Commission, it is intertwined with the Crime Commission and the Joint Commission on Correctional Manpower and Training-which was the Commission appointed by the President. They made certain recommendations to the Department of Corrections in the country so the Crime Commission report is not the only guidebook we use in correction. There are many, many studies that we use as guidebooks.

Mr. Thomas will perhaps give recommendations that more minority members be employed in correction, the elimination of different tests, the lowering of legal administrative barriers in hiring exoffenders, elimination of written tests for lower staff, and top priority be given to the education and training of the employees development. Mr. Thomas, you might want to go on.

STATEMENT OF DAVID C. THOMAS, PERSONNEL OFFICER, DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS

Mr. THOMAS. How we become involved with the Corrections Department in recent years was not only our inability to increase the Correctional Department positions but to fill positions once they were obtained. One of the primary bottlenecks was the form of the existing examination process which included a written examination. One period of recruitment activity in the Department was discussed where 1,300 applicants were assigned examination. Over 1,000 failed the test. We were able to employ some of those but generally wiped out the advantage of additional personnel.

We anticipated a large number of employees under the budget. We proposed to the Civil Service Commission that they establish a new correctional officer examination on a college basis for the District of Columbia without a written test. The results were astounding. Normally recruiting-70 some applicants. The new exam process gave us over 750. The Civil Service reviewed our findings and reissued correctional officer examinations in November of last year fully adopting our plan and eliminating the written test. It is now in effect and is used by both the Department of Corrections and the Bureau of Prisons. We have less than 2-percent vacancy account in our institutional and correctional officers out of the total correctional staff of 800. We now feel confident that we can meet any recruitment need that may come up in the immediate future. The recruitment and labor market is such that positions of correctional officers, with professional people, we feel we would be able to respond.

Ân additional area in which the Department has made great strides is in employment of minority members. In 1967 the minority representation on our present force was under 20 percent. In 1971 it has increased to 43 percent and still being increased.

The increase can partly be attributed to the move of the personnel office from Lorton to central headquarters in the District and to increased progress in the District community area. We are constantly searching for highly qualified applicants regardless of social makeup but accept the responsibility for increasing the opportunity for District residents to participate in their community affairs.

Another area in which we have been able to move forward is employment of offenders and ex-offenders in the Department by efforts to obtain employment for men returning to the community by our institution

In January 1970 the Department obtained a $40,000 grant to develop an inmate personnel system supplemented by our previous program. The grant had as its purpose the development of an increased capability for identifying, developing, and stimulating an increased employment for ex-offenders in the private sector as well as Government service. We shortly had a separate unit of 15 employees to handle this effort and there were 3,000 offenders referred to our facilities.

The Department of Corrections itself employed approximately 100 of the ex-offenders and has obtained outside jobs for approximately 1,500 this past year and a half.

We currently are planning an additional request of a grant for $9,000 as part of this program to increase our job casting before an inmate is released to the community-job development and the establishment of new industries in the Department. All of these efforts when combined in a simple training program outlined by Mr. Sisson in our efforts, civil service and outside college training program will make a significant impact on the subject program. Thank you.

Senator STEVENSON. Thank you, sir.

Senator MATHIAS. Could you explain the term correctional officer in the terms in which you want to use that expression?

Mr. THOMAS. The correctional officer is what we call the backbone of the Department in that he is a community individual employee and man the institutions 24 hours a day, not only for basic security service but to participate in the informal lay counseling effort to deal with the men while they are in the institution. They are on our security force and they are also the man with whom the inmates come in contact with most and have the opportunity to influence the development of the inmate.

Senator MATHIAS. Plus the other categories of the personnel?

Mr. THOMAS. Yes; we have a large staff of in-training personnel: The social workers, the classification workers, the psychologists, the teachers, the educational specialists who are informed in participating in programs to assist the inmate and the individual in returning to the community. We also have various staff who continue the operation of the Department.

Senator STEVENSON. Do you have medical personnel in the administration?

Mr. THOMAS. Yes; we have a departmental health staff of approximately 35 physicians.

Senator STEVENSON. One of the conditions in the report is to assume responsibility for the operation of all medical facilities of the District of Columbia penal institutions. Has that recommendation been implemented?

Mr. HARDY. I believe, Mr. Chairman, I can handle that question better. The request was forwarded to the U.S. Public Health Service and they made a survey. They find that their policy does not involve

direct operation. The reason for the Task Commission recommendation was that type of service is still conducted by the Public Health Service. But the Public Health Service does not have an extended direct operation so we came out with the recommendation with a need to improve the medical services. In the interim and intervening time we have made many of the improvements recommended by the Public Health Service, primarily with respect to equipment and improvement in staff. There is an agreement in the Department and in the District government toward a new objective which is to achieve a contractual relationship between the Department of Hospital Administration and the Department of Corrections whereby the staff of the general hospital would be operating medical services for the Department of Corrections.

Senator STEVENSON. Thank you. Just a moment, Mr. Thomas. You said you had 17 employees serving 3,000 offenders. Are those employees doing job counseling?

Mr. THOMAS. Not only job counseling but job location. They go into the community and identify the jobs which are available. Senator STEVENSON. Are these employees in community service centers or do they have institutions of their own?

Mr. THOMAS. They are in the community service area but their work carries them into the institution frequently. They work with them inside prior to release and identify their prisoners' needs, desires, and aptitudes. Then they find employment for them once they are in a position to be released. We hope to increase the number of personnel available for this work.

Senator STEVENSON. Will many of the 3,000 offenders go on to halfway houses when they are released?

