Pursuit's Take
Correctional services—which includes salaries and benefits for correctional officers—is the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Bureau of Prisons’ (BOP) largest operational cost, and BOP has undertaken a number of initiatives to reduce costs. Specifically, on the basis of GAO’s analysis of BOP’s fiscal year 2013 obligations of approximately $6.6 billion, BOP obligated the largest share—about $3.9 billion, or 59 percent—for personnel compensation and benefits. Further, BOP has undertaken a number of initiatives, such as renegotiated contracts, to achieve cost savings of about $61 million over the last 3 years.
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