Sex Offender Treatment Programs in the Federal Bureau of Prisons

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

The Bureau of Prisons runs two sex offender treatment programs, both voluntary, both offered only at Sex Offender Management Program (SOMP) institutions: the residential SOTP-R, at 10 to 12 hours a week over 12 to 18 months totaling no less than 400 hours, and the non-residential SOTP-NR, at 4 to 6 hours a week over 9 to 12 months totaling no less than 144 hours. Neither one shortens a sentence. Unlike the drug program, there is no early-release incentive attached to sex offender treatment, and no Bureau policy provides one.

This page sets out what Program Statement 5324.10, Sex Offender Programs actually says: which program is for whom, how a person gets referred and redesignated, the time-remaining thresholds, what happens inside each phase, the five separate written evaluations the program generates and where each one goes, the grounds for expulsion, and what a Correctional Management Plan can restrict. Everything is sourced with a page pin-cite to the Bureau’s own text.

Program facts

Governing policy	BOP Program Statement 5324.10, Sex Offender Programs (Feb. 15, 2013; CN-1 Feb. 18, 2025)
Statutory basis	18 U.S.C. § 3621(f) — “The Bureau of Prisons shall make available appropriate treatment to sex offenders who are in need of and suitable for treatment”
Where offered	SOMP institutions only. All SOMPs offer the SOTP-NR; designated SOMPs also offer the SOTP-R — PS 5324.10 at p. 5
SOTP-R	High intensity, unit-based, modified therapeutic community. 10–12 hours/week over 12–18 months, no less than 400 hours — PS 5324.10 at p. 24
SOTP-NR	Moderate intensity, general population. 4–6 hours/week over 9–12 months, no less than 144 hours — PS 5324.10 at p. 23
Risk instrument	The Static-99R or another instrument standardized for use with sexual offenders — PS 5324.10 at pp. 23, 24
Time remaining — SOTP-NR	Ordinarily no less than 21 months to projected release — PS 5324.10 at p. 17
Time remaining — SOTP-R	Ordinarily no less than 27 months to projected release — PS 5324.10 at p. 17
Referral timing	Redesignation referrals ordinarily initiated at 36 months to release; 48 months for high-security — PS 5324.10 at p. 18
Priority	By Projected Release Date — PS 5324.10 at p. 17
How to volunteer	Inmate Request to Staff (BP-A0148) to the Chief Psychologist — PS 5324.10 at p. 17
Required form	Agreement to Participate in Sex Offender Treatment Program (BP-A0957) — PS 5324.10 at p. 18
Discipline screen	Ordinarily no 100- or 200-level incident reports in the last year; three or more 300/400-level reports may also preclude placement — PS 5324.10 at p. 17
Staff ratio — SOTP-R	No more than 14 participants per treatment staff member — PS 5324.10 at p. 24
Staff ratio — SOTP-NR	Maximum caseload of 24 participants per SOMP staff member — PS 5324.10 at p. 23
Group sizes	Psychoeducational groups no more than 24; process groups no more than 12 — PS 5324.10 at pp. 19, 20
Process-group share	Process groups must comprise no less than 25% of direct contact services — PS 5324.10 at p. 20
Progress reviews	Begin approximately 90 days after the Treatment Plan, then approximately every 90 days, not to exceed 95 days — PS 5324.10 at p. 22
Early release?	No. No sentence reduction is attached to either program

Verified against the Bureau’s own Program Statement text, September 2026.

The two programs, side by side

Program Statement 5324.10 at p. 15 describes the Bureau’s sex offender treatment as “stratified into two levels of intensity.” The programs share a treatment philosophy and the same program materials; what differs is dose, housing and who they are built for.

