Physical Capacity for Bureau Facilities

By Elizabeth Franklin-Best, Esq., and Christopher Zoukis, JD, MBA

Program Statement	1060.13
Subject	Physical Capacity for Bureau Facilities
Current edition	March 19, 2026
Approved by	William K. Marshall III, Director, Federal Bureau of Prisons (DPI ITDD)
Change notices	None
Supersedes	“Program Statement Rescinded: 1060.12 Physical Capacity for Bureau Facilities (6/12/2025)”
Governing regulation	None cited in the Program Statement
Governing statute	None cited in the Program Statement. 18 U.S.C. § 3621(b) is the statute that makes capacity operative — designation is expressly “subject to bed availability”
Related BP forms	BP-A1140, Physical Capacity Computation — not published by BOP (see below)
Official PDF	https://www.bop.gov/policy/progstat/1060_013-1.pdf

Checked against the BOP policy set · 2026-09-07 · How we verify

Program Statement 1060.13 is the Bureau of Prisons’ instruction to staff on how to count beds — how each institution measures the space it has, what counts as a permanent bed and what does not, and how those numbers are reported up to the committee that manages the federal prison population. It is the arithmetic underneath the phrase “the Bureau is over capacity,” and it is the reason a designation decision can turn on where there is room; the Bureau-wide overview, including current facility information, is at our Federal Bureau of Prisons hub.

One thing to clear up before anything else. The current policy does not use the term “rated capacity.” That was older Bureau language. The March 2026 edition works with four defined terms — Physical Capacity, Total DFCL Capacity, Total Institution Capacity, and Optimal Capacity — and each means something different. The definitions below are the operative rule, and getting them straight is the difference between reading a capacity figure correctly and misreading it badly.

The rule itself: facility capacity

The heart of this Program Statement is a set of square-footage standards. They are what turn a building into a bed count, and they are the numbers most likely to be quoted and most likely to be quoted wrong. These are reproduced exactly as the Bureau prints them.

The housing-type square-footage standards

Housing type	Definition as printed (verbatim)
Double Occupancy	“means a room or cell to be occupied by two inmates and is less than 120 square feet and equal or greater than 55 square feet. Bureau Physical Capacity is ordinarily based on double occupancy unless there is a programmatic and/or security reason for single occupancy.”
Single Occupancy	“means a room or cell that is to be occupied by one inmate and is less than 120 square feet and ordinarily equal or greater than 50 square feet. Any use of single cells must be documented on the BP-A1140, Physical Capacity Computation form.”
Cubicle housing	“is the partitioning of a dormitory housing area into spaces of less than 120 square feet and equal to or greater than 45 square feet. Partitions are typically constructed using concrete block, but other approved permanent materials may be used. Permanent material does not include fixed furniture used to construct the appearance of a cubicle. Per Bureau Guidelines, the standard cubicle walls shall be 5′-4″ high and shall be constructed with CMU blocks (concrete masonry units).”
Multiple Occupancy housing	“means a room, cell, or area of 120 square feet or more that is partitioned. The most common form of this kind of housing is an ‘open dormitory.'”

Reproduced from Program Statement 1060.13 at p. 3. Every figure was re-checked against the layout-preserved text of the original PDF.

Read the numbers carefully, because they are floors, not targets. A room of 55 square feet can be counted as housing two people. A cubicle carved out of a dormitory can be 45 square feet. The 120-square-foot figure is not a minimum for anyone — it is the ceiling below which a space is a cell, room or cubicle and above which it becomes multiple-occupancy housing measured a different way.

How the count is actually computed

Rule	Text as printed (verbatim)	Pin-cite
Measuring a cell or room	“determined by measuring the space from interior wall to interior wall and including the space occupied by beds, desks, and plumbing fixtures (toilets and sinks, excluding showers). Space occupied by constructed or permanently affixed items that obstruct the floor space (e.g., closets, concrete slabs, etc.) are excluded”	PS 1060.13 at p. 4
Measuring a cubicle	“determined by measuring the space from interior wall to interior wall including the space occupied by beds and desks but excluding hallways and walkways”	PS 1060.13 at p. 4
Measuring multiple occupancy	“determined by measuring the entire open dorm or living area and includes hallways and walkways”	PS 1060.13 at p. 4
Rounding	“rounded to the nearest whole number (rounded down if the remainder is .1 to .4; rounded up if it is .5 to .9). For example, 65.2 square feet would round down to 65; 65.7 square feet would round up to 66.”	PS 1060.13 at p. 5
Beds in an open dormitory	“the Physical Capacity is ordinarily based on the total square footage of the room divided by 60 square feet and then rounded to the nearest whole number. If the total number of beds is an odd number, then consistent with double occupancy the number is increased to the next even number.”	PS 1060.13 at p. 5
Default to double occupancy	“All single occupancy housing types must be specifically documented within the housing type column on the BP-A1140. In the absence of a single occupancy note, all will be assumed double occupancy.”	PS 1060.13 at p. 5
Standard furniture assumed	“Standard furniture in a cell, room or cubicle includes a shared desk, a double bunk and two lockers for typical double occupancy. If denoted as single occupancy, the room will include a desk, a single bunk, and one locker.”	PS 1060.13 at p. 5

