Whether the Bureau of Prisons must consider future First Step Act time credits when determining prerelease custody placement and when prisoners begin earning such credits

The First Step Act of 2018 established incentives for federal prisoners to participate in evidence-based recidivism reduction programs and productive activities. Among these incentives is a new type of sentencing time credit that is to be used to reduce a prisoner's term of imprisonment and increase the time a prisoner spends in prerelease custody, which includes placement in a residential reentry center or on home confinement. This case raises two questions regarding the time credit provisions of the First Step Act. 1. At what point in a federal prisoner's sentence do they begin and end earning time credits for their participation in programs and productive activities? 2. Is the Bureau of Prisons obligated to consider time credits that a prisoner will undoubtedly earn in the future when making prerelease custody placement determinations?