its high risk list, in part due to staffing challenges.
00:20:51In which positions are vacancies most acute?
00:20:55We're focused mostly on our correctional officers.
00:20:58So what is your short term and long term plan to increase the number of correctional officers to meet the needs of the system?
00:21:03Thank you for the question.
00:21:04We have done so many things.
00:21:06We've used every incentive that we have at our fingertips, both recruitment and retention incentives.
00:21:11We've changed how we're marketing and trying to hire our correctional officers.
00:21:16We increased correctional officers' base salary by $2,000.
00:21:20We waived the maximum age entry from 37 to 39.
00:21:27We pay a $1,000 recruitment bonus to any employee that successfully recruits someone and brings them on to the bureau.
00:21:35And as of May 2024, we received direct hire authority for
00:21:40our correctional officers nationwide, which has proven very successful.
00:21:44And then as I mentioned in my opening remarks, I think the primary focus is really that base salary and
00:21:52working with the department and OPM for a special salary rate.
00:21:55Thank you. According to GAO, some of the staffing concerns relate to difficulty recruiting,
00:22:00while other challenges relate to what the GAO called, quote, the growing use of overtime and augmentation.
00:22:06What are you doing to reduce overtime, and specifically the use of mandatory overtime?
00:22:11Thank you, Congressman.
00:22:11As I said in my opening remarks, it wears and tears.
00:22:14As I walk through the halls of my institutions, while our correctional officers are so
00:22:18proud to tell me of the work that they're doing, they also share how exhausted they are.
00:22:23And it's driven by overtime and augmentation.
00:22:26So our focus to reduce that is hiring, is to get our institutions fully staffed.
00:22:31I just visited our facility in Michigan, Milan, Michigan, where it is nearly fully staffed.
00:22:38And just the tenor and tone of that institution was so
00:22:41different because they weren't buried with overtime and augmentation.
00:22:46And with adjusting the pay scale or GS scale of correctional officers upward across the board,
00:22:53be more advantageous to BOP in retaining staff and cost savings than paying millions of dollars in overtime?
00:22:59Congressman, any way that we can pay our end of people more will actually in the long run cost less than overtime, yes.
00:23:07Thank you. You have made it clear that you will not tolerate employee misconduct of any kind, and that this issue is among your highest priorities.
00:23:14What specific steps are you taking in this regard?
00:23:17So many.
00:23:18This is something we focus on out of the gate.
00:23:19When I first started as director two years ago, we had under 30 people who worked in our Office of Internal Affairs.
00:23:27We now have almost 150 individuals.
00:23:29We've realigned their reporting authority so they report directly to headquarters,
00:23:33not up through the warden to remove any perceived or real barriers to that.
00:23:40We are working very closely with the Office of the Inspector General.
00:23:43I personally meet with him quarterly.
00:23:45Our teams meet regularly to ensure that the backlog and the communication is wide open there as well.
00:23:53And in what way is the Department of Justice assisting your efforts to root out and address employee misconduct?
00:23:58They've been incredibly helpful.
00:24:00The Deputy Attorney General herself and I have met directly with the US Attorneys to talk about the importance of prosecuting
00:24:06employee misconduct out of the Federal Bureau of Prisons.
00:24:10They have been very receptive to that.
00:24:11We have met with US Attorneys regularly in the last two years,
00:24:16multiple times in the last two years, to share that very sentiment.
00:24:20In recent months, there have been a series of reports documenting BOP's continued widespread use of restrictive housing with devastating and deadly results.
00:24:29What steps is BOP taking to reduce the use of restrictive housing?
00:24:33This is an area where we still have room for advancement.
00:24:36I have a long history of reforming restrictive housing.
00:24:39As I was talking to the union earlier, it's a tool we'll always have inside our institutions, but we need to limit it even more dramatically.
00:24:46It has dropped slightly since I started.
00:24:49Probably the biggest thing that we have in the works is we've been working very closely with the National Union
00:24:55to revise our policy around discipline for those in our custody.
00:24:59And as it is written right now, it reduces the sanction time in restrictive housing by almost 84%.
00:25:07So once that is passed, I think we'll see substantial change.
00:25:09And what has BOP done to address the high rate of suicide in restrictive housing?
00:25:13So we have mandated that individuals are double-celled in restrictive housing,
00:25:19in order to ensure that they have human contact while they're in restrictive housing.
00:25:24Thank you. Before becoming Director of BOP, you often spoke about the harms of solitary confinement and the benefits of alternatives to the practice.
00:25:31What are the benefits that you see in alternatives to solitary confinement, where people are separated from the general population, but
00:25:37are provided real and effective out-of-cell programming and services?
00:25:41Yeah, the research-
00:25:41Gentleman's time has expired, but you may go ahead and answer the question.
00:25:44Thank you, Mr. Chair.
00:25:45The research is very clear.
00:25:46The more normal and humane environments that we provide for the adults in custody, the safer they are,
00:25:52the less wear and tear on them, as well as our employees.
00:25:56And so we have many alternatives to restrictive housing that we've engaged in over the last couple of years,
00:26:01including our step-down units, our reintegration units,
00:26:05our grow units, which actually prevent people from actually going to restrictive housing.
00:26:10So we're taking lots of steps to see those numbers drop, because we know very clearly
00:26:17the negative impacts of restrictive housing on those individuals.
00:26:21Thank you, Director.
00:26:22I yield back.
00:26:23Gentleman yields back.
00:26:24At this time, I acknowledge that the gentleman from South Dakota-
00:26:30Sorry, sorry, sorry about that.
00:26:33I'm from South Dakota.
00:26:34From North Dakota, Mr. Armstrong would like to be waved on without objection, seeing none, okay.