Mr. THOMAS. Yes; there is a continuity of service. The same people that work in the institution do work at the community centers. Some of the men before they are released to the community center have to have employment capability and the employment placement counselor plays a key part in his rehabilitation on the street.

Senator STEVENSON. You were saying in reference to new industry and employment obtained.

Mr. THOMAS. Mr. Gregory, who follows me, I think will be addressing himself to that topic. But one of our needs is to develop in the Department, and we have some men working on it, new industry to provide skills to the men while they are in the institution so when they leave they can use that skill directly in the community.

Senator STEVENSON. I see, we will have to talk to Mr. Gregory then. Thank you, Mr. Thomas.

Mr. Hardy, do you want to continue.

Mr. HARDY. The next recommendation is 6.23. The Federal Prison Industry should operate our Federal program in the Department. Mr. Chairman, I can say today that there are certain constant changes taking place in the use of inmates in state-use programs—that is manufacturing for state use. It takes a place in correction systems where the article is in the spectrum of competition with private industry. The Department of Corrections has tackled this problem because we have to stick to state use. The Urban Coalition has been working with us and Dr. Trebach works in this area with the De

partment of Corrections. In addition to the new vision we have for our industries we are also sharing up those industries which were somewhat backward at the time the recommendation was pointed out in 1966. Mr. Gregory is our Superintendent of Correction Industries at Lorton and I intend for him to give you a summary of what has been done for the past 4 or 5 years. He will talk about the role of private industry in corrections and the common market concept which I think you would like to hear about.

Mr. Gregory.

STATEMENT OF FRANK T. GREGORY, SUPERINTENDENT,

CORRECTION INDUSTRIES

Mr. GREGORY. Good morning, Mr. Chairman and Senator Mathias. Mr. Miller touched on this subject briefly. Recommendation 23, which is designed to suggest that Federal Prison Industries, Department of Justice, be contacted and reorganized to operate by correctional industries. Following this recommendation we contracted with a consultant, Mr. Markley, to do an assessment of correction industries at the institution. He outlined the problems facing the people in the District of Columbia corrections and also outlined some of the things which we will have to change occupationally if the Department of Justice and the District of Columbia Department of Corrections enter into a general agreement. The most significant thing in his report were three alternate solutions that we could enter into to meet the recommendations of the Crime Commission. He outlined a plan, plan 1, which would be an agreement between the Department of Justice and the District of Columbia for total management of the District of Columbia correctional industries by the Federal Prison Industries. Plan 2 was an arrangement between the Federal Prion Industries and District of Columbia government whereby each correctional institution would manage their own industrial program with FPI giving technical and procedural advice during the operation and information regarding availability of orders for the capabilities of District of Columbia industries. Plan 3 was an agreement whereby FPI would schedule efficient production orders to maintain full employment, stock, and finding for the District of Columbia industries.

After studies, plans and meetings throughout the period, with Federal Prison Industries included, we decided that plan 2 was the most logical approach. Subsequent to this decision the Federal Prison Industries asked Mr. Markley to survey the correctional industry and develop recommendations to make the District of Columbia correction program more viable and workable. Mr. Markley reported a number of suggestions to improve the effectiveness of the program but specifically he made four recommendations for immediate action: (1) Was that the business and accounting function of the correction industry be returned to the control of the superintendent of industries, which had been taken away from the superintendent of industries previously and turned over to the Department as a function; (2) that a cost accounting system be created; (3) that the production

control for the Department be increased; and (4) that an incentive wage system be established for all production workers.

Today all of these recommendations have been carried out. In addition to this, we have in keeping with the Markley report, discontinued the sewing room, the shoe repair shop, and the industrial foundry. These were discontinued because they were unproductive and they have very little training value for the inmates.

Today we have replaced part of the foundry with a tubular metal furniture plant which is considered better training for people in the Washington area. We expanded the furniture repair operation. We have also entered into contract with the Post Office Department with a substantial order for silk-screen printed material.

We are currently endeavoring to expand our printing facility. We are currently in the talking stage and have an agreement with GSA to develop a facility at Lorton to maintain part of the GSA fleet. We are also exploring the possibility of paying selected inmates on a minimum wage basis. We are also exploring, and Dr. Trebach will report on this a little later, the capability of establishing a commercially-operated prison industry shop. Also we are exploring the possibility of developing a five-year or six-state region mai ket for correctional industry. We feel perhaps the total operation would be a smoother operation.

Thank you. If you have any further questions, I will be glad to respond.

Senator STEVENSON. Thank you. Are there further questions?

Senator MATHIAS. I would just ask three questions. I assume the purpose is not so much to make work, but rather to provide training for the inmates, is that correct?

Mr. GREGORY. This is the general idea of correction industries. Senator MATHIAS. You mentioned some industries, but what are all the industries in operation right now?

Mr. GREGORY. Currently we are operating eight industry shops. One would be the furniture repair shop. Our largest single customer is the GSA furniture rehabilitation program. We have an industry laundry. It not only takes care of our institutional needs but it works for numerous Federal industries within the city. We have a print shop which is doing work for industry and Federal agencies. We have a garment factory which produces garments for our own institutional needs and for some Federal agencies. Our largest customer there is the institution of St. Elizabeth.

A newly created metal furniture shop in which we are now making furniture for District of Columbia public schools. We have a tag-andsign shop which makes signs for the District of Columbia and for the U.S. Government.

The silk-screen operation which is essentially a part of the printshop because of the graphic art nature is lumped pretty much in one shop.

Senator MATHIAS. Where are those shops located?

Mr. GREGORY. They are all in the work complex.

Senator MATHIAS. Do youthful offenders participate in these programs?

Mr. TREBACH. We have no industrial shops for youth offenders.