Key Findings from the Federal Prisoner Statistics of 2023
By Fay Harvey
WASHINGTON — In December 2018, the First Step Act was signed into law as a bipartisan effort to improve criminal justice outcomes, reduce recidivism and decrease the federal prison population. The law mandates that the Federal Bureau of Prisons (FBOP) conduct annual risk and needs assessments for all federal inmates and enroll them in programs aimed at reducing recidivism, amongst other efforts.
The sixth report in the series required by the First Step Act was released this month and covers data from 2023. Data shown includes characteristics of prison populations, such as inmates’ marital, veteran and citizenship status; education levels; participation in treatment programs; and more. Key findings cover data related to population trends, gender, security, age, security and safety.
According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) — the entity which gathers data from the FBOP — the federal prison population decreased by 2% from 2022-2023, declining from a population of 158,637 to 155,972. Additionally, the number of non-U.S. citizens in federal prisons also decreased from previous years to 22,817, down from 24,031 in 2021 and 24,708 in 2022. However, there was an 18% increase in the daily population for special housing units, at 11,974 from the prior year’s 10,177.
Other key date points include:
- Approximately half of pregnancies in FBOP custody in 2023 resulted in live birth, and 38% of pregnant women were released from federal custody before giving birth.
- At yearend 2023, there were 8,388 inmates with prior military service in FBOP facilities, accounting for more than 5% of the total federal prison population.
- During 2023, the average daily population in administrative maximum housing, the most restrictive type of segregated housing in the FBOP, was 348.
- About 71% (110,213) of persons in FBOP facilities at yearend 2023 had a high school diploma, General Educational Development (GED) credential, or other equivalent certificate prior to their admission to federal prison, and an additional 4,168 earned their GED credential or equivalent certificate while in prison during 2023.
- During 2023, 5,898 inmates received medication-assisted treatment approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration while in FBOP custody to treat a substance use disorder, a 145% increase from 2022 (2,412).
- In 2023, 21,755 federal inmates participated in the Non-Residential Drug Abuse Program, while 12,598 participated in the Residential Drug Abuse Program.
- All 122 FBOP-operated facilities in 2023 held accreditation from the American Correctional Association.
According to the Prisoner Assessment Tool Targeting Estimated Risk and Needs (PATTERN), 54% of assessed inmates (143,291) were classified as having a minimum or low risk of recidivism. In the same group, 26% were deemed high risk, while approximately 19% were considered medium risk. Among women in the population, 82% were identified as minimum or low risk, compared to 52% of male inmates. By the end of 2023, PATTERN classified 83% of federal inmates aged 55 to 64 and 94% of those aged 65 and older as low risk for recidivism. However, 60% of Black and 58% of American Indian or Alaskan Native federal inmates were categorized as high risk, compared to 36% of White inmates and 25% of Asian, Native Hawaiian and other populations.
According to the results, all 122 FBOP-operated facilities in 2023 held accreditation from the American Correctional Association. Additionally, FBOP had partnerships with 3,047 groups across 118 prisons to provide programming on recidivism reduction; 57% of those were with faith-based organizations. Forty-nine evidence-based recidivism reduction programs were identified by FBOP as well as 60 productive activities that those in federal prison could access for numerous needs, including those concerning antisocial peers, anger management, substance abuse, parenting skills and cognitions.