Which six BOP facilities are closing?

FCI Beaumont Low (TX), FCI Big Spring and its camp (TX), FCI La Tuna with its FSL and camp (Anthony, TX), FMC Lexington Satellite Camp (KY), FCI Petersburg Low (VA), and FCI Taft (CA, inactive since 2020). FPC Morgantown and FPC Duluth are being converted to Federal Satellite Lows, not closed.

Will BOP employees lose their jobs or be reassigned?

It depends on the facility. Beaumont, Lexington camp, and Petersburg staff are being reassigned onsite or nearby with no jobs lost, per BOP. Big Spring and La Tuna staff face a Reduction in Force because comparable federal jobs nearby are scarce.

Is BOP offering VERA or VSIP with the closures?

Not as of the July 1, 2026 announcement. No early retirement authority or buyout has been publicly confirmed. Agencies must request VERA/VSIP and OPM must approve it, so watch for an official agency notice.

What happens to a correctional officer's 6c retirement in a RIF?

The enhanced 1.7% multiplier and the 50/20 or any-age/25 eligibility depend on years served in a covered law-enforcement position. Relocating to another BOP custody post keeps the clock running. Separating early or moving to a non-covered job can stop the accrual, and VERA can waive age but not covered years.

When do the closures take effect?

Dates vary by facility. La Tuna's inmates transfer out by January 2027 and the facility closes around March 2027. RIF-affected employees are entitled to a 60-day notice before any separation date.

BOP Closing 6 Prisons: RIF Risk and Your 6c Options

Last Updated: July 5, 2026

The Bureau of Prisons announced on July 1, 2026 that it will close six institutions and convert two camps, citing "extreme staffing challenges" and a $4 billion maintenance backlog. About 500 employees and nearly 4,000 inmates are affected, and the outcomes split sharply by facility: some staff keep their jobs in place, while Big Spring and La Tuna employees face a Reduction in Force. For 6c-covered correctional officers, the relocate-or-separate decision runs through retirement math no news story is covering.

Six closures, two conversions. Beaumont Low, Big Spring, La Tuna, Lexington's camp, Petersburg Low, and the long-inactive Taft close. Morgantown and Duluth convert from camps to Federal Satellite Lows, a mission change, not a closure.
The staff outcomes are split: Beaumont, Lexington camp, and Petersburg staff are reassigned with "no jobs lost." Big Spring and La Tuna face RIFs, with up to ~100 employees affected at La Tuna alone.
No VERA or VSIP has been announced. Early-out authority requires an OPM-approved agency request, and none is public yet.
For 6c officers, the load-bearing fact: your 1.7% multiplier and 50/20 eligibility require covered service. A move to a non-custody job stops the clock, and VERA can waive age but not covered years.
La Tuna's timeline: inmates out by January 2027, doors closed around March 2027, with 60-day RIF notices required before any separation.

Which Facilities, and Who Keeps Their Job

Facility	Location	Status	Staff outcome
FCI Beaumont Low	Beaumont, TX	Closing	Reassigned onsite/nearby, "no jobs lost"
FCI Big Spring + camp	Big Spring, TX	Closing	RIF
FCI La Tuna, FSL + camp	Anthony, TX	Permanent closure, ~Mar 2027	RIF, up to ~100 employees
FMC Lexington Satellite Camp	Lexington, KY	Closing	Reassigned onsite/nearby
FCI Petersburg Low	Petersburg, VA	Closing	Reassigned onsite/nearby
FCI Taft	Taft, CA	Permanent closure	Minimal, inactive since 2020
FPC Morgantown	Morgantown, WV	Converting to Federal Satellite Low	Retained, mission change
FPC Duluth	Duluth, MN	Converting to Federal Satellite Low	Retained, mission change

The distinction matters: several headlines blur "eight facilities" together, but Morgantown and Duluth staff are not losing positions, they're getting a security-level change. The RIF exposure concentrates at Big Spring and La Tuna, where BOP itself says comparable federal jobs nearby are scarce.

Why This Happened

The closure list reads like a map of the staffing crisis. BOP is down to roughly 11,800 correctional officers from about 20,000 in the mid-2010s, with an estimated deficit of 9,500 officers and 3,000 medical staff. The agency spent $58.4 million in FY2024 on "augmentation," pulling teachers, nurses, and cooks onto custody posts.

