Federal Correctional Complex - Florence

The Federal Correctional Complex, Florence (FCC Florence) is a federal prison complex for male prisoners located in Colorado, about 100 miles south of Denver. It is operated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

There are four facilities at FCC Florence based on security level: Federal Correctional Institution, Florence (FCI Florence), Federal Prison Camp, Florence (FPC Florence), United States Penitentiary, Florence High (USP Florence High), and United States Penitentiary, Florence ADMAX (USP Florence ADMAX).

FPC Florence is a minimum-security facility, and FCI Florence is medium-security. USP Florence High is a high-security facility, and USP Florence ADMAX is a supermax facility which holds the most dangerous inmates in the federal prison system.

Inmates at the FCI are housed in two-person cells within the eight housing units. In the camp, inmates are housed in dormitories within the two housing units, and inmates at USP Florence High are housed in one-person and two-person cells.

Inmates at USP Florence ADMAX are housed in one-person cells. There are 10 housing units, including control unit, special housing unit, high security, general population, and pre-transfer unit.

There are 416 inmates housed at the ADMAX, 797 inmates at USP Florence High, and 1,376 inmates at the FCI and camp.

The ADMAX facility houses inmates who have been deemed dangerous, high-profile, or a national security risk. Notable inmates include former Al-Qaeda operative Zacarias Moussaoui (serving six life sentences for terrorism conspiracy for the September 11 attacks), Dzhokhar Tsarnaev (sentenced to death by lethal injection for his participation in the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing), and Terry Nichols (serving 161 life sentences for the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing).

Prison Insights

Visiting Hours and Rules

Visiting Hours at FCI Florence, the Satellite Camp, and USP Florence High are on Saturdays, Sundays, and Federal Holidays from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Visiting hours at USP Florence ADMAX are on Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, and Federal Holidays from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

The visiting rules and regulations vary based on the facility the inmate is housed in. We will share some of the more general rules for each facility. But, to get more detailed information, please contact the specific location directly.

Getting on the Approved Visit List

Authorized visitors who can visit an inmate include family, friends, and associates. You can't visit an inmate unless he puts you on the visiting list.

Everyone must fill out a visitor form, and they must have a relationship with the inmate prior to incarceration. If a potential visitor does not have a prior relationship with the inmate, their request will be reviewed by the warden.

Once the inmate requests to add someone to their visit list, a correctional counselor will provide them with a visiting form, and the inmate is responsible for mailing these out and letting the potential visitor know that they need to fill out the form and return it to the institution staff.

The unit team will do a background check and determine if a visitor application is approved. They make their decision based on constructive and security factors. The process takes about a week, and the unit staff will notify the inmate when the requested visitor is approved or refused.

It is the inmate’s responsibility to notify the visitor of the decision, and the process is the same for both adult and minor visitors.

Basic Visit Procedures and Rules

Inmates at the FCI and satellite camp will be limited to five approved adult visitors at any one time. Children 15 and under will not count toward the total number of visitors.

Inmates at USP Florence High will be limited to a total of four adults and six children.

Inmates at USP Florence ADMAX are limited to a total of three visitors, including children.

All visitors are subject to a visual and pat search by an officer. You will also be scanned by a metal detector. Any item you bring into the facility will be opened and searched by a staff member, and anyone who refuses a search of themselves or their property will not be allowed to visit with the inmate.

Visitors 16 years of age or older must have a current government-issued photo ID (driver’s license, state ID, passport).

All visitors entering the institution for a visit will be appropriately attired.

Dresses, blouses or other apparel of a suggestive or revealing nature may not be worn. If the Front Lobby or Visiting Room Officer determines a visitor is improperly attired he/she will contact the Operations Lieutenant and Institution Duty Officer to determine whether to deny or terminate the visit.

Visiting in an extremely important family function, and dress code requirements are necessary to maintain the dignity of those involved. All visitors will be properly dressed when coming to visit at the institution.

The attire worn must be appropriate for a courtroom environment (i.e. conservative and professional). In addition, visitors are prohibited against wearing camouflage clothing, khaki colored clothing, hospital scrubs, shorts or Capri style pants whose length is more than 2 inches above the knee cap.

Visitors are prohibited against wearing shorts with a length that does not reach the middle of the wearer’s thigh. No low cut, or see-through clothing, tube or tank tops, backless clothing, low cut (e.g., V-neck) shirts or dresses, sleeveless, halter tops, crop tops, cap sleeves, break away pants, open toe shoes, swimsuits, sweat suits, or any other apparel of a suggestive or revealing nature (e.g., skin-tight clothing, etc.).

If a visitor chooses to wear a dress, the length of the dress will not be shorter than the natural break of the wearer’s leg, at the back of the knee. This requirement includes any type of slit or cut in the dress.

With the exception of religious headgear, hats may not be worn during visits.

No gang related attire or fashions will be allowed in the visiting room, this includes sagging of the pants. Shirts must also be tucked in if deemed excessively long.

Sundresses, jackets, overcoats and excessive jewelry are not permitted.

Visitor purses, coats, car keys, cell phones, cameras, recording devices, watches, jackets, headgear, etc., must be secured in the lockers provided.

Visitors are authorized to bring the following items into the visiting room:

1) Clear change purse (eight inches or less in height and width).

