First Step Act

We at A Better Tomorrow are passionate about helping inmates and their families prepare for and achieve successful reentry. If you’re like most families, you are eager for your loved one to transition into community custody, whether through a halfway house (RRC) or home confinement. Like many others, you may also be frustrated that they should have already transitioned by now but still have not. Well, you are not alone.

A Better Tomorrow extends sincere kudos to BOP Director Marshall and Assistant Director Smith for their renewed focus and measurable progress toward proper implementation of the First Step Act (FSA) across the Bureau of Prisons. Over the past six months, I have personally observed a significant improvement in the accuracy of FSA Worksheets—particularly regarding projected placement dates—both in my own case and for many other incarcerated individuals.

At A Better Tomorrow (ABT) Community, we often hear from incarcerated individuals and their families who are hoping compassionate release might provide a path home when serious medical or family circumstances arise. While compassionate release can offer relief in limited situations, recent court decisions show that it remains difficult to obtain—especially when claims are based on inadequate medical care in federal prison.

In our first two blog posts, we explained the different types of time credits and how to calculate your reduced sentence using them. As we saw, these credits can produce meaningful reductions in incarceration time. In many cases, an inmate might serve 45–60% of their sentence in prison, 20–30% in prerelease custody, and receive a 15–25% total reduction in sentence length.

This update builds on Part III of my How to Fight for Your Credits series, originally published in November 2024. Since then, a lot has changed — including the results of a national election and the arrival of a new presidential administration. Here’s what matters most for anyone tracking their First Step Act (FSA) time credits...

At A Better Tomorrow (ABT), we’re hopeful that newly appointed Bureau of Prisons (BOP) Director Billy Williams III and Assistant Director Joshua Smith will successfully lead a true transformation of the BOP — with the full support and guidance of Attorney General Pam Bondi. As ABT recently reported, Director Williams has already taken major steps toward full-scale implementation of the First Step Act (FSA) across wardens and their staff nationwide.