Norton Requests Meeting with Bureau of Prisons Director

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) released a letter today to Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) Director Kathleen Hawk Sawyer requesting a meeting to discuss the unique needs of the District of Columbia. In particular, Norton wants to discuss how the First Step Act applies to D.C. Code felons, if at all, as well as concerns with the ongoing process for the federal residential reentry center (RRC) contract in the District. Norton notes in her letter that the BOP Acting Director had previously offered to meet. Norton has requested information from the BOP several times this year, but the BOP has, in some cases, not provided the appropriate information or not responded at all.

In her letter, Norton writes: "I find it unacceptable that the most recent information I have been able to receive on this important issue is from public reporting, and not from the BOP itself. It is vitally important that D.C. returning citizens actually be able to return to an RRC in the District so that they can be close to home. This is all the more important given that many of them are D.C. Code felons, who, if they were in a state system, would almost certainly be in a halfway house in their home state."

The full text of the letter is below.

October 18, 2019

The Honorable Kathleen Hawk Sawyer

Director

Federal Bureau of Prisons

320 First Street NW

Washington, DC 20534

Dear Director Hawk Sawyer:

First, congratulations on your appointment to be Director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) again. Given the unique situation of the District of Columbia, where D.C. Code felons are the only local offenders mandated by Congress to be housed by the BOP, I write to request a meeting with you to discuss several ongoing issues facing these inmates.

First, I wrote to BOP in February requesting a list of "all federal laws, rules, regulations, programs and policies related to federal offenders in BOP custody that do not apply in the same manner to D.C. Code felons in BOP custody…" Sonya D. Thompson, Acting Assistant Director for Information, Policy and Public Affairs, wrote back, requesting, instead, to meet with me to discuss this issue. BOP indicated that the meeting would take place only after BOP had determined how, if at all, the First Step Act applied to D.C. Code felons. The intent of the drafters of the First Step Act was that it would apply to D.C. Code felons. My staff has been told for several months now that the BOP and the Department of Justice were working on the requested analysis. Given this length in time to get a final response, I am requesting to meet with you to discuss this critically important issue to D.C. residents.

Second, I write to again raise my profound concerns with the process for the federal residential reentry center (RRC) contract in the District. For months now, the BOP has been engaged in reviewing competing bids for the contract. As you may know, the contract was initially granted to CORE DC, but, following a bid protest by Hope Village, who has held the contract for a number of years, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) recommended reopening the RRC bid competition. I wrote in August requesting an update on this situation, and the response merely stated that "the Bureau is evaluating all of the responses to the [Request for Proposal]." It has been publicly reported that CORE DC may have lost its ability to gain a lease in D.C. and therefore may also have dropped its bid for the contract. I find it unacceptable that the most recent information I have been able to receive on this important issue is from public reporting, and not from the BOP itself. It is vitally important that D.C. returning citizens actually be able to return to an RRC in the District so that they can be close to home. This is all the more important given that many of them are D.C. Code felons, who, if they were in a state system, would almost certainly be in a halfway house in their home state. Therefore, I would like to meet with you to discuss this issue as well.

I appreciate your attention to these matters and look forward to meeting with you within the next 30 days.

Sincerely,

Eleanor Holmes Norton