	SOTP-R (Residential)	SOTP-NR (Non-Residential)
Intensity	High	Moderate
Built for	High-risk sexual offenders	Low- to moderate-risk sexual offenders
Hours per week	10 to 12	4 to 6
Duration	12 to 18 months	9 to 12 months
Total contact hours	No less than 400	No less than 144
Housing	A separate treatment unit apart from general population, run as a modified therapeutic community	General population — “there is no modified therapeutic community”
Staff ratio	No more than 14 participants per treatment staff member	Maximum caseload of 24 per staff member
Where offered	Designated SOMP institutions	All SOMP institutions
Time remaining required	Ordinarily 27 months or more to projected release	Ordinarily 21 months or more to projected release
Also used for	People whose risk is adjusted upward during SOTP-NR treatment	Preparing high-risk participants for the SOTP-R — ordinarily Phase I only, before transfer

Sources: PS 5324.10 at pp. 15, 17, 23, 24.

Risk level is not a matter of opinion. It “will be determined by an actuarial risk appraisal, using the Static-99R or another risk instrument standardized for use with sexual offenders.” For people who cannot be scored on an actuarial instrument — commonly because there is no adjudicated contact sexual offense — the SOTP-NR “is also appropriate” where the SOMP Coordinator or designated DSCC staff judge a moderate-intensity program appropriate “based on the extent of their sex offense or criminal history and other factors associated with risk” (PS 5324.10 at p. 23).

Both programs use cognitive behavioral therapy. “The Bureau has chosen CBT as its theoretical model for sex offender treatment programs,” and program placement is guided by the principle that “[t]reatment is most likely to be effective when the intensity of services is matched to the inmate’s risk of sexual or criminal recidivism” (PS 5324.10 at pp. 15–16).

Where the programs run: SOMP institutions

This is the question the search data says people actually ask, and the honest answer has three parts.

First: treatment is only offered at SOMP institutions. “SOMP institutions are required to offer sex offender treatment services” (PS 5324.10 at p. 15). All of them run the SOTP-NR; only designated ones run the SOTP-R. A person at a non-SOMP institution who wants treatment has to be redesignated to get it.

Second: the Bureau does not publish a SOMP roster as policy, and it does not rank institutions. There is no “best federal prison for sex offenders” in any Bureau document, and the agency’s designation system does not work by preference. Designation is made by the Designation and Sentence Computation Center in Grand Prairie, Texas, under Program Statement 5100.08, using security points plus Public Safety Factors and management variables. The Sex Offender Public Safety Factor means a person to whom it applies “will be housed in at least a Low security level institution, unless the PSF has been waived” (PS 5100.08 at p. 57) — which is the mechanical reason this population clusters at low- and medium-security institutions rather than at camps. Program availability also moves: BOP announced six closures and two camp conversions to Federal Satellite Lows effective July 1, 2026 (major federal prison closures and deactivations).

Third: what a SOMP institution is for is written down, and it explains the concentration. PS 5324.10 at p. 5:

“A primary goal of SOMP institutions is to reduce the need to place sexual offenders in protective custody, and to create an institution climate conducive to voluntary participation in treatment. To achieve this goal, SOMP institutions will maintain a significant proportion of sexual offenders in the population.”

Note what the policy does not say: it names no target percentage. Its only other reference is to “the population target percentage of sexual offenders” (at p. 6), unquantified.

Each SOMP provides three components (PS 5324.10 at p. 5): evaluation services, the treatment programs, and specialized correctional management — Correctional Management Plans restricting property or contact, covered below.

The four ways a person reaches a SOMP

Route	Policy text	Who approves
Initial designation	“Newly sentenced inmates with a sex offense history may receive initial designation to a SOMP institution to have access to program components available at those facilities”	DSCC
Treatment referral	“Qualified inmates volunteering for sex offender treatment services (SOTP-NR, SOTP-R) may be transferred to participate in treatment programs”	Designated staff at the DSCC
Correctional management referral	People “requiring a Correctional Management Plan may be redesignated to SOMP institutions”	Designated staff at the DSCC
Protective custody / population management	People “with verified protective custody needs due to their sex offense history” and people redesignated “to meet the population target percentage”	DSCC

Source: PS 5324.10 at pp. 5–6.