00:26:41Chair now recognizes for his five minutes of questioning the gentleman from, excuse me, the chairman of the entire committee from Ohio, Mr. Jordan.
00:26:48I thank the Chairman and Director.
00:26:49How many federal inmates were released to home confinement under the CARES Act?
00:26:53We had about 35,000 released under the CARES Act.
00:26:5735,000?
00:26:59Excuse me, 35,000 is the number under FSA Earned Time Credits.
00:27:03Under CARES Act, it was 13,000, excuse me, 13,240.
00:27:0813,000, on February 4th, 2023, Jason Galanis,
00:27:13after serving approximately 40% of his sentence, applied for home confinement.
00:27:19Very next month, the probation office approved that.
00:27:22You're familiar with that, right?
00:27:24Also, the very next month, March of 2023, the Pensacola Warden approved, and
00:27:28then on June 9th, the Residential Reentry Management Center also approved Mr. Galanis for home confinement under the CARES Act.
00:27:36But then, four days later, the Board of Prisons denied it.
00:27:41Who made the decision to deny that?
00:27:43The denial came out of the Residential Reentry Management Office.
00:27:47After they approved it four days later, they changed their mind?
00:27:50So, the chair and I spoke yesterday.
00:27:52I think there's some confusion around approvals and referrals.
00:27:56The warden has the ability to refer.
00:27:59Probation has the requirement to confirm that his housing option in the community is proper.
00:28:04That still doesn't approve a home confinement placement.
00:28:09The final decision rests with the Residential Reentry Management Office.
00:28:13And they told Mr. Galanis on the 9th that everything was fine.
00:28:16And then on the 13th, they changed.
00:28:18Why?
00:28:19That is not my understanding.
00:28:20The Residential Reentry Management Office did a thorough review of his case and
00:28:26concluded that he was, for a variety of indicators, would not be a good candidate for home confinement.
00:28:35The Residential Reentry Management Center on June 9th approved Mr.
00:28:40Galanis' request for home confinement and then reached out to the Southern District of New York where he was prosecuted.
00:28:45Is that what happened?
00:28:47That's not my understanding.
00:28:48My understanding is since he had more than five years on his sentence, it was practice for
00:28:53the Residential Reentry Management Office to reach out to the U.S.
00:28:57Anyone else get CARES Act release and home confinement under the CARES Act who had more than five years left on their sentence?
00:29:05I can't answer that question definitively, but I can tell you-
00:29:07I can. David McMaster did.
00:29:09David McMaster did, sentenced for fraud similar to Mr. Galanis,
00:29:13a 188 month sentence, and was given home confinement under the CARES Act.
00:29:18We look at each case individually.
00:29:20I am confident that Mr. Galanis' case-
00:29:22This is what I'm getting at.
00:29:23What was the reason, whether it was an approval then a denial, what was the reason for the denial?
00:29:31So it was a handful of reasons, and we look at the totality of the circumstances when we make the decision.
00:29:35When you say we, who ultimately makes the decision?
00:29:37Does that rest with you?
00:29:38No, sir. I do not review these decisions.
00:29:40Can you overrule it?
00:29:41This is the residential-
00:29:41Can you overrule what happens at the Residential Reentry Management Center?
00:29:44I have never overruled one of their decisions.
00:29:46Never.
00:29:47Okay.
00:29:48Then what were the factors that made this determination?
00:29:51The factors included the fact that in a previous incarceration cycle, he violated the conditions of his supervised release by texting a potential witness, and his bond was ultimately revoked.
00:30:02His role in the instant offense as a leader and organizer was outlined in the pre-sentencing report.
00:30:08As was mentioned earlier, he owed over $80 million in restitution.
00:30:12He had more than ten victims, and more than five years left on his sentence.
00:30:15How many were turned down?
00:30:17The people who applied under the CARES Act, you gave approval to 13,204.
00:30:22How many were denied?
00:30:23I don't have that number, but we're happy to look into it and get it back to you.
00:30:26Is it a big number, is it a small number?
00:30:27What's the number?
00:30:28You know, Congressman, I wouldn't venture a guess.
00:30:31Under oath, I will tell you that towards the end of CARES Act, the number of requests that came in, I'm told, tripled.
00:30:38As the population learned that the CARES Act was expiring, so I know at the time of his request, the numbers were very high.
00:30:47Did the fact that the House Oversight Committee subpoenaed Mr.
00:30:52Galanis' business partner have any weight on the decision to deny his request?
00:30:59No.
00:31:00You're confident of that?
00:31:01I have no evidence to suggest that the Residential Reentry Management Office would have taken that into consideration.
00:31:08That would have been outside BOP policy.
00:31:10Because June 9th, they basically told him, okay, it looks good.
00:31:13June 13th, they deny it.
00:31:14Anything happen in between there that could have influenced the decision?
00:31:17Not that I am aware of.
00:31:18Well, that's when the subpoena was sent to his business partner on June 12th.
00:31:22We actually think that probably had some impact on the decision to deny his request.
00:31:26Given that other people, similar crime, similar sentence, were in fact approved, like Mr. McMaster.
00:31:33And you're saying that had nothing to do with it?
00:31:35Correct.
00:31:38And you don't know how many were turned down?
00:31:41No, but happy to find that number and get it back to you.
00:31:43Were any, I mean, Mr. Galanis is non-violent, his crime is non-violent.
00:31:51Any people who were in for a violent offense were then given release under the CARES Act?
00:31:58Congressman, I am confident that Mr. Galanis' case was handled within existing BOP policy.
00:32:05And I am aware that any part of his application was denied other than the merits that I just described to you.
00:32:12Okay, well the timeline doesn't seem to add up to what you just described there.
00:32:15I give back.
00:32:16Mr. Chair, I ask unanimous consent to enter into the record a letter from DOJ explaining that Mr.
