Federal Government to Phase Out All For-Profit Prison Contracts Over Next Eight Years

The “End For-Profit Prisons Act of 2025” is straightforward: it aims to stop the federal government from paying private companies to run its correctional facilities. This isn’t a quick fix, though. The bill sets up a clear, multi-year timeline to transition all federal prisons and community confinement facilities—like halfway houses—back to government operation.

Taking the Profit Out of Punishment

This legislation targets the contracts the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) and the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) currently hold with private corporations. For standard federal prisons, the government must stop using private contractors for “core correctional services”—things like housing, security, and discipline—within six years of the bill becoming law (Sec. 2). This means federal employees must take over the essential functions of running the facilities. For community confinement facilities, like those halfway houses that help people transition back into society, the ban on contracting with for-profit companies is even stricter: the BOP cannot sign or keep any such contract after eight years (Sec. 2).

There’s one key exception: the USMS, which holds people pre-trial, can still contract with facilities run by state or local governments. But even then, the state or local government’s own employees must be the ones providing the core correctional services, not a subcontracted private company. This loophole keeps state and local government facilities in the mix for the Marshals Service but explicitly cuts out the for-profit middleman.

The Real-World Impact: Life After Release

Beyond phasing out private prisons, the bill focuses heavily on accountability and making sure people leaving federal custody can actually get back on their feet. If you’ve ever tried to navigate bureaucracy while juggling work and family, imagine doing it after years away. This bill tries to simplify that process.

Specifically, the Attorney General must establish rules ensuring every person released receives mandatory counseling and information on several critical topics (Sec. 7). This includes explaining their rights regarding expungement (clearing their criminal record), providing details on job assistance and vocational training programs, and delivering a complete record of all the education and treatment programs they completed while incarcerated. More importantly, facility staff must actively help them apply for essential services like Medicaid, food assistance (nutritional assistance), Social Security benefits, a driver's license, and voter registration.

This is a massive shift. Instead of handing someone a bus ticket and a few dollars, the government is now required to connect them directly with the supports they need to avoid ending up back in the system. For a formerly incarcerated person trying to secure a job and housing, having staff assistance to apply for Medicaid and food aid is a game-changer that addresses basic survival needs.

Research and Oversight: Making Sure Programs Work

To ensure these re-entry programs aren't just checking a box, the bill mandates serious research. The Attorney General must study what policies and programs in community confinement facilities actually work to reduce recidivism and then use that data to create evidence-based guidelines for running those facilities (Sec. 5). This research has to be reported to Congress every four years.

Accountability also extends to the facilities themselves. The USMS must conduct a deep dive annual inspection of every single facility it uses to hold people. This isn't just a quick walk-through; they have to verify compliance with constitutional requirements, federal laws, and local standards (Sec. 6). This is a necessary check to ensure that state and local jails holding federal detainees are meeting basic safety and rights standards.

Finally, the Bureau of Prisons must now provide every person being released with a detailed breakdown of all the financial penalties they still owe—fines, restitution, and court assessments—getting the data directly from the judicial officers (Sec. 8). This eliminates the confusion about outstanding debt, which can be a huge barrier to re-entry.

What It Means for You

If you’re a taxpayer, this bill means the government is committing to a long-term investment in rehabilitation over incarceration. By eliminating the profit motive, the focus shifts entirely to safety, security, and successful re-entry. While the phase-out period is long (six to eight years), it gives the government time to manage the logistics of taking over facilities and ensures that the transition doesn't disrupt services. For the private prison industry and its investors, this bill signals the end of a lucrative federal revenue stream, forcing them to wind down those contracts over the next decade.