Federal Release Laws

Understand the law. Build the record. Prepare for reentry.

Joseph De Gregorio · Sentencing Advocacy Group

The First Step Act and the Second Chance Act provide different routes to community placement. An effective release plan starts by identifying which authority applies, confirming the official calculation, and documenting the practical conditions for a successful transition.

First Step Act

Understand earned time credits, eligibility, risk assessments, qualifying programming, and the difference between prerelease custody and an earlier start to supervised release.

Explore the First Step Act guide →

Second Chance Act

Understand individualized halfway-house consideration, the ordinary home-confinement limits, and how a documented release plan supports a placement review.

Explore the Second Chance Act guide →

How the two laws work together

First Step Act credits and Second Chance Act placement are separate components of release planning. They may work together when the applicable requirements are met. Neither creates an automatic promise of a particular release date, twelve months in a halfway house, or unrestricted time at home.

A residential reentry center, often called a halfway house, and BOP home confinement remain forms of custody. Supervised release is the court-ordered supervision that follows imprisonment. Good conduct time is a separate sentence-computation provision.

Start with a complete record

  • Judgment and current BOP sentence computation.

  • First Step Act credit assessment and dated PATTERN risk assessments.

  • Assigned programs, participation records, and disciplinary history.

  • Verified housing, employment, transportation, treatment, and family support.

  • Written placement recommendations and any unresolved calculation questions.

Turn information into preparation

Joseph De Gregorio, federal sentencing strategist and founder of Sentencing Advocacy Group, helps clients organize the record and prepare for post-sentencing decisions.

Early Release & Reentry Planning → · For Attorneys →

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Official sources

Bureau of Prisons: First Step Act information
18 U.S.C. § 3624: release and prerelease custody
BOP guidance on First Step Act and Second Chance Act placement (PDF)

Reviewed October 3, 2026. General educational information; individual eligibility and placement require case-specific review. Sentencing Advocacy Group is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice.