Legal & First Step Act Updates
Plain-language federal custody information based on primary legal sources. Last verified November 2, 2026.
2026 Sentencing Guidelines are now effective
Amendment 841 reorganizes Chapter Five's presentation of sentencing options and adds §5A1.1, which explains the Sentencing Table and identifies sentencing options associated with Zones A, B, C, and D. The Commission emphasizes that sentencing courts must consider available sentencing options, subject to statutory limitations and the facts of the individual case.
2026 Guidelines Manual · 2026 adopted amendments · Amendment 841
Las Guías de Sentencia de 2026 ya están vigentes
Desde el 1 de noviembre de 2026, el Manual de Guías de 2026 incorpora las enmiendas 837 a 843. La Enmienda 841 reorganiza la presentación de las opciones de sentencia en el Capítulo Cinco y añade §5A1.1 sobre la Tabla de Sentencias y las Zonas A, B, C y D.
Esto no garantiza libertad condicional, detención domiciliaria, una sentencia dividida ni ningún resultado específico. Siguen aplicando las restricciones legales, el cálculo de las guías, antecedentes penales, mínimos obligatorios, 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) y la decisión del juez.
2026 First Step Act Time Credits rule
BOP's 2026 interim final rule revises 28 CFR 523.42(a) so the regulatory text states that an eligible inmate begins earning FSA Time Credits after the inmate's term of imprisonment commences. The prior parenthetical tying commencement to arrival or voluntary surrender at the designated BOP facility was removed.
The change does not make FTC automatic at sentencing. Statutory eligibility and successful participation in qualifying assigned programming or productive activities remain important, and the rules for earning credits are distinct from the requirements for applying earned credits.
2026 BOP FSA Time Credits interim final rule · BOP FSA FAQ · Federal Custody Guide GCT/FSA guide
Regla 2026 sobre Créditos de Tiempo FSA
La regla final interina de 2026 revisa 28 CFR 523.42(a) para indicar que una persona elegible comienza a ganar créditos después de que comience su término de encarcelamiento. Se eliminó el texto que vinculaba expresamente ese comienzo a la llegada o entrega voluntaria en la institución designada.
Los créditos no se vuelven automáticos por ese cambio: la elegibilidad, la participación exitosa y las reglas separadas para aplicar los créditos siguen siendo importantes.
First Step Act aggregation case: Supreme Court review denied
The Fourth Circuit majority treated consecutive sentences as a single aggregate term for the disputed FSA Time Credit eligibility question; Judge Wynn dissented. The Supreme Court's denial of certiorari does not itself create a new merits ruling or endorse every part of the lower court's reasoning, but it means the Court did not take this case for review.
Fourth Circuit published opinion · Supreme Court docket No. 25-1363
Caso de agregación FSA: la Corte Suprema negó la revisión
El Cuarto Circuito confirmó la denegación del habeas corpus en Bonnie v. Dunbar. El expediente oficial de la Corte Suprema, No. 25-1363, indica que la petición de certiorari fue denegada el 5 de octubre de 2026. La denegación de certiorari no constituye una nueva decisión sobre el fondo ni significa que la Corte Suprema haya adoptado todo el razonamiento del tribunal inferior.
Current BOP FSA guidance: earning vs. applying credits
BOP guidance distinguishes between earning Federal Time Credits through qualifying assigned programming and applying earned credits toward prerelease custody or supervised release. Eligibility to earn, the amount earned, and whether credits can be applied are separate questions.
BOP FSA Overview · Program Statement 5405.01 · Program Statement 5410.01 CN-2
Ganar vs. aplicar créditos
Ganar Créditos Federales de Tiempo y poder aplicarlos a custodia previa a la liberación o libertad supervisada son cuestiones distintas. La situación individual y los requisitos legales importan.
28 U.S.C. § 2255: challenging a federal conviction or sentence
Section 2255 generally permits a person in federal custody to ask the sentencing court to vacate, set aside, or correct a sentence on specified grounds. It generally contains a one-year limitations period, but the statute provides four possible starting points. The correct deadline depends on the facts of the individual case, and second or successive motions face additional restrictions.
Official text of 28 U.S.C. § 2255
28 U.S.C. § 2255
La sección 2255 permite, en determinadas circunstancias, solicitar al tribunal que impuso la sentencia que la anule, deje sin efecto o corrija. Los plazos y requisitos dependen de los hechos del caso.
