A recent report by the General Accounting Office (GAO) of the federal government, a non-partisan invetigatory body that seeks to highlight waste in the U.S. budget, shows that the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) fails to take advantage of numerous methods by which it can legally lower its prisoner population and save the tax payers money. Their inability or unwillingness to do so shows that they are more interested in keeping their number of prisoners high than in releasing them back into the community and their families.
The BOP was found to have two principal means by which it could shave months or years off sentences, based upon Congressional legislation: "good time", GED completion, and completion of the nine-month Residential Drug and Alcohol Treatment Program (RDAP).
"Good Time" refers to the number of days a year that prisoners can earn for good hehavior while incarcerated, which is set a 54 days a year. However, by their own method of "government arithmetic" this time actually amounts to approximately 47 days a year. Amazingly, this computational sleight-of-hand was upheld by a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision. Legislation is now pending in Congress to make 54 days mean 54 days.
GED studies, GED completion, or a high school diploma are still necessary for a prisoner to claim even the reduced amount of good time provided by the BOP. RDAP promises up to one year off for completion of its program, but the nationwide average is more like 8 or 9 months, according to the study.
The BOP fails to properly take advantage of the "Second Chance Act", which provides for up to one year of halfway house to ease prisoner reintegration into their community. The nationwide average of halfway house given is also around three months. The BOP blames a lack of halfway houses, but also admits that it cannot properly account for funds collected by these institutions.
In short, every action of the BOP frustrates taxpayer intent and serves to cost American taxpayers millions of dollars per year without contributing in any fashion to public safety or prisoner reentry programs that could reduce recidivism.
