Dear friend,

Last month, the Department of Justice and the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) began the implementation of two critical components of the First Step Act: the good time credit recalculations and the new risk and needs assessment tool.

On July 20, the BOP began to provide individuals with their new release dates based on the retroactive increase of good time credits in the First Step Act. Unfortunately, due to the high volume of people who will receive new dates, the BOP has had to roll out amended dates based on proximity to release. Furthermore, we have heard that the BOP is counting new good time credits against the 12 months of early release individuals receive for the completion of the Residential Drug Abuse Program (RDAP).

Additionally, the DOJ released the risk and needs assessment tool required by the First Step Act to provide frequent assessment of each individual's risk of recidivism. A person's risk level will help determine which kind of programming they will receive and whether eligible individuals can redeem earned time credits for increased time in pre-release custody.

You can find an FAQ on this new tool here. There is currently a 45-day period of public review, at the end of which the DOJ will solicit comment from the public and relevant stakeholders.

In better news, the First Step Act is helping to free a significant number of people. Since December, 1,691 people have received sentence reductions thanks to the retroactive application of the Fair Sentencing Act. Additionally, nearly 250 people have benefited from the new compassionate release rules, as well as the expanded elderly home detention program.

We will continue to monitor the implementation of the First Step Act and will keep you updated as additional parts of the bill are implemented.

Best,


Kevin Ring
President, FAMM