Movement out is restricted too. Three categories “should not be considered for transfer to a non-SOMP institution”: people awaiting or participating in either treatment program, people with a pending Discharge Evaluation, and people with a Correctional Management Plan (PS 5324.10 at p. 6). Our page on surviving prison as a sex offender covers the safety side of that design in detail.

Who the Bureau will admit

A person who expresses willingness is screened by a psychologist at their current institution. Program Statement 5324.10 at pp. 17–18 sets the criteria, and all of them must be met.

1. The person must meet the policy’s definition of a “sexual offender.” That is “[a]ny inmate with a current or prior sexual offense conviction, or a conviction for an offense that involved a sexual element (e.g., convicted of Robbery with offense conduct that includes the rape of the victim).” The policy carves out one category expressly: “criminal violations involving sexual conduct with a consenting adult (e.g., prostitution, pimping) are not sexual offenses” (PS 5324.10 at pp. 2–3).

2. Sufficient time must remain to complete the program, “including time to transfer to the SOMP institution and receive placement in community programs, if eligible.” Where release is based on a parole date, the presumptive parole date is used. The thresholds:

• SOTP-NR — ordinarily no less than 21 months to projected release.
• SOTP-R — ordinarily no less than 27 months to projected release.

3. The disciplinary screen. “Ordinarily, the inmate should have no 100- or 200-level incident reports in the last year. Inmates with three or more 300- and 400-level incident reports may also be precluded from placement in treatment.” This is not absolute: “[d]epending on an inmate’s amenability to benefit from programming despite his/her history of incident reports, exemptions from this criterion may be considered on a case-by-case basis,” and the psychologist contacts designated DSCC staff to ask. How the severity levels work is covered on our page about inmate discipline proceedings and in the Inmate Discipline Program explainer.

4. The ability to fully engage. Citing 18 U.S.C. § 3624(f)(4) and 28 C.F.R. §§ 544.40–544.44, the psychologist must confirm the person can speak English, is literate, does not have a major mental disorder that would prevent full participation, and “demonstrates sufficient intellectual ability to participate in program activities or comprehend treatment expectations.” The policy is blunt about the limit: “Sex offender treatment programs are not designed to meet the needs of cognitively impaired inmates. Borderline intellectual functioning may render the inmate ineligible to participate in treatment.”

5. A signed Agreement to Participate — form BP-A0957 — “indicating that he/she volunteers for participation in a sex offender treatment program.”

“If there is any question whether an inmate meets the eligibility criteria listed above, guidance may be sought from designated staff at the DSCC.” Every one of these determinations belongs to the Bureau, and several of them are explicitly discretionary.

How to get referred

Psychology Services at every Bureau institution — not just SOMPs — “will ensure that inmates with a history of sexual offenses receive information about sex offender treatment programs” (PS 5324.10 at p. 17).

Step	Who	What happens
1	The person	Self-refers by submitting an Inmate Request to Staff (BP-A0148) to the Chief Psychologist at the current institution. “Participants may enroll in the sex offender treatment program at any time during the course of their sentence, provided they have sufficient time to complete the program.”
2	Institution psychologist	Screens against the five eligibility criteria
3	Referring psychologist	Makes an initial determination of program level — SOTP-R or SOTP-NR — “based on instructions on Sallyport.” “Ordinarily, placement in the SOTP-R is reserved for inmates with more extensive sex offense histories.”
4	Referring psychologist	Applies the SENTRY waiting-list assignment. Waiting lists for both programs are maintained on SENTRY.
5	Institution	Initiates the redesignation referral — ordinarily at 36 months to projected release, or 48 months for high-security inmates, “[b]ecause they may be expected to participate in sex offender treatment for a longer duration”
6	DSCC psychology staff	Reviews every redesignation request to confirm eligibility and the correct program level
7	DSCC psychology staff, with the Behavioral Management Program Coordinator or SOMP Coordinator	Makes the final determination of program level at the time of redesignation
8	SOMP staff	Within 30 days of arrival at a SOMP institution, conducts the SOMP Intake Screening Interview

Sources: PS 5324.10 at pp. 9, 17–19.

