[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4156 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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118th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 4156
To require the Bureau of Prisons to submit to Congress an annual
summary report of disaster damage, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
April 18, 2024
Ms. Duckworth (for herself and Mr. Booker) introduced the following
bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the
Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require the Bureau of Prisons to submit to Congress an annual
summary report of disaster damage, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Correctional Facility Disaster
Preparedness Act of 2024''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act, the term ``major disaster'' means--
(1) a major disaster declared by the President under
section 401 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and
Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170); or
(2) any natural disaster or extreme weather or public
health emergency event that--
(A)(i) causes physical damage to a Bureau of
Prisons facility or contract prison; or
(ii) disrupts services described in paragraph (2),
(4), (5), or (6) of section 3(a); and
(B) the Bureau of Prisons determines is a major
disaster.
SEC. 3. BUREAU OF PRISONS ANNUAL SUMMARY REPORT OF DISASTER DAMAGE.
(a) In General.--The Director of the Bureau of Prisons shall submit
to the Committee on Appropriations, the Committee on the Judiciary, and
the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the
Senate and the Committee on Appropriations, the Committee on the
Judiciary, the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of
Representatives, the Government Accountability Office, and the
Inspector General of the Department of Justice an annual summary report
of disaster damage on the scope of physical damage from a major
disaster by each Bureau of Prisons facility and its contract prisons
impacted or struck by a major disaster that explains the effects of the
damage on inmates and staff, including--
(1) data on injury and loss of life of inmates and staff;
(2) access to health and medical care, food, special
dietary needs, drinkable water, personal protective equipment,
and personal hygiene products;
(3) guidance used to adjudicate early release or home
confinement requests, data on early release or home confinement
approvals, denials, and justification for denials;
(4) an explanation as to whether using home confinement or
early release was considered;
(5) access to cost-free and uninterrupted visitation with
legal counsel and visitors with justifications for facility
decisions that resulted in suspended or altered visitations;
(6) access to appropriate accommodations for inmates with
disabilities;
(7) access to educational and work programs;
(8) inmate grievances;
(9) assessment of the cost of the damage to the facility
and estimates for repairs;
(10) the impact on staffing, equipment, and financial
resources; and
(11) other factors relating to the ability of the Bureau of
Prisons and any existing contract prison to uphold the health,
safety, and civil rights of the correctional population.
(b) Corrective Action Plan.--The report required under subsection
(a) shall include agency corrective actions that the Bureau of Prisons
will take to improve and modernize emergency preparedness plans, as
they relate to natural disasters, extreme weather, and public health
emergencies and a timeline to implement the corrective action plan.
(c) Recommendations.--The report required under subsection (a)
shall include specific legislative recommendations to Congress for
improving emergency preparedness plans within the Bureau of Prisons.
(d) Appointment.--Not later than 90 days after the enactment of
this Act, the Director of the Bureau of Prisons shall appoint an
official of the Bureau of Prisons responsible for carrying out the
corrective action plan.
SEC. 4. NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF CORRECTIONS.
Section 4351 of title 18, United States Code, is amended--
(1) in subsection (c)--
(A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by
striking ``ten'' and inserting ``14''; and
(B) by adding at the end the following:
``(3) One shall have served a sentence in either a Federal
or State correctional facility or have a professional
background advocating on the behalf of formerly incarcerated or
incarcerated individuals.
``(4) One shall have a background as an emergency response
coordinator that has created an emergency management
accreditation program.
``(5) One shall have an educational and professional
background in public health working with communicable diseases.
``(6) One shall represent the labor union that represents
Bureau of Prisons employees.''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(i) Field Hearing.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
enactment of this subsection, the National Institute of Corrections
shall conduct at least one public field hearing on how correctional
facilities can incorporate in their emergency preparedness plans and
recovery efforts--
``(1) inmate access to medical care, food, drinkable water,
personal protective equipment, and personal hygiene products;
``(2) consideration by staff of using home confinement or
early release;
``(3) inmate access to cost-free and uninterrupted
visitation with legal counsel and visitors with clear standards
for when facilities may suspend or alter visitations;
``(4) inmate access to appropriate accommodations for
inmates with disabilities;
``(5) use of Federal funding to restore disaster-damaged
correctional facilities; and
``(6) incorporation by staff of risk management best
practices, such as those made available under the relevant
agencies of the Federal Emergency Management Administration,
Department of Health and Human Services, and the Government
Accountability Office to enhance emergency preparedness
plans.''.
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