Background and Purpose
In June 2025, the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) announced a significant new policy that could reshape how time credits are used to reduce sentences. For years, the First Step Act (FSA) has allowed people in federal prison to earn time credits by completing rehabilitation programs and activities designed to lower recidivism. Separately, the Second Chance Act (SCA) provides for up to six months in a halfway house or home confinement at the end of a sentence.
The problem? Until now, these credits were often treated as separate, and people who earned FSA credits sometimes stayed behind bars longer than necessary because local reentry centers were full or case managers failed to coordinate timely transfers.
On June 17, 2025, the BOP issued a directive that promised a new approach. According to the memorandum, “FSA Earned Time Credits and SCA eligibility will be treated as cumulative and stackable, allowing qualified individuals to serve meaningful
portions of their sentences in home confinement when appropriate.” This means that earned credits under the FSA
and placement under the SCA can now be used together, giving people a real chance to go home earlier and build a stable return to the community.
Who Is Eligible — And What Must Be Done?
This policy is not automatic. To benefit fully, a person must:
Have an eligible offense. Certain violent or serious crimes disqualify people from earning FSA credits.
Participate in approved programming. Credits come from active, consistent engagement in Evidence-Based Recidivism Reduction Programs (EBRRs) or Productive Activities (PAs).
Maintain a low or minimum PATTERN risk score. This risk assessment measures a person’s likelihood of reoffending. To receive the full benefit, you must maintain a minimum or low score on consecutive reviews.
If someone meets all three criteria, they can make use of both sets of credits together, moving them into home confinement long before their full sentence ends.
What This Looks Like in Practice: A 10-Year Example
To understand how the stacking policy works, imagine a person sentenced to 10 years (120 months) in federal prison.
Good Conduct Time (GCT)
Under federal law, a person can earn up to 54 days off per year for good behavior. Over 10 years, that’s about 5️4️0 days, or roughly 18 months off the sentence, reducing the time in custody to 102 months.
First Step Act Earned Time Credits (FSA Credits)
By consistently participating in approved programs and maintaining a low PATTERN score, a person can earn up to 15 days per month, or about 180 days per year. After three years, they could accumulate about 540 days (another 18 months) in earned credits.
The critical piece is that these credits do not just reduce the total sentence — they allow a person to move into prerelease custody earlier. This means they could leave a secure prison and serve the rest of their time in home confinement, provided they remain eligible.
Second Chance Act (SCA) Home Confinement On top of the time served under the FSA, the Second Chance Act allows for up to 10% of the original sentence, capped at six months, to be served in a halfway house or home confinement. This placement is in addition to the time already moved to home confinement under the First Step Act. In the best-case scenario, this means someone could spend about three years in secure prison, then transition to home confinement for the rest of their sentence, plus up to six more months at the very end if the SCA applies. Instead of serving a full decade locked up, they would be able to
rebuild their life, reconnect with family, find work, and reintegrate while still under supervision.
Why This Remains “Best-Case”
While this example shows what’s possible, the reality depends on the system working as promised. Many Residential Reentry
Centers (RRCs) still face staffing shortages or a lack of available beds. The memo states that “bed capacity limitations will not be a barrier,” but whether this is true in practice depends on local resources, BOP contracts, and staff follow-through.
Additionally, each person’s success depends on their own choices: participating in programs every month, maintaining a
clean disciplinary record, and working to keep their PATTERN score low.
For families, advocates, and people in federal prison, this stacking policy is an encouraging sign that the BOP is moving closer to what Congress intended — a system that rewards real rehabilitation. But if the agency fails to provide enough community placements, or if local barriers prevent timely transfers, this policy could become just another promise on paper.
For the stacking policy to truly work, the BOP must back it up with funding, reliable halfway houses, and clear, fair application of the rules. Early release should not depend on whether your region has open beds or a cooperative case manager.
The hope is that people who do the hard work — taking classes, getting job training, addressing the root causes of
crime — will finally see those efforts rewarded with real time at home, not just time behind bars.
If you have questions about how the new stacking policy could affect you or your loved one — or want help figuring out your best-case timeline — please contact our office. We can help you understand eligibility, credits, and realistic next steps.