The pay story made it worse. In March 2025, BOP cut retention bonuses for roughly 23,000 staff, dropping some paychecks up to 25%. Resignations accelerated, including 1,400+ employees lost in a year, many to ICE's higher offers. The bonuses came back in February 2026 at 10% and 5% tiers, but the damage was cumulative. Congress authorized $5 billion in July 2025, $3 billion of it for hiring and salaries, and BOP says even that is "not sufficient" against decades of deferred maintenance. Closing the worst-maintained, hardest-to-staff sites is the response.

The 6c Math That Should Drive Your Decision

Correctional officers carry the 6(c) law-enforcement retirement provisions, and that changes everything about how to play a closure:

Enhanced multiplier: 1.7% of high-3 for your first 20 years of covered service, then 1.0% after.
Early eligibility: immediate, unreduced retirement at age 50 with 20 covered years, or at any age with 25.
Mandatory retirement at 57 (with 20 years).
The supplement: LEO retirees draw the FERS supplement immediately and are exempt from its earnings test until reaching MRA.

Now the part that should anchor the relocate-vs-separate choice: those benefits require the years to be served in a covered position. Three consequences follow.

A custody-to-custody relocation preserves everything. Transfer to another BOP correctional post and your covered-service clock keeps running toward 20 or 25.
A non-covered lateral can be a six-figure mistake. Taking a desk job or a non-6c federal position to stay in your city stops the 1.7% accrual and can strand you short of the any-age/25 path. Price that trade before accepting it.
VERA waives age, not covered years. If BOP eventually gets early-retirement authority, it lowers age/service gates. It cannot manufacture the covered years an officer with 18 of 20 still needs. An 18-year officer and a 24-year officer at the same closing facility have completely different best moves.

A RIF can also open discontinued service retirement for those meeting its thresholds, but for many 6c officers the real comparison is simpler: an immediate annuity they already qualify for versus severance and a walk-away.

Your Three-Branch Decision

Branch 1, relocate: apply for BOP vacancies system-wide (the agency is actively steering affected staff there). Covered service continues, and at 20+ years you're choosing your retirement date, not having it chosen.

Branch 2, wait for VERA/VSIP: nothing is confirmed. If it comes, check qualification in the VERA Eligibility Checker the day the notice drops, and remember the covered-years rule above.

Branch 3, separate with severance: eligible involuntarily separated employees who don't retire get severance. Estimate the payout with the Severance Pay Calculator, then compare it honestly against what Branch 1 preserves.

Whichever branch you're leaning toward, the RIF Survival Guide covers the procedural rights that apply at Big Spring and La Tuna: the 60-day notice, retention standing, bump and retreat, and ICTAP priority placement at other agencies.

Calculate Your Retirement Position First

Use our free FERS Retirement Calculator to run your annuity at your current covered years versus 20 and 25, with your actual high-3. That one comparison usually settles which branch is worth fighting for.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which facilities are actually closing versus converting?

Six close: Beaumont Low, Big Spring, La Tuna, Lexington's satellite camp, Petersburg Low, and Taft. Morgantown and Duluth convert to Federal Satellite Lows and keep their staff.

How many employees are affected?

About 500 total. The RIF exposure sits at Big Spring and La Tuna; the other staffed facilities' employees are being reassigned onsite or nearby.

Has VERA or a buyout been offered?

No. As of the announcement, no VERA or VSIP is public. Both require OPM approval of an agency request.

I'm at 18 covered years. Should I take a non-custody job to avoid moving?

Run the math first. Stopping at 18 covered years forfeits the 1.7% enhancement on years 19 and 20 and can close the 50/20 door. Two more covered years elsewhere in BOP may be worth far more than the convenience of staying put.

What's the timeline at La Tuna?

Inmates transfer out by January 2027 and the facility closes around March 2027. Individual RIF notices carry a 60-day minimum before separation. Confirm your own date from your official notice.

VERA Eligibility Checker: See whether you'd qualify if early-out authority arrives.
Severance Pay Calculator: Price the RIF payout against an annuity.
FERS Retirement Calculator: Your annuity at current years versus 20/25 covered.
RIF Survival Guide 2026: Notice rights, retention standing, bump/retreat, and ICTAP.

Sources: BOP press release, July 1, 2026, Federal News Network, Forbes, KTSM El Paso, CRS R42631 on LEO retirement, OPM RIF guidance.