00:32:22Galanis was not eligible for home confinement under the CARES Act,
00:32:27consistent with department policy because of the length of time on his sentence and the nature of his conduct.
00:32:33Which, as we know, involve conning shareholders, investors, and a tribal entity out of tens of millions of dollars.
00:32:42Without objection.
00:32:44Chair, now recognizing the gentleman from Alabama, Mr. Moore.
00:32:48Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Ms. Peters, thank you for being here today.
00:32:51December 21st, 2018, President Trump signed the FIRST STEP Act, and it was sentencing reform.
00:32:58I understand that mandatory sentences were reduced in some cases from 20 years to 15 years, depending on the crime, of course.
00:33:07Did you say that 35,000 people were released as a result of the FIRST STEP Act?
00:33:12That's correct.
00:33:13The safety valve program, which also restricts or allows judges in non-violent crimes to allow criminals,
00:33:20or at least people who have been convicted, a little earlier release, has that been helpful in lowering prison population and crowding?
00:33:27You know, our prison population is continuing to climb ever so slightly,
00:33:32even though we have some of these tools at our disposal.
00:33:36You know, in Alabama, I think we spoke about this last time, I'm a proponent of prison reform and certainly sentencing reform.
00:33:43We have a prison in Alabama that actually teaches skills.
00:33:46When the inmates come out, they're certified welders, diesel mechanics, all of the above.
00:33:51The recidivism rate is lowered dramatically.
00:33:53I always encourage us to look at those kind of programs.
00:33:56Concerning Mr. Galanis, I didn't realize that he had eight business partners.
00:34:01I think Hunter Biden had eight business partners, and Mr. Galanis was one of the eight that got sentenced.
00:34:06Hunter did not get charged with anything, is my understanding.
00:34:08And that's the problem, I think, and we talked about this with Merrick Garland,
00:34:11is sometimes it seems like certain people justice is not truly blind, and that's been a concern for us.
00:34:17And certainly with Mr. Galanis being a partner with Mr. Biden and us trying to get information concerning the impeachment process,
00:34:24you understand how we're concerned when he's denied after he's approved,
00:34:28and then all of a sudden we send a subpoena and they go, oh, by the way, you've been denied.
00:34:32Do you think in any way that sometimes politics gets in the part of the prisons?
00:34:36Congressman, no.
00:34:37We are to uphold the letter of the law and our policies,
00:34:41and politics should not be taken into account when we're making those decisions.
00:34:46Well, under the FIRST Act, which we just talked a little about,
00:34:48certain incarcerated individuals are meant to be able to earn time credits for participating in recidivism reduction programs.
00:34:55In terms of collective activities, which can be later applied towards early release,
00:34:58we've been informed by the BOP that it is not processing, or at this time it's not processing these earned credits,
00:35:06leaving inmates, including Jason Galanis, in the dark regarding his status through the FIRST Act.
00:35:11What is the BOP doing to rectify the implementation of the FIRST Act
00:35:15to ensure that individuals like Mr. Galanis are receiving proper treatment under the law?
00:35:20So the automation of the earned time credits have proven very effective.
00:35:25It really allows for transparency with the adults in custody now,
00:35:28so now they know they have a projected date on if they stay in program,
00:35:32if they continue to engage in positive behavior, that those earned time credits are there.
00:35:37So why aren't we keeping the prisoners in the dark on these?
00:35:40I think in some ways that's a carrot that we can say, hey, at this point we can move you along a little.
00:35:46You're making great progress.
00:35:47I mean, we always want to encourage folks who are trying to make the effort to correct their path.
00:35:52Any reason why we're keeping certain inmates or inmates in dark on this?
00:35:56Congressman, you and I are aligned on this.
00:35:57I'm a behaviorist by training, and it's absolutely a carrot, which is why we have changed the practice now.
00:36:03So now they're not in the dark.
00:36:04Now we're doing the automated projective earned time credits, and they're able to see that carrot.
00:36:10When did you all begin that?
00:36:12We have been working on automated time credits for over a year,
00:36:16and it's been in the last few months that we've been doing the projected earned time credits.
00:36:22Okay.
00:36:23To your knowledge, based on participation in these programs facilitated under the First Step Act, yes, First Step Act,
00:36:29how many earned credits does Mr. Galanis, how much has he accumulated?
00:36:33I do not have that answer, but we're happy to look into it and get back to you.
00:36:37Okay.
00:36:39With that, Mr. Chairman, I'll yield back.
00:36:44You're now recognized as representative dean.
00:36:48Thank you, Chairman Biggs.
00:36:50Thank you for holding this hearing, and thank you, Representative McBath, for your leading role here.
00:36:57In the absence of our colleague, I just want to take a couple seconds to also offer my thoughts and sympathy,
00:37:03especially to Sheila Jackson Lee's family and her staff, her able staff both here and in Houston.
00:37:10I feel so lucky that I had the chance to serve with her for five and a half years on this committee and on this subcommittee on crime.
00:37:18What a force.
00:37:19The hardest working woman in Congress.
00:37:22Everybody knows that.
00:37:23There wasn't an issue she didn't speak about.
00:37:26So she is already dearly missed, but her 30 years will live on for a long time.
00:37:34And if I could begin.
00:37:36Thank you very much, Director Peters, for being here.
00:37:39The BOP reports that 45% of federal prisoners have mental health or behavioral problems.
00:37:45More than 30% struggle with substance use disorder.
00:37:51That's in line with what I have heard when I was state representative in Pennsylvania
00:37:57and when I've spoken to Secretary Laurel Harry of the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections.
00:38:04She estimated that roughly 35% of the people within her care struggle with mental health.
00:38:09At least 15% suffer from serious mental health problems.
00:38:13And she said a majority, perhaps as high as 70%, grapple with addiction, substance use disorder.