Priority is by release date. “To ensure that the maximum number of inmates have the opportunity to benefit from sex offender treatment programs, inmates are prioritized for placement based on their Projected Release Date” (at p. 17).

If there is too much time, or too little

The policy has an answer for both, and it is under-used. Adjunctive non-residential programming is available to people “who meet all requirements for the SOTP-R or SOTP-NR, but who have either too much time remaining left on their sentences, or who do not have enough time left” (PS 5324.10 at p. 23):

• Someone without enough time to complete the SOTP-NR “may be offered adjunctive services to prepare them for community-based treatment upon release.”
• Someone too early in the sentence may be offered pretreatment programming to build motivation and readiness, psychoeducational or psychotherapy groups teaching skills used in the programs (communication skills, basic cognitive skills), or groups addressing other treatment needs — the policy names anger management, criminal thinking and drug abuse treatment.

Content and duration are “based on the clinician’s discretion and availability of resources.” One limit matters: “Inmates who complete pretreatment services should not receive SOTP-NR or SOTP-R program completion assignments on SENTRY.” Adjunctive work is preparation, not credit.

Is participation voluntary?

Yes. Both programs require a signed Agreement to Participate “indicating that he/she volunteers,” the SOMP Intake Screening Interview exists in part to “[e]ncourage inmates to volunteer for appropriate treatment programs,” and a person “declining treatment receive[s] the corresponding PTP assignment” in SENTRY — with the express note that “[i]nmates declining treatment at the time of the SOMP Intake Screening interview may volunteer at a later date by contacting SOMP staff” (PS 5324.10 at pp. 9, 18).

What declining does not do is equally worth stating, because the drug program works differently and people conflate them. 28 C.F.R. § 550.53(h) attaches specific consequences to refusing the Residential Drug Abuse Program — loss of furlough eligibility, of performance pay above maintenance level, and of Federal Prison Industries assignment. PS 5324.10 contains no equivalent provision. There is no policy in this Program Statement making furlough, work assignment, pay grade or halfway-house placement contingent on volunteering for sex offender treatment.

What declining does do is leave the record without a treatment entry, and generate other documents instead. Under PS 5324.10 at p. 10, a Discharge Evaluation is performed on people “with significant risk management issues, as determined by an Initial Risk Assessment” and on people “expelled from the SOTP-R or SOTP-NR” — and it is prepared and routed whether or not the person consents to be interviewed. Whether participating or declining is the right decision in any particular case depends on the sentence, the record, the release plan and any pending proceeding, and it is a question for the person’s own lawyer. This page does not answer it.

Inside the program

Both programs run in three phases, and “[t]he duration of each phase is determined by the SOMP Coordinator based on the treatment needs of program participants.” Phases “may be extended or repeated until the inmate is ready to move to the next phase, withdraws, or is expelled” (PS 5324.10 at p. 19). There is no fixed calendar.

Phase	What participants are expected to do	What staff do
I — Orientation	Develop the interpersonal skills needed to participate in groups; develop basic cognitive-behavioral skills; “[d]emonstrate a willingness to discuss their offense conduct and/or relevant sexual behavior with treatment staff and other group members”; consistently demonstrate commitment	Conduct the psychosocial interview and psychosexual history; present the case at a treatment team meeting; finalize the individualized Treatment Plan
II — Core Treatment	Acquire and practice cognitive-behavioral and pro-social skills; participate in a Process Group “demonstrating an appropriate level of self-disclosure”	Deliver the modules; document progress
III — Transition	Continue practicing acquired skills “in a variety of contexts”; remain in this phase “until they complete the objectives specified on their Treatment Plan”	Assess readiness against the Treatment Plan

Source: PS 5324.10 at p. 19.

Two kinds of group, with different rules. Psychoeducational modules “consist of up to, but no more than, 24 inmates” and are ordinarily led by Treatment Specialists under the SOMP Coordinator’s supervision. Process groups “include up to, but no more than, 12 treatment participants,” because “[t]he smaller group permits a greater level of self-disclosure, in the interests of achieving full description of each participant’s sexual offense conduct,” and are led by the SOMP Coordinator or a SOMP Psychologist, or co-facilitated. The Coordinator “ensures that process groups comprise no less than 25% of direct contact services over the course of treatment” (PS 5324.10 at pp. 19–20).

