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The USMS protects more than 2,000 federal judges and other members of the federal judiciary, transports federal prisoners, protects endangered federal witnesses, manages assets seized from criminal enterprises, and pursues and arrests federal fugitives. The Director and Deputy Director work with 94 U.S. Marshals to direct the work of approximately 4,800 employees at more than 350 locations throughout the 50 states, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, Mexico, Jamaica, and the Dominican Republic.
USMS Intergovernmental Service Agreements for Detention Facilities
The USMS houses more than 47,000 detainees throughout the nation and is responsible for their transportation from the time they are brought into federal custody until they either are acquitted or incarcerated. To house the detainees, the USMS executes contracts known as Intergovernmental Service Agreements (IGA) with state and local governments to rent jail space. According to the USMS, 75 percent of the detainees in USMS custody are detained in state, local, and private facilities.
During this reporting period, we completed audits of two high-dollar IGAs that the USMS awarded to local governments for the housing and transportation of federal detainees. Our audits found:
The USMS awarded an IGA to the Western Tidewater Regional Jail (WTRJ) in Virginia for the housing and transportation of federal detainees. Our audit determined that the USMS overpaid the WTRJ by $2.9 million for FYs 2004 and 2005. Additionally, we determined that the USMS could have saved $1.6 million by implementing the audited rate for FY 2006. We found that the overpayments primarily were due to the USMS awarding the WTRJ a $65 jail day rate even though WTRJ’s unaudited cost sheet only supported a $52.26 jail day rate. The USMS awarded an IGA to the Doña Ana County Detention Center in New Mexico for the housing and transportation of federal detainees. Our audit determined that the Detention Center’s allowable costs did not support the jail daily rate paid by the USMS for FYs 2003 and 2004. During this period, the USMS could have saved more than $5.2 million by paying the audit calculated rate instead of the rate it agreed to. In addition, the USMS could save more than $3.2 million annually by paying the audit calculated rate for future fiscal years.
The USMS’s Justice Prisoner and Alien Transportation System
The Justice Prisoner and Alien Transportation System (JPATS) transfers prisoners and aliens in federal custody within the United States and overseas; performs scheduling, security, and medical functions in support of prisoner transportation; and provides air transportation for the USMS’s Witness Security Program and for federal government responses to crises such as the September 11, 2001, terrorism attacks and the hurricanes of 2005. Managed by the USMS, JPATS serves the BOP, USMS, ICE, military, and state and local law enforcement organizations. The OIG is evaluating the USMS’s coordination with other agencies regarding the movement of prisoners and aliens, and its ability to effectively manage the risks inherent in prisoner movement to ensure safe and efficient transport.
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