Sec. 7. National coordinating center on solitary confinement reduction and reform
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/bill/118/s/4121/is/section-7·A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
In this section, the term eligible entity means an entity, or a partnership of entities, that has demonstrated expertise in the fields of— solitary confinement, including the reduction and reform of its use; and providing technical assistance to corrections agencies on how to reduce and reform solitary confinement. Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Bureau of Justice Assistance shall enter into a cooperative agreement, on a competitive basis, with an eligible entity for the purpose of establishing a coordinating center for State, local, and Federal corrections systems, which shall conduct activities such as— providing on-site technical assistance and consultation to Federal, State, and local corrections agencies to safely reduce the use of solitary confinement; acting as a clearinghouse for research, data, and information on the safe reduction of solitary confinement in prisons and other custodial settings, including facilitating the exchange of information between Federal, State, and local practitioners, national experts, and researchers; creating a minimum of 10 learning sites in Federal, State, and local jurisdictions that have already reduced their use of solitary confinement and that will coordinate with other Federal, State, and local agencies to participate in training, consultation, and other forms of assistance and partnership with these learning sites; conducting evaluations of jurisdictions that have decreased their use of solitary confinement to determine best practices; conducting research on the effectiveness of alternatives to solitary confinement, such as step-down or transitional programs, strategies to reintegrate inmates into the general population in a facility, the role of officers and staff culture in reform efforts, and other research relevant to the safe reduction of solitary confinement; developing and disseminating a toolkit for systems to reduce the excessive use of solitary confinement; developing and disseminating an online self-assessment tool for State and local jurisdictions to assess their own use of solitary confinement and identify strategies to reduce the use of solitary confinement; and conducting public webinars to highlight new and promising practices.
The program under this section shall be administered by the Bureau of Justice Assistance. On an annual basis, the coordinating center shall report to the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives on its activities and any changes in solitary confinement policy at the Federal, State, or local level that have resulted from the activities of the coordinating center. The Bureau of Justice Assistance shall enter into a cooperative agreement under this section for 5 years.