Completion is clinical, not numerical. “Program completion is based on a clinician’s assessment of the participant’s success in achieving his/her treatment objectives.” The SOMP Coordinator must determine that the person has successfully completed all phases with a mastery of program skills, made a commitment to positive change “as shown by observed positive behavior in their daily interactions,” demonstrated an appropriate degree of self-disclosure, and achieved all individualized treatment goals on the Treatment Plan. “Inmates who do not demonstrate these behavioral changes are not ready to complete treatment, and should be expected to remain in the program until all of the objectives listed above have been achieved, or they are expelled or withdraw” (PS 5324.10 at p. 20).

Expulsion, withdrawal, incomplete — and reapplying

Three exits, with different consequences (PS 5324.10 at pp. 20–22).

Withdrawal. A person may withdraw. Staff document the stated reason in the Psychology Data System and update SENTRY.

Incomplete. “A participant is placed in incomplete status when unable to participate in treatment due to reasons beyond his/her control.” The Bureau “may attempt to offer to resume programming,” but circumstances can prevent completion — the policy’s example is someone who becomes available again “with insufficient time on sentence to complete the remaining program phases.” Anyone resuming “will complete any sections of programming missed due to their absence.”

Expulsion. The SOMP Coordinator may expel for “disruptive behavior or unsatisfactory progress in treatment,” and is responsible for the final determination. The protections:

• Ordinarily at least one formal intervention first — a meeting to discuss the behavior or lack of progress, an assigned intervention, a warning of consequences, documentation in PDS, an amended Treatment Plan signed by both staff and the participant, and where appropriate a requirement to discuss the targeted behavior in group.
• The exception: no intervention is necessary “when the documented lack of compliance with program standards is of such magnitude that an inmate’s continued presence would create an immediate, ongoing problem for staff or other inmates.”
• Immediate removal, at the Coordinator’s discretion, if the Discipline Hearing Officer finds a prohibited act involving alcohol or drugs, violence or threats of violence, escape or attempted escape, or any 100-level series incident.
• Confidentiality: “An inmate may be expelled from the program without a formal intervention if he/she is determined to have violated confidentiality.”

And a consequence specific to the residential program: “Program expulsions and withdrawals from the SOTP-R are always promptly removed from the residential treatment unit. Because these inmates may be disruptive to current SOTP participants, they may be redesignated to other Bureau institutions at the discretion of the Warden.”

Reapplying. There is no waiting period written into this policy — unlike the drug program’s 90 days. A person who declined, withdrew or was expelled “may reapply for readmission through an Inmate Request to Staff (BP-A0148) to the SOMP Coordinator,” who “will decide on readmission based on a clinical appraisal of the inmate’s level of motivation, in addition to other clinical factors.” Readmission “may be deferred pending demonstration of positive institution adjustment for a specified period, or contingent upon completion of other programs which, in the SOMP Coordinator’s judgment, will increase the likelihood of a successful treatment outcome” (PS 5324.10 at pp. 21–22).

The five evaluations, and where each one goes

This is the part of the program almost nobody explains, and it matters more than the class schedule — because these documents outlive the sentence. Chapter 2 of PS 5324.10 sets out five distinct written products.