Reproduced from Program Statement 1060.13.

That 60-square-feet divisor is the single most consequential number in the document. An open dormitory’s bed count is its total floor area — hallways and walkways included — divided by 60, then rounded, then bumped up to the next even number if it lands odd. Note what that means in practice: the divisor is applied to the whole room, so the per-person figure is not 60 square feet of personal space.

The four capacity terms, and why the difference matters

Term	Definition as printed (verbatim)
Physical Capacity	“is the maximum number of permanent inmate beds in a DFCL less hospital/infirmary, Administrative Detention (AD), and Disciplinary Segregation (DS). Medical bedspace at the Medical Referral Centers is included in the Physical Capacity number. Physical Capacity is the objective measurement of inmate housing space without regard to items such as institution age or location but rather is directly related to the number of cells, rooms, cubicles, and multi-occupancy spaces and their associated square footage available for inmate housing. Temporary beds are not included in Physical Capacity.”
Total DFCL Capacity	“is a DFCL’s Physical Capacity plus the capacity of housing used for medical and special housing purposes. This housing includes AD and DS.”
Total Institution Capacity	“is the number of beds in an institution. It is calculated by adding the Total DFCL Capacity within an institution.”
Optimal Capacity	“is a DFCL’s Physical Capacity reduced by factors such as the DFCL’s security level and care level. Optimal Capacity is based on the premise that institutions operate better when not at 100% capacity, particularly in the case of institutions with high security levels and/or high care levels. Optimal Capacity is considered an ideal state and is generally 80-95% of a DFCL’s Physical Capacity, with some exceptions.”

Reproduced from Program Statement 1060.13 at p. 2. Emphasis added.

A DFCL is a “Designation Facility” — the Program Statement defines it as “the separate, unique missions (e.g., General Population, Secure Mental Health, Satellite Camp, Jail, Reintegration Unit, etc.) within a single institution,” while a FACL, or Facility, “includes all separate, unique missions (DFCLs) within an institution.” So a single prison complex can hold several DFCLs, each counted separately.

The 80–95% figure is the one people miss. The Bureau’s own stated position is that institutions “operate better when not at 100% capacity,” and that the ideal state is 80–95% of Physical Capacity, more conservative at higher security and care levels. A facility at 100% of Physical Capacity is, by the Bureau’s own definition, above its Optimal Capacity.

What counts as a bed, and what does not

The Program Statement’s guidelines on permanent versus temporary housing are the second half of the arithmetic, and they explain a result that surprises people: adding a person to a housing unit does not raise that unit’s capacity number.

Temporary housing is excluded. “Temporary housing will not be included in the count of an institution’s Physical Capacity.” The Bureau’s own examples (PS 1060.13 at pp. 3–4):

• cots placed in ancillary non-housing areas such as TV rooms during overcrowding or an emergency, because “the ancillary areas (gym, TV rooms, etc.) are only temporarily converted to living areas”
• trailers placed on-site to house minimum security inmates while a facility is under construction
• “When conditions require the housing of additional inmates in cells designated to accommodate two inmates.”
• a Special Housing Unit — “A SHU is not considered permanent housing. When placed in SHU, inmates receive a quarter assignment. Inmates maintain their housing unit team assignments. Therefore, an institution’s Physical Capacity does not change based on an inmate’s placement in SHU.”

That third bullet is the important one. Putting a third person in a two-person cell is, in the Bureau’s own accounting, temporary housing — it does not increase Physical Capacity. The bed exists; the capacity number does not move.

Permanent housing is included. “All permanent housing will be included in the institution’s Physical Capacity,” and permanent housing is defined by an approval chain, not by how a space is being used: areas “which a Regional Director has proposed, the Population Management and Capacity Planning Committee (PMCPC) has recommended, and the Director has approved for permanent inmate housing.” The Program Statement’s examples run both ways — a converted UNICOR factory building or a segregation range converted to holdover cells increases the count; a general housing unit converted to a drug treatment unit with two cells turned into offices decreases it (PS 1060.13 at p. 4).