2) $30.00 (bills, no larger than five dollar bills) total each day, per adult visitor.

3) Required prescription medication will be supervised by the Visiting Room Officers at their station, and accessed by the adult when necessary.

4) Jewelry, with the exception of wrist watches/timepieces/electronic sports bands of any sort.

5) Clear diaper bag containing up to 6 of each of the following items: baby food or formula (in a sealed, unopened container - no zip-lock style bags with any substance inside will be permitted), empty plastic baby bottles, diapers, and one baby blanket. The diaper bag will be supervised by the Visiting Room Officers at their station, and accessed by the parent when needed.

There is no limit on the amount of mail that inmates receive, but all correspondence must have the inmate’s complete name, registration number, facility name, and address.

You can only send cards or letters to these addresses. Paperback books, newspapers, and

magazines must come directly from the publisher via a subscription or mail order.

Inmates cannot receive packages through the mail, with the exception of a package of release day clothing. You can't send the release day package until 30 days prior to the scheduled release date.

How to Call an Inmate

Federal inmates are not allowed to have cellphones and they can't receive inbound calls. They can make outbound calls during approved hours, and they must pay for them with the money that is on their personal account or call collect.

Inmates will use TRULINCS to call to both landline and cell phones. This is also how inmates are able to send and receive emails. Your number must be added to the contact list for approval.

All phone calls are limited to 15 minutes, and will be monitored and recorded.

How to Send Money

Sending money is one of most important things you can do for an inmate. The prison will issue each prisoner the minimum amount of clothing and hygiene items, and provide them with three meals a day. But, it is extremely difficult for prisoners to have any level of comfort when living with just the items that are prison-issued.

Inmates can receive outside funds while incarcerated at a BOP-managed facility, which are deposited into their commissary accounts.The process for sending money is the same for prisoners at every facility at FCC Florence.

Postal Service

For federal prisoners, you can send money through the United States Postal Service by MONEY ORDER to the following address:

Federal Bureau of Prisons
Inmate Name
Eight-Digit Register Number
Post Office Box 474701
Des Moines, Iowa 50947-0001

Send the funds to the address above. Replace the second line with the inmate's valid, full committed name. Replace the third line with the inmate's eight digit register number.

Never send money directly to the prison. If you are using the postal service, you must always send your money order to the bureau of prisons using the above address.

MoneyGram

You can send an inmate funds electronically using MoneyGram's Express Payment Program.
To send funds using this method, please read and follow these steps carefully:

• Wait until an inmate has physically arrived at Florence FCC.
• Gather the information you'll need.
• Which includes the inmate’s name and number.
• Visit moneygram.com to complete your payment.

Information needed to complete MoneyGram payment:

• Account Number: Inmate's eight-digit register number with no spaces or dashes, followed immediately by the inmate's last name (example: 12345678DOE).
• Company Name: Federal Bureau of Prisons
• City & State: Washington, DC
• Receive Code is always: 7932
• Beneficiary: Inmate's full committed name

Western Union

If you would like to see a sample Western Union form click here. On their website, they have a special form for sending money to inmates, and you go directly to it by clicking here.

You will need to know the inmate’s full name and number, and you can pay with a debit or credit card at westernunion.com. Remember, any time you send money to an inmate you must always include their name and registration number on everything.

There are a few things that inmates can spend their money on. This includes phone calls, emails, and commissary.  The commissary is the prison store, where inmates can buy things like beverages, meals and snacks, OTC medications, stationary, personal hygiene items, electronics, clothing, or other miscellaneous products.

Please be aware that prisoners have their own economy inside the prison walls just like we do in the real world. Inmates that have a lot of money can do a lot of things both legal and illegal. Prisoners can potentially use the money in their account to buy things for other inmates in exchange for drugs and paraphernalia. This activity is illegal and can get an inmate in a lot of trouble.

Is important to keep track of how much money you are sending your incarcerated loved one, and watch out for any suspicious behavior.

​Programs For ​Inmates

FCI Florence and Camp:

• Residential Drug Abuse Program (RDAP), Non-Residential Drug Abuse Treatment (N-RDAP), Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous, and the People in Prison Entering Sobriety program
• GED, English as a Second Language, Parenting, Career Counseling
• Advanced Occupational Education in Building Trades, Cabinet/Furniture Maker, Computer-Assisted Drafting, and Restaurant Management/Culinary Arts, and Green Energy
• UNICOR job facility that makes office furniture

USP Florence High:

• Non-Residential Drug Abuse Program (NR-DAP)
• GED
• English as a Second Language

USP Florence ADMAX: (all conducted in the inmate’s cell)

• Drug abuse education class
• Non-Residential Drug Abuse Program (RDAP)
• GED
• English as a Second Language
• Advanced Occupational Education in Restaurant Management/Culinary Arts

Pictures of Federal Correctional Complex - Florence

Careers at Federal Correctional Complex - Florence

If you are interested in pursuing a career with the Federal Bureau of Prisons, you can find available positions at FCC Florence by visiting USAJobs.gov. The salaries at the facility begin around $40,000 and can go up into the six-figure range, depending on the position.

Reviews from employees at FCC Florence report that it was a good place to work, with an excellent team. Jobs at FCC Florence offer above average work/life balance, above average pay, and an excellent benefit package.