Evaluation	Who gets one	What is in it	Where it goes
1. SOMP Intake Screening Interview	Everyone with a sexual offense history arriving at a SOMP institution, within 30 days of arrival	Overview of SOMP components; review of offense history; screening for treatment needs and amenability; assessment of interest in volunteering; explanation of risk-relevant behaviors that may warrant a Correctional Management Plan	Documented in PDS; SENTRY waiting-list or declination assignment
2. Initial Risk Assessment	Applicants for treatment; arrivals for placement; people identified at screening as posing significant risk; anyone receiving a Correctional Management Plan	Brief review of sexual offense history; risk classification from an actuarial instrument (Static-99R); other relevant risk or clinical data; recommendations for treatment or specialized correctional management	SOMP Evaluation section of PDS
3. Comprehensive Psychosexual Evaluation	Treatment participants, prior to completion of the Treatment Plan	Purpose and sources of data; background including psychosexual history; assessment and testing; case formulation with primary risk factors and any diagnosis; summary and treatment recommendations	PDS; routed with the Treatment Summary
4. Treatment Summary	Participants on completion of the SOTP-R or SOTP-NR (and, per Chapter 3, those who terminate in Phase II or III)	Purpose; background; progress in treatment; optional diagnosis; assessment of static, dynamic and acute risk factors and overall risk appraisal; “Recommendations for Community Treatment and Supervision”	PDS, routed like the Discharge Evaluation — see below
5. Discharge Evaluation	Releasing people “with significant risk management issues” as determined by an Initial Risk Assessment, and everyone expelled from the SOTP-R or SOTP-NR	Summary of sexual offense and criminal history; psychosocial and psychosexual history; risk classification; treatment and management recommendations for community supervision	At least 30 days before RRC transfer, to the Unit Team and the regional T-DAT Coordinator; at least 30 days before release, directly to the U.S. Probation Officer

Sources: PS 5324.10 at pp. 9–14. A Termination Report — a shorter document giving a brief account of progress and the reasons for terminating — is prepared instead for people who leave before completing Phase I (at p. 22).

Four features of this system are worth knowing before anyone signs a BP-A0957.

The interview is optional; the evaluation is not. For the Initial Risk Assessment, “[s]hould the inmate decline to consent to an interview… the evaluator may complete the Assessment using documentary evidence only.” For the Discharge Evaluation, “[t]he interview is not required,” but “[i]f the inmate declines to interview for the evaluation, documentary and observational data will be used to complete the assessment, and the inmate’s refusal to participate will be noted in the final report. If based solely upon a review of available documentation, the Discharge Evaluation may be conducted without the inmate’s consent” (PS 5324.10 at pp. 10–11).

Discharge Evaluations are timed to release. “In most cases, the Discharge Evaluation will be completed in the 12 months prior to transfer to RRC or release to the community.”

They go to the probation officer. The Discharge Evaluation is sent directly to the U.S. Probation Officer at least 30 days before release, and the Treatment Summary is routed the same way — it “is intended to assist U.S. Probation and Bureau community treatment staff in effectively managing the inmate after release from secure custody.” Supervised release conditions are set by the sentencing court, but the material a probation officer works from includes these documents.

Self-report is not taken at face value. “Evaluators are aware of the limitations of inmate self reports in obtaining sexual histories. Ordinarily, information derived from inmate self reports should be corroborated by review of collateral documentation” (PS 5324.10 at p. 9).

On the systems themselves: the Bureau does not operate a public “sex offender management system.” SOMP records live in two internal systems — SENTRY, the inmate management system that carries program assignments and waiting lists, and PDS, the Psychology Data System that holds clinical documents. Access to material in either is governed by the Privacy Act and the Inmate Central File rules, not by a public database. A person seeking their own records goes through the FOIA and Privacy Act request process.

Correctional Management Plans

The third SOMP component is not treatment at all. A Correctional Management Plan is a set of individualized restrictions imposed where a person’s institution behavior indicates sexual risk, and — critically — “CMPs may be imposed only at SOMP institutions” (PS 5324.10 at p. 29). Someone at a non-SOMP facility who demonstrates risk-relevant behavior “may be referred for redesignation to a SOMP institution to receive a Correctional Management Plan.”

The policy defines risk-relevant behavior as “[i]nstitution behavior related to a sexual offender’s history that indicates risk of future sexual offending upon release,” and gives two examples: “an inmate convicted of child pornography who collects pictures of children; a sex offender who attempts to contact potential child victims” (at p. 3).