00:38:20Clearly our inmates need comprehensive support because they are coming home.
00:38:26They will reenter our society, and we want that to be as successful as possible for them, for their families, and also to reduce recidivism.
00:38:33So addiction and mental health.
00:38:35What are the top things that the Bureau is doing or can do, especially if you have the resources,
00:38:41to aid inmates with mental health issues and substance use?
00:38:45Thank you, Congressman. You're absolutely right.
00:38:47And the numbers that you mentioned reflect what's in my recall.
00:38:51A large number of individuals suffer from mental health issues and alcohol and drug addictions.
00:38:58Many of those are drivers to incarceration.
00:39:01And so it's really our job to focus on getting them healthy, both physically and mentally,
00:39:06before they come back and become our good neighbors.
00:39:08So all of our institutions have doctoral level psychologists, and we have 500 psychologists
00:39:17and approximately 600 treatment specialists across the country who focus on this alone,
00:39:23as well as residential and non-residential alcohol and drug treatment.
00:39:27I appreciate that.
00:39:30You talked, especially in your testimony, about recruitment, retention.
00:39:35By way of staffing, how many staffers are you down?
00:39:39And then I'm wondering, has there been any attempt in terms of compensation,
00:39:43attempted special pay increases for staff, for example, that we should know about
00:39:49because of our appropriations role and responsibility?
00:39:52So staffing, how much are you down, and what do you need in terms of appropriations and any special pay?
00:39:59Great. So I'll start with the money.
00:40:01As I said in my opening comments, we paid over $128 million last year
00:40:06in recruitment and retention incentives alone,
00:40:09and we're working with the department and OPM specifically on a special salary rate
00:40:14because, as I've said before, these incentives are Band-Aids only.
00:40:18The bottom line is our employees are not getting paid enough.
00:40:21And so a special salary rate is really the long-term fix.
00:40:25What does that look like? What would a special salary rate look like?
00:40:28We estimate needing an additional $600 million a year to have that salary rate accepted
00:40:35and have a competitive salary with other law enforcement agencies and the private sector.
00:40:41Okay. And is that what is meant by a special pay increase? Is that what you're—
00:40:46Special salary rate, that's correct.
00:40:47Okay. Thank you.
00:40:48And we're asking for all of the employees in our institutions.
00:40:53And in terms of staffing, under the previous administration, how many staff members did you lose?
00:41:00That 2016 number keeps coming up. It was around 6,000, I believe.
00:41:05But what we really focused on is the fact that even though we have positional authority right now,
00:41:10we're not able to fill them all.
00:41:12And so you asked about what was funded—or excuse me, what is authorized and what is filled.
00:41:18We have over 20,000 authorized in the correctional officer series.
00:41:23But if you look at boots on the ground, those correctional officers that you think of managing the units,
00:41:28we have about 14,900 authorized, and only 83% of those are filled.
00:41:34We also had a contractor come in and do an assessment to figure out going forward
00:41:39how many do we need to safely operate our institutions.
00:41:43And they're telling us we need an additional 4,000 correctional officers, another 2,500 health care professionals,
00:41:50and they're going to complete their analysis this fall on the other employees that are working inside our institutions.
00:41:56Thank you for your leadership, and I hope we, those who appropriate the money for the Bureau,
00:42:02for your tireless staff, actually hear those words and meet the moment.
00:42:08Thank you, Congresswoman.
00:42:10The gentlelady's time has expired.
00:42:11The chair now recognizes the gentleman from South Carolina, Mr. Frye.
00:42:16Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
00:42:17I would yield my five minutes to the distinguished member and future governor of the state of North Dakota, Mr. Armstrong.
00:42:25Where are you from in South Dakota?
00:42:26Milbank.
00:42:27Oh, fantastic.
00:42:29I'm not far from your border.
00:42:32Ninety percent of the people who are in custody in the federal system will be released.
00:42:38That's correct.
00:42:39I mean, that's why we're here, and that is why it's important.
00:42:44And you inherited a mess.
00:42:45I mean, you inherited a mess.
00:42:47But we walked through, and I think, and there's not a lot of great stories over the last five years,
00:42:53but I think there are some, and I think it can also help.
00:42:57The CARES Act recidivism rate was 3.7 percent.
00:43:00That's roughly 10 percent of BOP at large.
00:43:05And it's statistically no different than traditional home confinement.
00:43:09Are my numbers accurate?
00:43:13The recidivism rate for CARES Act was about 4.4 percent is what I have, yes.
00:43:19And recidivism rate for First Step Act is about 35 to 37 percent lower than the BOP at large?
00:43:26That's correct.
00:43:27So, I mean, these programs work.
00:43:31So, when we're talking about staffing, and I'm going to ask about the OPM salary thing in a second,
00:43:34because there's another side to this, right?
00:43:37What percentage of people who you hire are gone within the first year?
00:43:41Do you know?
00:43:42You know, I don't have that number, but it is an area of concern because we were able to onboard in 2022,
00:43:47but we onboarded fewer than left.
00:43:51So, the good news for this year so far is that we've onboarded 1,400, and it's more than have left.
00:43:58And I appreciate you saying you support the BOP oversight bill because it's not often we have somebody in here.
00:44:02I mean, there's some strict measures in there.
00:44:04You talked about augmentation and all of those different issues.
00:44:07But if you're hitting overtime at 5 o'clock on Wednesday, and you're committed to working another two hours a week,
00:44:13and you have two kids at home that you haven't seen, and you're working in a dilapidated facility,
00:44:18and people have to be locked up all weekend because you don't have enough staff to get them in there,
00:44:22you know what that creates?
00:44:24Well, one, it's a terrible working environment outside of the pay, and that exists.
00:44:28It also creates recidivism.