What facility capacity reporting means for you

If you are the person inside: capacity is not a right

Capacity is a reporting system, not a right, and nothing in this Program Statement gives anyone a claim about how many people are in a cell or a dormitory. It sets no maximum occupancy that a person can enforce. What it does give you is vocabulary and a paper trail.

The concrete points: a third bed in a two-person cell is classified as temporary housing and does not change the institution’s Physical Capacity. Time in the SHU does not change it either — a SHU bed carries two assignments, Administrative Detention and Disciplinary Segregation, and the policy says this “allow[s] for identification of inmates in AD or DS status without overrepresenting the total number of SHU beds.” And every deviation from the standard assumptions is supposed to be documented: “Rationales for deviating from double occupancy and/or the square footage capacity calculation must be documented on the BP-A1140, Physical Capacity Computation form.”

If conditions in a housing unit are the real problem — heat, ventilation, sanitation, medical access — those are addressed under other policies, not this one, and the route is a written Inmate Request to Staff followed by BP-8, BP-9, BP-10 and BP-11 through the Administrative Remedy Program. Frame the remedy around the condition and the policy that governs it, not around a capacity percentage.

If you are the family: what the capacity numbers do and do not show

The useful thing to take from this page is what the numbers do and do not mean. A published capacity figure is a count of permanent beds under a formula, not a statement about how crowded a unit feels or how many people are in a room. Physical Capacity excludes the infirmary, Administrative Detention and Disciplinary Segregation. Optimal Capacity is lower still — generally 80–95% of Physical Capacity. And temporary beds are not in the count at all, which means a facility can be holding more people than its Physical Capacity figure without any number changing.

We will not tell you what any of this means for a particular person at a particular facility, and you should be skeptical of anyone who does. Whether a transfer happens, and when, depends on the individual factors listed in the designation policy, not on a capacity number you can read off a page. If placement is the question, the federal inmate transfer process is the page to read, and what families should know about federal prison is the orientation.

If you are counsel: facility capacity

The statute is the hook, not the Program Statement. 18 U.S.C. § 3621(b) directs that the Bureau “shall designate the place of the prisoner’s imprisonment, and shall, subject to bed availability, the prisoner’s security designation, the prisoner’s programmatic needs, the prisoner’s mental and medical health needs, any request made by the prisoner related to faith-based needs, recommendations of the sentencing court, and other security concerns of the Bureau of Prisons, place the prisoner in a facility as close as practicable to the prisoner’s primary residence, and to the extent practicable, in a facility within 500 driving miles of that residence.” Bed availability is the first-named constraint, and PS 1060.13 is how the Bureau computes it.

Two limits are worth internalizing before building anything on a capacity argument. First, § 3621(b) ends with the sentence: “Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a designation of a place of imprisonment under this subsection is not reviewable by any court.” Second, PS 1060.13 cites no statute and no regulation at all — its References list contains one Program Statement (Special Housing Units), one form, ACA standards, and a records-retention pointer. It is a pure internal management instruction. Nothing in it creates a standard a court could apply.

Where capacity data does earn its place is factual. The Program Statement records that “Capacity Planning will provide reports to Bureau leadership on a weekly and quarterly basis that include both Physical and Optimal Capacity numbers, as well as crowding by security levels,” that Capacity Planning “will maintain documentation regarding all capacity-related decisions,” and that BP-A1140 data is held “in a central database.” A moratorium or population cap request — a memorandum from the Warden through the Regional Director, with the rationale, the DFCLs affected, the number of beds capped, and the timeframe — is a discrete, dated, identifiable document. Those are the records to name in a request, not “capacity data” generally.

Moratoriums and population caps

The Program Statement defines two mechanisms that stop or slow arrivals at a facility, and the distinction is precise:

“A pop cap places a temporary ceiling on the number of inmates that can be designated to a facility. A moratorium is a complete cessation of all initial designations and redesignations to an institution.”

Reproduced from PS 1060.13 at p. 8.

Either is requested “when an institution has a legitimate reason for being temporarily unable to manage the inmate population at a level consistent with its’ established capacity,” by memorandum from the Warden through the Regional Director to the Assistant Director, ITDD. A moratorium request must state the rationale, the specific DFCLs or medical and mental health care levels affected, and the timeframe requested. A population cap request must state the rationale, the DFCLs affected, “the total number of beds that will be open and capped, and the timeframe being requested.” Each institution “should provide a detailed plan to address the source of the issue or problem,” and the PMCPC “will establish a termination date when a moratorium or population cap is imposed,” which ends on that date unless the Regional Director requests an extension in advance.