How it is detected. “Risk-relevant behavior may be detected by any Bureau staff member in the course of conducting routine security operations” — cell searches, pat searches, telephone monitoring, mail monitoring, review of incoming publications, review of visiting and telephone lists, and monitoring visiting room activities (at p. 29). Our pages on searches, shakedowns and contraband, inmate phone calls, inmate mail and inmate visitation describe those operations generally.

How it is imposed. The Warden or a designee who is a management official may initiate a CMP, ordinarily delegating that decision to the SOMP Coordinator. A SOMP Psychologist or Treatment Specialist conducts an Initial Risk Assessment. A SOMP Psychologist then develops the plan, “ordinarily in conjunction with staff from Correctional Services and/or the Unit Team,” and submits it to the Warden or designee for approval before issuance. A SOMP Psychologist meets with the person, discusses the plan and documents the contact in PDS, and “[t]he inmate will be offered a copy of the CMP.” The plan “is a non-clinical document, and is disseminated to staff in other departments as necessary to ensure its effective implementation” (at p. 30).

What it can restrict (PS 5324.10 at pp. 30–31, as amended by CN-1):

Area	Categories
Personal property	Items usable as sexual paraphernalia (photographs, pictures or drawings depicting adults or children in sexually explicit or suggestive poses); materials promoting the sexual exploitation of children (writing that romanticizes adult-child sex; literature from pedophile organizations); correspondence in which individuals are discussed in a sexualized way; materials promoting violence or reflecting a degrading attitude to persons based on sex; and “[a]ny other personal property deemed inappropriate by the SOMP Coordinator due to its association with the inmate’s risk”
Visitation	Prior child or adult victims of the person’s sexual offenses; children being groomed for sexual assault or other predatory behavior, and their caregivers; children who will not be adequately supervised by an accompanying adult; and any other visitor “deemed inappropriate by the SOMP Coordinator”
Correspondence, telephone and electronic contact	Prior victims; children being groomed and their caregivers; other sexual offenders; and any other contact with the public deemed inappropriate by the SOMP Coordinator

Restricted property found in a person’s possession “will be seized and handled as contraband,” and where property is questionable, “[t]he final decision regarding any specific property is left to the discretion of the Warden or designee.”

How it ends. “The CMP may be modified by the psychologist with the concurrence of the Warden or designee. A CMP may be terminated if the Warden determines there is no further need,” documented in PDS. There is no scheduled review date in the policy — which means a plan that has outlived its basis stays in place until someone asks. A request to modify or terminate goes to the SOMP Coordinator by cop-out; a denial is reviewable through the Administrative Remedy Program, and our page on prison grievances sets out the deadlines.

Each SOMP institution must also maintain an Institution Supplement “that reflects that institution’s unique characteristics and specifies how it will monitor inmates for risk-relevant behavior” (at p. 3). That supplement is the local rule, and it is the document to ask the unit team for when the national policy does not answer a question.

After release: community transition treatment

Completing a program inside does not end it. Under PS 5324.10 at p. 27:

“An inmate who has completed a sex offender treatment program (SOTP-R or SOTP-NR) will be expected to continue treatment upon transfer to a Residential Reentry Center. At the time of application for the SOTP-R or SOTP-NR, the applicant executes an Agreement to Participate in Sex Offender Treatment Program form (BP-A0957), acknowledging that aftercare will be expected while in an RRC.”

That obligation is signed at the front end, in the same document that begins the program. People who never participated in a program “may volunteer for community transition sex offender treatment, pending the availability of resources” — the policy’s example is someone with a sentence too short to complete a program inside.

Transitional Drug Abuse Treatment staff — the same office that runs community drug treatment — monitor SENTRY for arriving completers, retrieve the SOTP Treatment Summary, and forward it to the community treatment provider. The person “is expected to remain in treatment until released from Bureau custody,” monitored through clinical assessments, Treatment Plans and monthly progress reports (at p. 27).