00:44:31And there are things the federal system does really well, and one of them is pretrial release.
00:44:37It's fascinating to me because it's almost counterintuitive.
00:44:40It's less confrontational, more rehabilitative, life choice skills, all of those different things.
00:44:45The problem is nothing you get taught in pretrial release you remember 10 years later when you get a 10-year minimum mandatory.
00:44:52And some of it is geographical, but one of the things the federal presidency system I don't think does very well,
00:44:56and I think we have an opportunity to increase on it, is reentry.
00:45:01The tools for reentry, we have a bill with David Trone just to give everybody a BOP ID,
00:45:05like to set up a bank account or to buy a bus ticket or to get home.
00:45:10And so when we're talking about the first step implementation, we talk about what happens when they get out.
00:45:15But what are you guys doing to implement?
00:45:17And this becomes more important because a lot of times people are not incarcerated locally.
00:45:23So what are you doing to meeting the good time credits?
00:45:26And outside of staffing, because I'm assuming staffing is a challenge to this,
00:45:30what are you doing to increase the ability of the people who qualify for video calls with family, telephone calls with family,
00:45:36all of those different issues?
00:45:38Because we know and the data supports the more you do that, the less likely they're going to reoffend when they get out.
00:45:44So you covered so much there.
00:45:46Of course, as the director of BOP and as the former inspector general of the good state of Oregon, of course I support the Oversight Act.
00:45:54I understand the important role of the inspector general, and he and I work closely.
00:45:59As it relates to release IDs, I had met with Congressman Trone many times.
00:46:04I'm proud to report to the committee that all BOP facilities now have the ability to issue an ID,
00:46:13so individuals are actually leaving.
00:46:15In fact, since December of 2023, we've generated over 6,500 release cards.
00:46:22As you well know, that's an incredible barrier to reentry.
00:46:25And as it relates to staffing inside our institutions, when I walk the halls of our institutions,
00:46:30and we have great representatives from the union here in the room, they're exhausted.
00:46:34They tell me exactly the anecdotal stories that you just shared,
00:46:38that the families have pickup times figured out and who's cooking figured out,
00:46:43and the Federal Bureau of Prisons messes it up regularly because of mandated overtime.
00:46:47We want to hold people accountable.
00:46:49We want them to serve their sentence.
00:46:52But ideally, we'd prefer when they get out, they don't reoffend again right away.
00:46:55That is the Office for Safety.
00:46:58This is for everybody.
00:47:00This is the only adult population that the federal government is in charge of everything.
00:47:05We have taken care, custody, and control of them.
00:47:10Whether it's a facility and everybody looks at it and says,
00:47:12I don't care what kind of room violent criminals are in, but the employees do.
00:47:18And if you're working in something that's 30 years old and all across it, all of that,
00:47:22and if we don't retain employees, because it's not just the number of employees,
00:47:25it's how many years' experience they have.
00:47:27And that is the single best way to deliver all of the things we need to deliver
00:47:32and also ensure a safe and secure society.
00:47:34With that, I yield back.
00:47:35I'm sorry.
00:47:36The gentleman yields back.
00:47:38Chair recognizes the gentleman from Tennessee, Mr. Cohen.
00:47:41Thank you, sir.
00:47:43Director Peters, thank you for coming.
00:47:45Before I talk to you, I'd like to reflect a few of my thoughts about Chairman Jackson Lee.
00:47:51We sat together for nearly the entire 18 years I've been here, side by side in Judiciary Committee.
00:47:58She came to Memphis for a hearing.
00:48:00We had a field hearing and supported me.
00:48:02I went to Houston and supported her.
00:48:05She was a dynamic figure who was one of a kind.
00:48:09She was a force, and she was a force that soaked up as much information as she could
00:48:16to help her people and justice as she sought and did a marvelous job in Congress,
00:48:21and she will certainly be missed.
00:48:26She was something else.
00:48:27Director Peters, let me ask you this.
00:48:29I've not caught a lot of the hearings, so if I'm asking anything that's been asked before, just let me know that.
00:48:34Following up on the governor's questions, what does a person get when they're released from prison right now?
00:48:40They're talking about this card.
00:48:42What's such a big deal about giving somebody a card?
00:48:45It's such a big deal because it's a barrier to so many things, to getting a bank account when you get out,
00:48:50to being able to show a formal ID, to rent an apartment.
00:48:56I can see that, that they need it, but why is it such a problem to give it to them?
00:49:00So it's been a barrier on so many levels because the way that individuals get IDs when they get into the community
00:49:09is through the Department of Motor Vehicles.
00:49:11But if you've been incarcerated for a while, you might not have that Social Security card.
00:49:15You might not have that birth certificate.
00:49:17And so now the Federal Bureau of Prisons Employees spends time sleuthing and getting those documents
00:49:23so that they do have them when they leave.
00:49:25And then they also have an official ID that is being accepted in 26 states
00:49:31as these individuals come back into our communities.
00:49:34And then when they leave the prison system, are they just taken out the prison doors and released?
00:49:42Are they given transportation back home?
00:49:44How does that handle?
00:49:45So the majority of them not only receive transportation,
00:49:48but they receive transportation to a residential reentry center or to home confinement.
00:49:52So I think the ability to take people who are still serving a sentence
00:49:57and have a step down for them in the community really proves beneficial
00:50:01so that they have a safe environment to try to reenter, but with wraparound services around them.
00:50:07Once they leave the Bureau of Prisons and they go to these programs which are available to them,
00:50:10Bureau of Prisons is totally out.
00:50:12You don't give them any money to have an opportunity to buy some things when they get out or any credits?
00:50:20We encourage people to save money on their account for reentry purposes.
00:50:26But when they're in the residential reentry center or on home confinement,
00:50:30they're still sentenced to the Bureau, so they're still under our custody,
00:50:33which is why it's a great step down.
