There are 122 federal prisons under the watch of the Federal Bureau of Prisons and due to bipartisan prison reform legislation, led by United States Senator Jon Ossoff, they will all begin the journey of becoming safer.
Ossoff first introduced what is now the Federal Prison Oversight Act in 2022 following multiple Senate investigations, all of which had bipartisan support. On Thursday, United States President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. signed the act into law.
The Federal Prison Oversight Act calls for nationwide routine inspections of all 122 facilities by the Department of Justice Inspector General’s office and the establishment of an ombudsman to routinely investigate the people who are living and working in the facilities.
“When I campaigned for the Senate, I made a promise to fight for civil and human rights for all Georgians,” Ossoff said in a statement to The Atlanta Voice. “I’ve been honored to work so closely with Georgia’s civil rights community to write and pass into law this prison reform legislation and will continue championing justice reform on behalf of Georgia.”
A number of Civil Rights Era icons and current civil rights leaders are not only supporting the legislation, but giving Ossoff credit for getting the act passed and put into law.
“I commend and thank Senator Ossoff for his leadership in shepherding this historic bill to passage snd now law,” said former Atlanta Mayor and Ambassador to the United Nations Andrew Young. “Senator Ossoff promised to fight for civil rights and human rights, and with this new bipartisan law, he is making progress to ensure equal protection under the law for all Georgians and all Americans.”
Georgia NAACP President Gerald Griggs also applauded Ossoff’s efforts. “Today, we witnessed a monumental stride toward justice and accountability within our federal prison system with the Federal Prison Oversight Act,” Griggs said in a statement. “This legislation represents not only a victory for those advocating for human rights but also a crucial acknowledgment of the urgent need to address the conditions within our prisons.”
Former Georgia NAACP President Reverend James Woodall, Executive Director of the ACLU of Georgia Andrea Young, and Black Voters Matter co-founder LaTosha Brown, all thanked Ossoff for his work on prison reform and the passing of the act.
“This bipartisan legislation is a life-saving measure and will give people who are incarcerated in the federal system a rare opportunity to get help amidst such a deadly crisis,” Woodall wrote.
Brown added, “For far too long, federal prisons have been able to subject the people they incarcerate to abuse, danger, and catastrophe lapses in health and safety. This bill is a necessary step to improve the humanity and dignity of the conditions within federal prisons.”