The Federal Bureau of Prisons' Drug Interdiction Activities
Report Number I-2003-002
January 2003
REQUIREMENTS FOR AUTHORIZING VOLUNTEERS AND CONTRACTORS
VOLUNTEERS
According to BOP Program Statement 5300.20, Volunteers and Citizen Participation Programs, the BOP has two classifications of volunteers:
Level l Volunteers are authorized to perform a service four times or less a year for an institution, community correction center, contract detention center, or administrative office. Ordinarily, a Level I volunteer is an adult 18 years or older (except at high security and administrative institutions where volunteers must be at least 21 years of age).
According to BOP policy, Level I volunteers are normally exempt (at the warden's discretion) from the background requirements discussed below for Level II volunteers. As a result, the institutions must make appropriate staff arrangements to provide adequate program supervision to these volunteers.
Training for Level I volunteers consists of receipt and completion of a "Notification to Visitors" form, as well as a brief oral orientation provided by a department program manager prior to the visit to provide the volunteer program or service.
Level I volunteers are ordinarily not granted permanent photo identification badges. Level I volunteers require staff escort to and from the appropriate program department and require constant supervision while inside the institution.
Level ll Volunteers are authorized to perform service more than four times per year for an institution, administrative office or community corrections or contract detention center. Ordinarily, a Level I volunteer is an adult 18 years or older (except at high security and administrative institutions where volunteers must be at least 21 years of age).
The following steps must be completed before the volunteer is permitted to engage in the volunteer activity:
Level II volunteers are required to complete a total of four hours of program area and orientation training, as well as two hours of annual refresher training each successive year.
Level II volunteers can be issued either an "escorted" or "unescorted" (approved by the warden) institution volunteer photo identification badge. Level II volunteers classified as "escorted" require staff escorts to and from the appropriate program department. Staff are required to make frequent, irregular visual checks while escorted Level II volunteers conduct their programs. The BOP states that the majority of Level II volunteers are assigned "escorted" status. Level II volunteers receiving "unescorted" status are less frequent and only issued to those volunteers with a proven record. This status requires approval by the warden. These "unescorted" volunteers are able to report directly to their program area following front entrance processing.
Ex-Offenders. Institutions also may allow ex-offenders to volunteer. In addition to completion of training and background investigations, the following items must be completed:
CONTRACTORS
The BOP has identified the following three types of contracts that its institutions may initiate: individual, construction and maintenance, and total or partial program services.
Individual Contracts include all contracts with individuals delivering compensated services to an institution where delivery of these services requires frequent and unsupervised contact with inmates.
The following background investigative procedures and forms are required to be completed prior to authorizing an individual contractor permission to enter an institution:
Short-term contracts for individual services that will last less than 30 days and contractors who will be escorted at all times while inside the institution, or will be outside the institution, are subject only to the following requirements:
BOP policy allows wardens to exercise discretion in granting exemptions to the required investigative procedures for long-term individual contractors (three or more years), and for consulting physicians who enter an institution on an infrequent basis.
Construction and Maintenance Contracts include all contracts involving construction/maintenance projects of institutional facilities, which are advertised and granted competitively through appropriate federal government and contracting regulations. These contracts typically involve major projects where construction and maintenance crews have little or no inmate contact, and are subject to close BOP supervision and monitoring.
The following background investigative procedures and forms are required to be completed for all contractors' crew members prior to authorizing permission to enter an institution:
A urinalysis test for the detection of drug use is not required for construction/maintenance contractors and crew members.
BOP policy allows wardens to exercise discretion in granting exemptions to the required investigative procedures for contractors who do not enter the secure perimeters of an institution and do not have inmate contact.
Total or Partial Program Services Contracts include the contracting of food and medical services for the delivery of program services (e.g., preparing food for inmates) that require frequent and unsupervised contact between the contractor's employees and inmates.
The following background investigative procedures and forms are required to be completed prior to authorizing individuals involved in the delivery of contracted food and medical services within an institution permission to enter an institution:
BOP policy allows wardens to exercise discretion in granting exemptions to the required investigative procedures for long-term individual contractors (three or more years), and for consulting physicians who enter an institution on an infrequent basis.