00:50:35It isn't until their sentence expires that we hand them off to pre-trial for supervision
00:50:40or probation for supervision.
00:50:41On Saturday, I went to Payne's Barbecue in Memphis, and a man came up to me.
00:50:46After shaking my hand for the longest period of time I've ever had my hand shaken, big man.
00:50:53Anyway, he came up to me afterwards at lunch and he said,
00:50:56I just spent 15 years in the federal system, and I want to start a reentry program.
00:51:02How does somebody start a reentry program for federal prisoners?
00:51:06They would be able to reach out to our procurement staff
00:51:11and be able to share what their reentry idea is,
00:51:16and our procurement staff would be able to point them in the right direction.
00:51:19So they go to the federal correctional facility in Memphis?
00:51:21No, I would refer them to our procurement staff at headquarters.
00:51:25Okay.
00:51:27They need something, and Representative Armstrong was getting close to it,
00:51:32and the idea that they just can't leave them there.
00:51:34They need help so they don't commit crimes when they're released.
00:51:40Has there been any privatization of any federal services, prisons?
00:51:44So we had engaged in 11 contracts with private prisons,
00:51:50but based on the president's executive order, we no longer engage in any of those contracts.
00:51:56I'm not for private prisons.
00:51:58I think it's the government's responsibility.
00:52:00A lot of states have done it.
00:52:02What's been your experience with private prisons?
00:52:05So I'm previously the director of the Oregon Department of Corrections,
00:52:09and that was actually statutorily prohibited in Oregon,
00:52:12so it wasn't something I was familiar with there.
00:52:14And then, of course, the executive order was in place when I arrived in this role,
00:52:18and we successfully complied with the executive order's timeframe and ended those contracts.
00:52:28Compassionate release, that's a program I've been interested in as well.
00:52:32What have you done to streamline the compassionate release program
00:52:36and get more people that are old as hell who are not going to be able to
00:52:40or want to commit a crime again out of the system at home?
00:52:43Jim, this time's expired, but you may answer the question.
00:52:46Then in the interest of time, I'll say I think the most prominent expansion
00:52:50that we've engaged in this last year has been to be able to include
00:52:55confirmed victims of sexual assault inside our institutions for compassionate release.
00:53:00That was part of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines changes.
00:53:03Victims of sexual assault?
00:53:04Confirmed victims of sexual assault on our watch that they're now able to apply for.
00:53:09And then I think it's important for the committee to understand
00:53:12I can recommend to the courts for compassionate release,
00:53:15but that decision ultimately rests with the courts.
00:53:17But I think that's a really important expansion of compassionate release
00:53:22that we've engaged in this last year.
00:53:24If I may, Jim, this time has expired.
00:53:26Chair recognizes the gentleman from George and Mr. Johnson.
00:53:30Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
00:53:32Director Peters, thank you for your work as Director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons.
00:53:37The people you house in your facilities are there for a limited period before they reenter society,
00:53:43and as someone who believes that everyone deserves a second chance,
00:53:49that is what I am most interested in.
00:53:52So I want to jump right in and ask you about how well the prison system is working
00:53:56when it comes to rehabilitation and reentry.
00:54:00I believe it's imperative that we equip inmates with the tools they need to succeed on the outside.
00:54:07Doing that will help them be engaged, productive members of society,
00:54:11and it is what will keep them from entering recidivism.
00:54:18Can you please talk about the programs that you have inside the prison walls that help with rehabilitation,
00:54:25and do you have enough staffing and resources to run these programs effectively?
00:54:30So we have over 115 evidence-based recidivism reduction programs now,
00:54:35and as I walk the halls of our institutions, there's a lot of creativity about even expanding those.
00:54:40So everything from mental health treatment to alcohol and drug treatment to anger management
00:54:45to cognitive behavioral therapy, residential alcohol and drug programs, nonresidential,
00:54:51so a plethora of programs.
00:54:53We believe at the Bureau that the conversation around reentry begins on day one
00:54:58to get them prepared to become those good neighbors, as you say.
00:55:02Do we have enough staff? No.
00:55:04Are they being paid enough? No.
00:55:09I was proud that the bipartisan First Step Act was signed into law back in 2018,
00:55:18which contained both sentencing and prison reforms aimed at recidivism reduction.
00:55:24It's the most significant bipartisan criminal justice reform legislation in a generation,
00:55:30and as you know, the First Step Act provides that those serving sentences
00:55:37have the opportunity to earn good time credits for participating in recidivism reduction programs
00:55:45and related activities, and for qualifying low-level offenders, those time credits will result in early release.
00:55:54Also, there are other changes to the good time credit calculation.
00:56:09There are some other things in the First Step Act about that,
00:56:13having to do with when the sentence was first commenced.
00:56:21Can you talk about how you calculate those earned time credits
00:56:26for persons who were in prison at the time the First Step Act passed?
00:56:33Originally, when the First Step Act passed, it was a manual calculation,
00:56:38which caused a lot of labor and a lot of confusion amongst the population,
00:56:45so we have now automated the earned time credits.
00:56:48Just recently, in the previous months, not only have we automated the earned time credits,
00:56:54we're actually projecting out what their release date might be,
00:56:59as we talked about earlier, as a caret, so that people understand,
00:57:02if they continue to engage in programming and treatment,
00:57:04if they continue to have good conduct inside the institution,
00:57:07then they know what their earliest release could be.
00:57:11You mentioned how many people released in the recidivism rate.
00:57:14Under the First Step Act, we've already released over 35,000 individuals
00:57:19with a recidivism rate of just 9.7%, so you're correct, it is working.
00:57:27What actions has BOP taken to ensure that risk and needs assessments are conducted as required
00:57:33and that there are sufficient evidence-based recidivism reduction programs available
00:57:41to meet the needs of all incarcerated people?
