BOP Program Statement 1060.13 § 7

Requests for temporary moratoriums and population caps are made via a memorandum from the

Warden through the Regional Director to the Assistant Director ITDD for Capacity Planning to

facilitate a review by the PMCPC.

1060.13 3/19/2026 PROPERTY OF US GOVERNMENT 7

A moratorium or population cap (“pop cap”) should be requested when an institution has a

legitimate reason for being temporarily unable to manage the inmate population at a level

consistent with its' established capacity. A pop cap places a temporary ceiling on the number of

inmates that can be designated to a facility. A moratorium is a complete cessation of all initial

designations and redesignations to an institution. Each institution should provide a detailed plan

to address the source of the issue or problem. Regional Correctional Programs should closely

review and track institutional requests for temporary moratoriums or pop caps.

For moratoriums, the request will include the rationale for the moratorium, the specific DFCL(s)

or inmate medical and/or mental health care level(s) affected in the request, and the timeframe

being requested for the moratorium.

For population caps, the request will include the rationale for the pop cap, the DFCL(s) affected

by the requested cap, the total number of beds that will be open and capped, and the timeframe

being requested.

Requests for moratoriums and population caps will be reviewed by the PMCPC chairs in

coordination with the Assistant Directors responsible for medical and/or programmatic issues, as

needed.

The PMCPC will establish a termination date when a moratorium or population cap is imposed.

The pop cap or moratorium will be terminated on that date unless the Regional Director contacts

the PMCPC in advance, via the Capacity Planning Team, to request an extension. The agency

has a continued need to have full access of all available bed space in order to manage the flow of

inmates into the Bureau.s