The Task Force will convene in early 2015 and hold a series of five meetings throughout the year. With analytic support from the Urban Institute and the Center for Effective Public Policy, the Colson Task Force will:
- Examine the problems and challenges facing the BOP;
- Identify the drivers of federal prison population growth and increasing corrections costs;
- Evaluate policy options to address the drivers and identify recommendations; and
- Prepare and submit a final report with findings, conclusions, policy recommendations, and legislative changes for consideration by Congress, the Attorney General, and the President.
To accomplish its mandate, the Task Force will review relevant federal justice data; evidence-based practices in corrections; lessons learned from state-level criminal justice reform efforts, including justice reinvestment initiatives; and information from practitioners and stakeholders solicited through roundtables, interviews, and public input. This comprehensive fact finding will inform the Task Force’s development of policy recommendations to avert continued growth, ensure offender accountability, and reduce recidivism.