00:57:44Yes, so we have over 150 evidence-based recidivism reduction programs
00:57:49and productive activities right now, and we are working to expand those every day.
00:57:54As I walk the halls of our institutions, the creativity that I'm seeing
00:57:57around advancing additional programs is great.
00:58:01I mentioned earlier that I just visited our prison in Milan, Michigan,
00:58:05which happens to have the only federal prison with a high school inside of it,
00:58:10so you can get not just a GED but a high school diploma.
00:58:14They had over 15 apprenticeship programs at that one facility,
00:58:20and so people are taking—we say the First Step Act is part of who we are,
00:58:25part of our daily life now, and you see that when you walk the halls of our institutions.
00:58:31With that, I yield back.
00:58:32The gentleman yields back.
00:58:33Chair recognizes the gentlelady from Florida, Ms. Lee.
00:58:35Five minutes.
00:58:38Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for having this hearing.
00:58:41Director Peters, thank you for being here with us today
00:58:44and for your testimony about your work with the Bureau of Prisons.
00:58:48The last time you were here with us,
00:58:50one of the things that we discussed were the conditions at FCI Dublin
00:58:55and the incidence of the abuse of female prisoners,
00:58:58and you shared with us your plans to ensure that oversight
00:59:04and accountability were brought to that facility.
00:59:06Of course, since that time, the facility has been closed.
00:59:10Would you share with us more about your efforts in that regard
00:59:14and where the women who were housed at FCI Dublin are now?
00:59:20Thank you, Congresswoman.
00:59:21So as we spoke previously, we poured so many resources into that institution
00:59:26in hopes that it would succeed.
00:59:28Additional staffing, additional incentives, additional psychologists,
00:59:32trauma-informed training, gender-responsive training.
00:59:35We changed the executive team three times over
00:59:40and unfortunately concluded that it still was not meeting expectations,
00:59:44so we temporarily closed it.
00:59:46We did move individuals to other female facilities.
00:59:50For those individuals that had less than five months on their sentence,
00:59:54we moved them to CTAC, our facility in Washington,
00:59:58to ensure that they were as close as they could be to family.
01:00:02Others have been distributed throughout the country at other female facilities.
01:00:08You also mentioned earlier some of the changes that you've made internally
01:00:12to increase accountability and prosecutions
01:00:15for those who do commit these types of violent acts
01:00:18against people who are in custody.
01:00:20Specifically, you touched on a very large increase
01:00:23in the number of people assigned to internal affairs
01:00:27and changing the reporting process to not go through a warden
01:00:30but instead go straight to headquarters.
01:00:32Would you give us a summary of your assessment?
01:00:35Are those changes working?
01:00:37Were the people who committed these crimes at FCI Dublin held to account?
01:00:41Would you share with us your perspective on what has been done
01:00:45to ensure this type of treatment of female inmates doesn't reoccur?
01:00:51I think it starts exactly where you're at, employee accountability.
01:00:55For the record, I'd like to say the supermajority of our employees
01:00:58come to work every day doing the right thing, are ethical,
01:01:01and are as disappointed as you and I are
01:01:04when people engage in this type of egregious misconduct.
01:01:07So the realignment that you talk about,
01:01:09the additional staff that we brought on, is working.
01:01:12Since August of 22, when I started,
01:01:15we've closed over 9,500 open matters in the Office of Internal Affairs.
01:01:21We have seen more prosecutions.
01:01:23There are still investigations pending out of Dublin.
01:01:26We may see more.
01:01:27I've worked very closely with the U.S. Attorneys,
01:01:29as has the Deputy Attorney General,
01:01:31to ensure that they're prosecuting these cases.
01:01:34The importance of holding people accountable is so important.
01:01:37And then we've done so many other things.
01:01:39We work closely with the Inspector General,
01:01:41who is engaged in unannounced visits.
01:01:44The Office of the Deputy Attorney General has created safer teams
01:01:47that have now visited every single one of our female facilities.
01:01:51We've done cultural assessments,
01:01:53cultural assessments now at all of our female facilities,
01:01:57to see if we can see warning signs
01:01:59so we don't ever get to a place again
01:02:01where we have a culture that is as egregious as the one at Dublin.
01:02:07And, as I mentioned earlier,
01:02:09I am pleased with the passage of the Oversight Act,
01:02:13which will shepherd forward more announced and unannounced visits
01:02:17from the Inspector General,
01:02:18because I truly believe we can't do this work alone.
01:02:21And I was interested in exactly that point.
01:02:24What about the Federal Prison Oversight Act?
01:02:27Do you believe that there are provisions in there
01:02:29that are going to be specifically impactful?
01:02:31Of course, I am very pleased to see it pass the House, pass the Senate.
01:02:35Are there provisions there that you think will help prevent
01:02:39further abuse of women who are in custody?
01:02:42I do, because the Act really enhances
01:02:44what's already happening with the Office of the Inspector General.
01:02:47It just allows for more of it.
01:02:49The unannounced visits, using data to look at any concerns that we have
01:02:55so that we can see a culture change
01:02:57before it gets into a more difficult place.
01:03:01So we'll be seeing more announced visits,
01:03:03more unannounced visits from the Inspector General.
01:03:05And then I think the Ombudsman position is very powerful as well
01:03:09to have a place where individuals can bring forward complaints
01:03:13and somebody there to ensure that those complaints are asked and answered.
01:03:18What about women in custody who are feeling threatened or are in danger?
01:03:23What options do they have to ensure that their concerns are heard
01:03:27and that they are kept safe?
01:03:29So I think it's our obligation to create a culture
01:03:32where they feel safe coming forward,
01:03:34and that's one of the things that we really work on
01:03:36with our trauma-informed care and our gender responsivity.