Temporary housing runs on a separate clock: for a situation “expected to last no more than 90 days,” an institution can arrange temporary quarters assignments through the Correctional Programs Branch, but “[i]f the emergency need extends beyond 90 days, an updated BP-A1140, Physical Capacity Computation form must be submitted to Capacity Planning Team” (PS 1060.13 at p. 7).

What changed with Program Statement 1060.13

PS 1060.13 took effect 19 March 2026 and rescinded the edition before it. Its Summary of Changes states, verbatim:

“Program Statement Rescinded: 1060.12 Physical Capacity for Bureau Facilities (6/12/2025)

Changes: Updates the BP-A1140, Physical Capacity Computation form. Updates guidelines for determining permanent and temporary housing. Updates the Optimal Capacity definition.”

Reproduced from PS 1060.13 at p. 1.

Three points of honesty about that. The 2026 edition replaced a policy that was itself only nine months old — 1060.12 was dated 12 June 2025 — which is unusually fast turnover for a Bureau management directive. The three bullets tell you which provisions moved but not how; the Program Statement does not print the prior language. And we could not obtain the text of 1060.12 from the Bureau’s published policy set, so we are not in a position to say what the earlier square-footage standards, temporary-housing guidelines or Optimal Capacity range were. What can be said is what the current numbers are, which is what this page reproduces.

This edition also sits against a dated agency statement about the Bureau’s physical plant. On 1 July 2026 the Bureau announced facility closures and operational changes, stating that it would close Beaumont FCI Low; Big Spring FCI and Satellite Camp; La Tuna FCI, FSL and Satellite Camp; Lexington FMC Satellite Camp; Petersburg FCI Low; and Taft FCI, and that Morgantown FPC and Duluth FPC “will transition from minimum-security camps to FSL facilities.” The release attributes the decision to “decades of deferred maintenance and extreme staffing challenges” and states that the Bureau “is currently confronting a deferred maintenance backlog exceeding $4 billion.” Closures and mission changes are precisely the events that require a new BP-A1140 under section 5 of this Program Statement — the form must be submitted “upon activation of a new institution, a mission change, and/or the proposal of a new DFCL,” and “at any time an institution’s or individual reporting unit’s Physical Capacity changes.” Which facilities are affected and how is covered on major federal prison closures and deactivations. We do not draw any inference from the announcement about where any individual will be housed.

Where people get stuck looking for the BP-A1140

Looking for the BP-A1140 and not finding it. The Physical Capacity Computation form is named eleven times in this Program Statement and is the document the whole policy runs on. The Bureau does not publish it. We checked bop.gov/policy/forms/BP_A1140.pdf on 7 September 2026 and it returns no document. It is an internal staff form completed by the Warden, signed by the Regional Director, and forwarded to the Assistant Director for the Information Technology and Data Division. Route: if the contents of a specific institution’s BP-A1140 matter to a matter you are working on, it is a records request, not a download — the FOIA and Privacy Act requests policy is the starting point, and the Program Statement itself tells you the form is held “in a central database” maintained by Capacity Planning.

Reading a capacity figure as a crowding figure. Physical Capacity excludes the hospital and infirmary, Administrative Detention and Disciplinary Segregation, and excludes every temporary bed. Total DFCL Capacity adds the medical and special housing back in. Total Institution Capacity is the sum across DFCLs. Optimal Capacity is lower than all of them — generally 80–95% of Physical Capacity. Route: before quoting a percentage anywhere it matters, establish which of the four numbers is the denominator. Two figures for the same prison can both be accurate and differ substantially.

Assuming capacity drives an individual transfer. It does not, on its own. The Program Statement is explicit that the Designation and Sentence Computation Center “will utilize Physical Capacity for designation purposes,” but lists alongside it “[t]he projected population, available capacity, crowding levels, and population balance, along with other factors related to the individual, such as security and care levels, central inmate monitoring (CIM) and Security Threat Group (STG) concerns, distance from residence, time remaining to serve, judicial recommendations, and programming needs” (PS 1060.13 at p. 6). Route: a placement question is a designation question. The governing document is security designation and custody classification, and where medical care level is in play, medical designations and care levels.

Treating a Program Statement as an enforceable occupancy standard. PS 1060.13 cites no statute and no regulation. It is the Bureau instructing its own staff how to count and report beds, and it can be reissued at any time — as it was in March 2026, nine months after the previous edition. Route: where housing conditions are the real complaint, build the filing on the condition and the policy that governs that condition, and use the capacity definitions here only to describe accurately what a number means.

