§4051 Treatment of primary caretaker parents and other individuals

Summary

Creates an office in the Bureau of Prisons that decides where federal prisoners will be held and sets rules to protect pregnant people, parents, and other at-risk prisoners. Key terms: correctional officer = a Bureau of Prisons guard; covered institution = a federal prison; Director = the Bureau of Prisons Director; post-partum recovery = the first 12 weeks after giving birth; primary caretaker parent = as defined in the Family Unity Demonstration Project Act; prisoner = someone jailed in a federal prison; vulnerable person = someone under 21 or over 60, pregnant, a crime victim or witness, someone who filed a nonfrivolous civil rights suit, or someone found to have suffered severe trauma or gender-based violence (by a court, prison official, lawyer, or the person). The new office must try to place prisoners close to their children when possible and may use other factors it considers relevant. Pregnant prisoners or those in the 12-week post-partum period cannot be put in segregation unless they are an immediate danger, and any such placement must be temporary. The Director must ask about family and parenting needs at intake and later, offer voluntary parenting classes to primary caretaker parents (including for people with limited English under Title VI), train staff to spot and refer trauma-related health needs, train staff who work with families on child-appropriate interactions and basic development, and make sure prisoners get adequate health care, free basic hygiene items, access to gynecologists, and rules so sanitary products are available and visitors are not barred for using them. Nothing here changes the Prison Rape Elimination Act requirements.