Facility status and closure claims: verify the live BOP directory
Current check — November 2, 2026: BOP's live location directory continues to list Morgantown FPC, Duluth FPC, Beaumont, Big Spring, La Tuna, Lexington, and Petersburg among current BOP locations. Families should not treat an older closure or realignment notice as proof that a facility is currently closed.
An older January 2025 RDAP locations document labeled some programs or institutions as “closing” or “suspended,” but BOP later announced that the prior directive to deactivate FPC Duluth was rescinded. Program status and institution status are also not the same thing. Before travel, mail, or transfer planning, verify the institution's current BOP page and location directory.
Current BOP location directory · BOP: Duluth deactivation directive rescinded · Older RDAP locations document
Estado de instituciones y afirmaciones de cierre
Verificación actual — 2 de noviembre de 2026: el directorio vigente del BOP todavía incluye Morgantown FPC, Duluth FPC, Beaumont, Big Spring, La Tuna, Lexington y Petersburg. Una referencia antigua a “cierre” o “realineamiento” no debe presentarse como prueba de que una institución esté cerrada actualmente.
Además, el estado de un programa como RDAP no es lo mismo que el estado operativo de toda la institución. Antes de viajar, enviar correo o planificar un traslado, confirme la página oficial vigente del BOP.
2026 BOP policy index: Program Statement 5162.07
BOP's current policy index lists Program Statement 5162.07, Categorization of Offenses, dated September 3, 2026. Because offense categorization can interact with multiple BOP programs and benefits, families should verify the controlling statute, regulation, and program-specific policy before drawing an eligibility conclusion from an offense label alone.
This update should not be read as an automatic change to any individual's FSA Time Credit eligibility, RDAP early-release eligibility, furlough eligibility, or other program benefit.
Índice de políticas BOP 2026: Program Statement 5162.07
El índice vigente del BOP incluye Program Statement 5162.07, Categorization of Offenses, con fecha del 3 de septiembre de 2026. La categorización de delitos puede afectar distintos programas, pero no debe usarse por sí sola para concluir elegibilidad individual. Deben revisarse la ley, regulación y política específica aplicable.
Home confinement and conditional placement dates
BOP guidance continues to distinguish First Step Act and Second Chance Act authority in prerelease planning. BOP has directed Unit Teams to use FSA and SCA conditional placement dates when planning community placement and to distinguish the statutory limits and eligibility rules that apply under each authority.
BOP also states that a conditional or projected placement date is a planning tool, not a guaranteed transfer date. Individual eligibility, programming, risk findings, available community resources, and BOP determinations remain important.
BOP home-confinement directive · BOP FSA/SCA implementation directive · BOP First Step Act FAQ
Confinamiento domiciliario y fechas condicionales
La guía del BOP distingue entre la autoridad de la First Step Act y la Second Chance Act al planificar colocaciones previas a la liberación. Las fechas condicionales sirven para planificación; no garantizan una transferencia específica. La elegibilidad individual, participación en programas, evaluaciones de riesgo, recursos comunitarios y decisiones del BOP siguen siendo importantes.
BOP workforce litigation: preliminary injunction remains a separate operational issue
On September 29, 2026, the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut granted a preliminary injunction in National Council of Prison Locals, AFGE, et al. v. Federal Bureau of Prisons, et al., No. 3:25-cv-01907. The order concerns BOP's collective-bargaining agreement with the correctional officers' union while the litigation continues.
GovInfo — September 29, 2026 preliminary-injunction order
Litigio laboral del BOP: orden preliminar
El 29 de septiembre de 2026, el Tribunal Federal del Distrito de Connecticut concedió una orden judicial preliminar relacionada con el convenio colectivo de empleados del BOP. Esta decisión laboral no cambia por sí sola una sentencia, créditos FSA, fecha de liberación, elegibilidad para RRC ni confinamiento domiciliario.
How Federal Custody Guide verifies updates
Legal-status statements are checked against primary sources such as statutes, official court materials, U.S. Sentencing Commission publications, BOP/DOJ materials, and Federal Register records. News reports and family tips can identify issues to investigate, but they are not treated as controlling authority.