Related BOP policy on capacity and housing

Capacity connects to designation on one side and to housing operations on the other:

• Security designation and custody classification — how an individual placement is actually decided
• Special housing units — the one Program Statement 1060.13 cross-references by name, and the source of the AD/DS quarter-assignment rule; the plain-language version is solitary confinement and special housing units
• Inmate housing and security levels — what the different housing types and facility levels look like from the inside
• Medical designations and care levels — care level is one of the factors that reduces Physical Capacity to Optimal Capacity
• Major federal prison closures and deactivations — what the July 2026 announcement covers
• FOIA and Privacy Act requests — the route to capacity records the Bureau does not publish
• The federal inmate transfer process — how transfers actually happen

The companion page is our Federal Bureau of Prisons hub. Where a placement or transfer question is the real issue, our federal prison consulting services describe how the firm approaches it; legal representation is provided by Elizabeth Franklin-Best.

Frequently Asked Questions About Rated Capacities

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Program Statement 1060.13 — full text

The Bureau’s own text follows, reproduced in full from its published PDF. The original is posted by the Bureau of Prisons here: PS 1060.13 (PDF).

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE Federal Bureau of Prisons

PROGRAM STATEMENT Physical Capacity for Bureau Facilities Approved by

William K. Marshall III Director, Federal Bureau of Prisons

DPI ITDD

Number 1060.13 Date March 19, 2026

Summary of Changes Program Statement Rescinded:

• 1060.12 Physical Capacity for Bureau Facilities (6/12/2025) Changes:
• Updates the BP-A1140, Physical Capacity Computation form.
• Updates guidelines for determining permanent and temporary housing.
• Updates the Optimal Capacity definition.

1. PURPOSE AND SCOPE

To establish procedures for determining and reporting each institution’s Physical, Optimal, and Total Capacity.

Determination of available housing for inmates is an essential management information requirement. Bureau of Prisons (Bureau) capacity planning requires accurate and timely reporting of current institutions’ Physical and Optimal Capacity.

This information’s reliability is critical to:

• Bureau budget justifications for capital resources and the budget analyses performed by the Department of Justice budget staff, Office of Management and Budget, and Congress.
• Accurate tracking of Physical Capacity, which is the baseline for the statistical measurement of prison crowding, is essential to managing the Bureau’s inmate population, security levels, health care needs, and staffing.
• Provide the Bureau with the information necessary to distribute the inmate population throughout the system reasonably and equitably.

a. Program Objectives.

• The Bureau’s inmate population will be managed and distributed on an equitable and rational basis in accord with available bedspace, security considerations, and institution needs.
• Facility design and development plans will ensure sufficient capacity is available at each security level.
• Bureau capacity planning will be based on timely and accurate information received from all appropriate sources, including institutions.

b. Institution Supplement. None.