01:03:39But they have the right to come forward to any employee
01:03:41that they feel safe talking to.
01:03:43They also have the ability to contact the Inspector General
01:03:46through anonymous channels to be able to report
01:03:49any complaints or concerns that they have.
01:03:53Mr. Chairman, I yield back.
01:03:56The Chair recognizes himself for five minutes of questions.
01:04:00Director, I've received certain reports
01:04:02that more than 60,000 First Step Act-eligible inmates in the system
01:04:06face significant delays in their pre-release to a halfway house
01:04:10or final release to freedom
01:04:12because there's not full compliance
01:04:15or you haven't been able to fully comply with the First Step Act yet,
01:04:18and there are estimates that these delays range from three to six,
01:04:21to even as much as 12 months,
01:04:23depending on the length of sentence,
01:04:25which may be costing the taxpayer as much as $5 billion,
01:04:29according to estimates.
01:04:32So I'm going to ask you today,
01:04:34is that those numbers sound accurate to you?
01:04:38Are they accurate?
01:04:39I'd want to confirm with my team on the accuracy of those numbers,
01:04:42but anecdotally, that is what I'm hearing
01:04:44when I walk the institutions.
01:04:46There's a lot of frustration with the adult and custody population
01:04:50about them already qualifying for an RRC,
01:04:53and we simply don't have the capacity in the community.
01:04:55And so you're raising a very important point.
01:04:58The residential reentry center program was created before FSA.
01:05:02Before FSA, people would spend weeks or months in an RRC.
01:05:07Now they qualify for months and years in a residential reentry center.
01:05:12And so we are at capacity.
01:05:14Right now, my team is assessing what that future need will be
01:05:19in terms of resources for residential reentry centers.
01:05:22So there's been a long-promised but much-delayed
01:05:27conditional maximum FTC calculator within.
01:05:32What's the delay on that?
01:05:33Is that happening?
01:05:35Can we anticipate that?
01:05:37Is there a way for you to commit?
01:05:38I'd like you to commit to get that up and running within the next 60 days.
01:05:42Tell me what's going on with that, please.
01:05:45So, Congressman, that was the case.
01:05:47It's now the Earned Time Credit Calculator.
01:05:52It's fully operational.
01:05:54Any errors that we're hearing about now
01:05:57are because of human input into the system,
01:06:00not because the Earned Time Credit Calculator is broken.
01:06:04And then just recently, in the last few months,
01:06:06we have expanded the Earned Time Credit Calculator
01:06:10to do a full-on projection so that people can see,
01:06:13if they behave in prison, if they stay in programming and treatment,
01:06:17their earliest release date is X.
01:06:21So thank you for that.
01:06:23And I'm going to leave that topic for a second,
01:06:25and we can maybe talk more about that later offline.
01:06:28We've requested a number of items of information
01:06:33We've requested some recorded, transcribed interviews
01:06:38with the guard in Pensacola
01:06:41and the two wardens in Pensacola related to the Galanis case.
01:06:45We've not been able to have those interviews yet.
01:06:48And before we finish today, I want to ask you for that commitment.
01:06:52But there's also a series of other items,
01:06:54and I'm going to run through those real quickly.
01:06:57We requested and subpoenaed information on the following.
01:07:00We received less than fulsome responses to some of them.
01:07:04The policies, procedures, and communications
01:07:07regarding Galanis' application for CARES Act home confinement.
01:07:10We received a little bit on that.
01:07:12We expect more.
01:07:14All coordination between staff members of VOP
01:07:17and the U.S. Attorney's Office for Southern District of New York
01:07:20and DOJ in that case.
01:07:23Again, the information regarding the allegations of sexual assault
01:07:28and sexual harassment perpetrated against Galanis by a VOP staff member.
01:07:33And then I want to ask you, and then there's several other things,
01:07:36and I'll get to those in a second if I've got time.
01:07:40But I want to ask you,
01:07:42are you aware of the requirements of the Prison Rape Elimination Act?
01:07:45I'm sure you are.
01:07:47Yes.
01:07:48And what is the standard operating procedure
01:07:50of the Bureau for When an Inmate Reports Being Sexually Assaulted by VOP Personnel?
01:07:54So we take all allegations of sexual assault very seriously.
01:07:57They're referred to the Office of Internal Affairs,
01:08:01and if there's any suspicion of criminal misconduct,
01:08:04it's referred to the Office of the Inspector General.
01:08:07So is the only procedure at that point is a referral to IA?
01:08:12OIA and then OIG.
01:08:16But there's no immediate movement of that personnel from one area to another?
01:08:25Oh, yes, there absolutely could be.
01:08:26That's why I want that as well, please.
01:08:29Yes, so we do an assessment around safety both for the victim,
01:08:32safety for the victim and safety for other individuals in the institution.
01:08:37So how quickly is it like for the inmate to be removed from the facility?
01:08:41I think it's common practice for the victim to be moved in short order
01:08:47or the employee moved in short order.
01:08:50So when you say short order, what are we talking about?
01:08:53Short order could be immediate, Congressman.
01:08:56And let's see here.
01:09:00I want to see here.
01:09:01There was a judge in Kansas.
01:09:06My time's expired, but I'm going to send you some written questions as well, okay,
01:09:12that we're going to want answers to because I want to respect everyone's time here.
01:09:16So I'll send you some written questions,
01:09:18but I would, again, get back to the less than fulsome answers
01:09:21we've received on the request for documents and answers that we've sent.
01:09:26And, Director, I would ask that you get your team on that right away
01:09:31so we get that information.
01:09:33And we appreciate you being here today.
01:09:35And with that, this committee is adjourned.
01:09:38Thank you, Congressman.
01:09:39Thank you, members.