Behavior that can put community treatment status in jeopardy, per the policy’s own list (at p. 28): disruptive behavior; failure to participate (“sleeping, bad attitude, lack of motivation, failure to complete assignments, continued resistance to the therapeutic process”); “no shows” including canceled, rescheduled or broken appointments; violent behavior including threatening statements; unauthorized Internet access; possession of pornography or other risk-relevant stimulus materials, including collections of pictures of children; contact with victims; and any other significant incident indicating the person is not participating meaningfully.

The Regional T-DAT Coordinator issues written notice, may provide or request an intervention, and “[a]n inmate may receive no more than two notices before the inmate is removed from the program.” The Coordinator “may remove an inmate at any time if the inmate is not benefitting from treatment or refuses to participate meaningfully,” and “[t]he Community Corrections Regional Administrator makes all decisions regarding an inmate’s continued placement in the RRC.” Within 10 days of release or termination, TDAT staff request a discharge summary from the provider and send a copy to the supervising U.S. Probation Office. Our pages on halfway houses and the RRC release plan cover placement itself.

What treatment does not do

Three points, because the confusion is common and expensive.

No sentence reduction. The 12-month early release incentive belongs to the Residential Drug Abuse Program alone, under 18 U.S.C. § 3621(e)(2)(B) and 28 C.F.R. § 550.55. There is no analogue in PS 5324.10, and no Bureau policy attaches a sentence reduction to the SOTP-R or the SOTP-NR.

No effect on the categorization of offenses. Whether an offense precludes a Bureau program benefit is decided by Program Statement 5162.07, Categorization of Offenses — reissued 3 September 2026 — which classifies offenses by statute and by the findings in the presentence report, not by what a person has done since arriving. Completing a treatment program does not move an offense out of a category. See offenses that preclude early release.

No automatic effect on civil commitment. Certification review under 18 U.S.C. § 4248 is conducted by a separate body — the Sex Offender Certification Review Branch — under Program Statement 5394.01, and the regulation provides that in making the determination “the Bureau will consider any available information in its possession.” Treatment records are part of the record the Bureau holds; so is a Discharge Evaluation prepared after an expulsion. Whether participation helps or hurts in a particular case is a legal question about a particular record, and it belongs to the person’s lawyer, not to a web page. Our explainer on civil commitment of sexually dangerous persons sets out the procedure and the burdens of proof.

Do not confuse treatment with registration. Registration is imposed by the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, 34 U.S.C. § 20901 et seq., and by the law of the state or tribe where a person lives. The Bureau’s obligation is notification: under 18 U.S.C. § 4042(c) it provides release and registration information to state, tribal and local officials at least five calendar days before release. Nothing about completing a treatment program changes a registration obligation. This is a nationwide federal practice and this page gives no state registration advice.

What changed in the sex offender treatment policy

PS 5324.10 CN-1 issued 18 February 2025. The change notice amended Chapter 4 language “to remove references to any concept that may conflict with the January 20, 2025, Executive Order” and made a corresponding edit to the restricted-property category covering materials “that promote violence or reflect a degrading attitude to persons based on gender sex” (PS 5324.10 at p. 1). The treatment structure — the two programs, the hours, the phases, the eligibility criteria — was not changed.

PS 5394.01 CN-1 issued 27 February 2025, making parallel edits to the civil commitment policy’s conditions-of-confinement chapter.

PS 5333.01 replaced PS 5324.12 on 19 March 2026. The Bureau’s PREA manual — which governs sexual-abuse risk screening, protective housing and reporting for everyone in custody — was reissued under a new number and title, rescinding PS 5324.12 CN-1 (Feb. 18, 2025). It is a different policy from the sex offender treatment programs, and the two are routinely confused because the old numbers were adjacent.

PS 5162.06 replaced PS 5162.05 on 19 March 2026, and PS 5162.07 replaced PS 5162.06 on 3 September 2026, each time updating the list of statutory offenses that preclude Bureau program benefits. The current edition keeps, at Section 4.e (p. 13), the rule that “[a] conviction for [18 U.S.C. § 2243] sexual abuse of a minor or ward shall preclude an inmate from receiving certain Bureau program benefits.”

Frequently Asked Questions About Sex Offender Treatment Programs

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