2. DEFINITIONS

• Capacity Planning Team is comprised of employees who provide support service to the Population Management and Capacity Planning Committee (PMCPC).
• Population Management and Capacity Planning Committee (PMCPC) is comprised of members of Executive Staff. It streamlines communication to and from the full body of the Executive Staff on population management and capacity planning issues and actions.
• Facility (FACL) includes all separate, unique missions (DFCLs) within an institution.
• Designation Facility (DFCL) refers to the separate, unique missions (e.g., General Population, Secure Mental Health, Satellite Camp, Jail, Reintegration Unit, etc.) within a single institution.
• Physical Capacity is the maximum number of permanent inmate beds in a DFCL less hospital/infirmary, Administrative Detention (AD), and Disciplinary Segregation (DS). Medical bedspace at the Medical Referral Centers is included in the Physical Capacity number. Physical Capacity is the objective measurement of inmate housing space without regard to items such as institution age or location but rather is directly related to the number of cells, rooms, cubicles, and multi-occupancy spaces and their associated square footage available for inmate housing. Temporary beds are not included in Physical Capacity.
• Total DFCL Capacity is a DFCL’s Physical Capacity plus the capacity of housing used for medical and special housing purposes. This housing includes AD and DS.
• Total Institution Capacity is the number of beds in an institution. It is calculated by adding the Total DFCL Capacity within an institution.
• Optimal Capacity is a DFCL’s Physical Capacity reduced by factors such as the DFCL’s security level and care level. Optimal Capacity is based on the premise that institutions operate better when not at 100% capacity, particularly in the case of institutions with high security levels and/or high care levels. Optimal Capacity is considered an ideal state and is generally 80-95% of a DFCL’s Physical Capacity, with some exceptions. Optimal Capacity is entered into Bureau’s inmate information system and updated by the Capacity Planning Team. Bureau inmate information system codes can be found on the Office of Research, Evaluation, Data, and Analytics’ intranet page.
• Double Occupancy means a room or cell to be occupied by two inmates and is less than 120 square feet and equal or greater than 55 square feet. Bureau Physical Capacity is ordinarily based on double occupancy unless there is a programmatic and/or security reason for single occupancy.
• Single Occupancy means a room or cell that is to be occupied by one inmate and is less than 120 square feet and ordinarily equal or greater than 50 square feet. Any use of single cells must be documented on the BP-A1140, Physical Capacity Computation form.
• Cubicle housing is the partitioning of a dormitory housing area into spaces of less than 120 square feet and equal to or greater than 45 square feet. Partitions are typically constructed using concrete block, but other approved permanent materials may be used. Permanent material does not include fixed furniture used to construct the appearance of a cubicle. Per Bureau Guidelines, the standard cubicle walls shall be 5’-4” high and shall be constructed with CMU blocks (concrete masonry units).
• Multiple Occupancy housing means a room, cell, or area of 120 square feet or more that is partitioned. The most common form of this kind of housing is an “open dormitory.”
• Permanent housing means any designed inmate housing areas, buildings, or units which a Regional Director has proposed, the Population Management and Capacity Planning Committee (PMCPC) has recommended, and the Director has approved for permanent inmate housing.
• Temporary housing means the temporary use of TV rooms, mezzanines, gyms, etc., as inmate housing to accommodate population increases or emergency situations.
• Administrative housing means housing which supports the mission but is not available for direct admission. Examples of administrative housing include, but are not limited to, the Special Housing Unit, an infirmary, Receiving and Discharge (R&D), and holding cells.
• Special Housing Unit (SHU) quarter assignments are based on the inmate’s status. Each SHU bed will have two assignments: Administrative Detention (AD) and Disciplinary Segregation (DS). This duality is represented in Bureau’s inmate information system to allow for identification of inmates in AD or DS status without overrepresenting the total number of SHU beds. For more information see Program Statement Special Housing Units.

3. GUIDELINES FOR DETERMINING PERMANENT AND TEMPORARY

HOUSING

The following are examples of permanent and temporary housing:

Temporary Housing

a. Temporary housing will not be included in the count of an institution’s Physical Capacity.

Some examples of temporary housing are listed below:

• In the event of institution overcrowding or an emergency (e.g., natural disaster), cots may be placed in ancillary non-housing areas, such as TV rooms. Since the ancillary areas

(gym, TV rooms, etc.) are only temporarily converted to living areas to accommodate the population increase, the use of additional cots in these areas will be reported as temporary housing.

• When a facility is under construction and trailers are placed on-site to house minimum security inmates, the trailers will be reported as temporary housing.
• When conditions require the housing of additional inmates in cells designated to accommodate two inmates.
• A SHU is not considered permanent housing. When placed in SHU, inmates receive a quarter assignment. Inmates maintain their housing unit team assignments. Therefore, an institution’s Physical Capacity does not change based on an inmate’s placement in SHU. Bureau inmate information system codes can be found on the Office of Research, Evaluation, Data, and Analytics’ intranet page.

Permanent Housing

b. All permanent housing will be included in the institution’s Physical Capacity. Some

examples of permanent housing are listed below:

• A UNICOR factory is moved to another institution and UNICOR has approved the region’s use of space request to convert the factory building to an inmate housing unit for general population inmates. The institution would gain additional permanent housing; their Physical Capacity count would increase.
• A cell range in a detention center is converted from segregation cells to holdover cells. This institution would gain additional permanent housing; their Physical Capacity count would increase.
• A general housing unit is converted to a drug treatment unit, and two inmate cells are converted to offices. This institution would lose permanent housing; their Physical Capacity count would decrease.

4. PHYSICAL CAPACITY COMPUTATION

• Square Footage Measurement. The square footage measurement for cells and rooms is determined by measuring the space from interior wall to interior wall and including the space occupied by beds, desks, and plumbing fixtures (toilets and sinks, excluding showers). Space occupied by constructed or permanently affixed items that obstruct the floor space (e.g., closets, concrete slabs, etc.) are excluded from the square footage measurement.

The square footage measurement for cubicles is determined by measuring the space from interior wall to interior wall including the space occupied by beds and desks but excluding hallways and walkways. The square footage measurement for multiple occupancy housing areas is determined by measuring the entire open dorm or living area and includes hallways and walkways.

The calculated square footage measurement for the space is rounded to the nearest whole number (rounded down if the remainder is .1 to .4; rounded up if it is .5 to .9). For example, 65.2 square feet would round down to 65; 65.7 square feet would round up to 66.

Note: Standard furniture in a cell, room or cubicle includes a shared desk, a double bunk and two lockers for typical double occupancy. If denoted as single occupancy, the room will include a desk, a single bunk, and one locker.

• Total DFCL Capacity. Total DFCL Capacity is the Physical Capacity of Special Housing (Section 1 on the BP-A1140) plus Permanent Housing (Section 2 on the BP-A1140). The Sentry Reporting Unit on the BP-A1140 will denote the unique mission being documented. Examples include General Population, Residential Drug Abuse Program (RDAP), Satellite Camp, Jail, Mental Health, etc.

In some specialized self-contained DFCLs, AD/DS housing is located within the same housing unit. In these cases, institutions will ensure the administrative cells are counted separately from general housing.

• DFCL Physical Capacity. The computation of Physical Capacity for each DFCL is the Total Capacity less hospital/infirmary and detention/segregation space.

The Physical Capacity for cells, rooms, and cubicles is ordinarily based on double occupancy, unless there is a programmatic and/or security reason for single occupancy. All single occupancy housing types must be specifically documented within the housing type column on the BP-A1140. In the absence of a single occupancy note, all will be assumed double occupancy.

For multiple occupancy housing, the Physical Capacity is ordinarily based on the total square footage of the room divided by 60 square feet and then rounded to the nearest whole number. If the total number of beds is an odd number, then consistent with double occupancy the number is increased to the next even number. If there is a programmatic and/or security reason for the odd number, it must be clarified on the BP-A1140 form.

These latter spaces are reported in Section 2, Permanent Housing, of the BP-A1140, Physical Capacity Computation form. Cells, rooms, and cubicles should be reported separately from multi-occupancy spaces and then all beds are added together. The total number constitutes the total Physical Capacity for the DFCL.

Rationales for deviating from double occupancy and/or the square footage capacity calculation must be documented on the BP-A1140, Physical Capacity Computation form.

• Medical Referral Centers (MRCs). The MRC mission requires more specificity to compute the Physical Capacity of medical and mental health care units than using square footage alone.

For example, more space may be needed for necessary staff activities, hospital equipment, special treatment needs, etc. Since these reasons may vary considerably, each medical unit must be evaluated separately. Additionally, the amount of space per inmate need not be consistent throughout a unit. For example, the same size room might be rated for one inmate if used for intensive care, two inmates if used for inpatient care, and three inmates if used for chronic (nursing home) care.

MRCs will use the Physical Capacity standard referenced in this program statement as a baseline to calculate individual DFCLs. Then, in consultation with the Warden, Regional Director, and Health Services Division Assistant Director, the final Physical Capacity for each MRC DFCL will be established.

MRC’s health care Physical Capacity will be reported for only two categories:

• Medical
• Mental Health

However, multiple Medical or Mental Health DFCLs may be appropriate, based on the specific missions of an MRC. For example, the following DFCLs may exist: Dementia Care, Hospice, Forensic Study, Competency, Restoration, etc. Additionally, there may be more than one Medical or Mental Health Unit in an MRC but, as noted above, if the separation is based on a specialized unit, it should be identified accordingly.

MRC beds necessary to support the mission but not available for direct admissions (e.g., suicide watch, seclusion, recovery, etc.) will be included in Part 1 Special Housing of the BP-A1140 Physical Capacity Computation form.

The Designation and Sentence Computation Center (DSCC) will utilize Physical Capacity for designation purposes. The projected population, available capacity, crowding levels, and population balance, along with other factors related to the individual, such as security and care levels, central inmate monitoring (CIM) and Security Threat Group (STG) concerns, distance from residence, time remaining to serve, judicial recommendations, and programming needs will also impact the designation decision.

5. ESTABLISHING A NEW DFCL OR MODIFYING AN EXISTING DFCL

The decision to request a new DFCL or modify an existing one is made by the Regional Director in consultation with the respective Divisions (e.g., Health Services, Reentry Services, etc.).

• Wardens will forward an original signed BP-A1140, Physical Capacity Computation form to the Regional Director upon activation of a new institution, a mission change, and/or the proposal of a new DFCL. This form must also be submitted at any time an institution’s or individual reporting unit’s Physical Capacity changes.
• All permanent housing areas are included in the determination of the institution’s Physical Capacity and shall be reported in Section 2, Permanent Housing, of the BP-A1140, Physical Capacity Computation form.
• The Regional Director will sign and forward the BP-A1140, Physical Capacity Computation form to the Assistant Director for the Information Technology and Data Division (ITDD) to initiate a review by the PMCPC.
• Capacity Planning will coordinate the PMCPC’s review. The PMCPC co-chairs, the Assistant Directors for the Correctional Programs Division (CPD) and ITDD, plus the DSCC Senior Deputy Assistant Director will review the institution’s BP-A1140, Physical Capacity Computation form and any related materials.
• Capacity Planning will facilitate the PMCPC’s final review of the request with the relevant Divisions (e.g., Reentry Services, Health Services, etc.) and the applicable Regional Director. For changes related to the activation of a new facility or a mission change, the PMCPC will provide its recommendation for review and consideration by the Bureau’s Executive Staff. Capacity Planning, on behalf of the PMCPC, is responsible for tracking all approvals for appropriate modification of applicable systems and capacity planning reports.
• Changes to create new or modify existing DFCLs should not begin before PMCPC approval is received.
• Computation Questions. Questions or concerns regarding the Physical Capacity computation are directed to the Office of Research and Evaluation/Capacity Planning, ITDD.

6. REQUEST FOR TEMPORARY HOUSING

Requests for temporary housing are made via a memorandum from the Warden through the Regional Director to the Assistant Director ITDD for Capacity Planning to facilitate a review by the PMCPC. The Warden will include the rationale and number of beds being requested along with the quarters, range, and bed assignments (e.g., A01-901 to A01-920, lower beds only, etc.).

In the case of a situation which is expected to last no more than 90 days, an institution can reach out to the CPD Correctional Programs Branch to create new quarters assignments for the necessary temporary housing. If the emergency need extends beyond 90 days, an updated BP-A1140, Physical Capacity Computation form must be submitted to Capacity Planning Team.

7. REQUEST FOR A TEMPORARY MORATORIUM OR POPULATION CAP

Requests for temporary moratoriums and population caps are made via a memorandum from the Warden through the Regional Director to the Assistant Director ITDD for Capacity Planning to facilitate a review by the PMCPC.

A moratorium or population cap (“pop cap”) should be requested when an institution has a legitimate reason for being temporarily unable to manage the inmate population at a level consistent with its’ established capacity. A pop cap places a temporary ceiling on the number of inmates that can be designated to a facility. A moratorium is a complete cessation of all initial designations and redesignations to an institution. Each institution should provide a detailed plan to address the source of the issue or problem. Regional Correctional Programs should closely review and track institutional requests for temporary moratoriums or pop caps.

For moratoriums, the request will include the rationale for the moratorium, the specific DFCL(s) or inmate medical and/or mental health care level(s) affected in the request, and the timeframe being requested for the moratorium.

For population caps, the request will include the rationale for the pop cap, the DFCL(s) affected by the requested cap, the total number of beds that will be open and capped, and the timeframe being requested.

Requests for moratoriums and population caps will be reviewed by the PMCPC chairs in coordination with the Assistant Directors responsible for medical and/or programmatic issues, as needed.

The PMCPC will establish a termination date when a moratorium or population cap is imposed. The pop cap or moratorium will be terminated on that date unless the Regional Director contacts the PMCPC in advance, via the Capacity Planning Team, to request an extension. The agency has a continued need to have full access of all available bed space in order to manage the flow of inmates into the Bureau.s

8. DOCUMENTATION AND REPORTING

Population reports provide the total number of beds for each institution’s DFCLs by Physical Capacity, Optimal Capacity, and current population.

Capacity Planning employees will maintain documentation regarding all capacity-related decisions. They will also input and maintain information from the BP-A1140, Physical Capacity Computation form in a central database.

Capacity Planning will provide reports to Bureau leadership on a weekly and quarterly basis that include both Physical and Optimal Capacity numbers, as well as crowding by security levels.

REFERENCES

Program Statements Special Housing Units

Bureau Forms BP-A1140 Physical Capacity Computation

ACA Standards Performance-Based Standards and Expected Practices for Adult Correctional Facilities (5 th Edition): 5-ACI-2B-03, 5-ACI-2B-04, 5-ACI-2C-01 Performance-Based Standards for Adult Local Detention Facilities (5th Edition): 5-ALDF-1A-05, 5-ALDF-1A-09 Standards for the Administration of Correctional Agencies (2nd Edition): 2-C0-2B-01

Records Retention Requirements Requirements and retention guidance for records and information applicable to this program are available in the Records and Information Disposition Schedule (RIDS) on the Bureau’s intranet site.

Reviewed for legal accuracy by Elizabeth Franklin-Best, Esq., Principal Attorney·September 2026